Richard Johnson is a partner at Waller Lansden. His practice focuses on three areas: advising closely held companies; assisting high net worth individuals with tax, estate and gift planning; and providing counsel to tax-exempt organizations.
Mr. Johnson represents large, closely held companies in a broad range of industries. In addition to advising these companies on business law and operational matters, Mr. Johnson integrates ongoing corporate objectives with the long-range goals of company owners and family ownership groups. Mr. Johnson was a member of the Tennessee Bar Association committee that drafted legislation for the Tennessee Revised Limited Liability Company Act enacted in 2005. Mr. Johnson combines his vast experience with S corporations, LLCs and partnership law with strategic tax planning to minimize corporate and personal tax liabilities on both the state and federal levels. Mr. Johnson also counsels the owners of closely held businesses on business succession planning and entity restructuring to help ensure the smooth transition of ownership and operation from one generation to the next.
In addition to business owners and entrepreneurs, Mr. Johnson represents other high net worth individuals, including corporate officers and executives, investors and families with inherited assets. Mr. Johnson assists in ensuring the security and financial stability of individuals and their families by protecting and retaining wealth through strategic planning related to income, estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxes. He has utilized grantor retained annuity trusts, qualified personal residence trusts, family limited partnerships, life insurance trusts, family dynasty trusts, charitable split interest trusts and private foundations to develop comprehensive asset transfer strategies that not only minimize tax liabilities but fulfill family and charitable objectives. Mr. Johnson's private wealth experience also includes the creation and implementation of family offices and private trust companies. Within this context, Mr. Johnson provides counsel on the effective use of personal and charitable gifts, life insurance, employee death benefits, stock options and other types of asset ownership to minimize the burden of estate taxes.
Mr. Johnson advises large tax-exempt foundations and public charities on formation and operation matters, including issues related to maintaining tax-exempt status. In April 2005 he provided testimony to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee with regard to possible new regulations and reforms aimed at curbing abuses in the management of not-for-profit organizations. His testimony was based on his experience representing the State of Tennessee in its efforts to return the $100 million Maddox Foundation to Tennessee after its controversial move to Mississippi.
Mr. Johnson is recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® (Woodward White, Inc.) for his work in tax and trusts and estates law. He is the co-author of The Tennessee Chapter, ABA Property Tax Handbook and was formerly the Tennessee state editor for the Journal of Multi-State Taxation.
Professional Activities
· Member, Nashville, Tennessee, Florida and American Bar Associations
· Tax Advisor to the Tennessee Bar Association
· Fellow, American College of Trusts and Estates Counsel
· Fellow, Nashville Bar Foundation
· Director, Nashville Estate Planning Council
· Member, Tax Section of the American Bar Association
· Member, Probate Trust and Real Property Section of the American Bar Association
· Co-author, Tennessee Chapter, ABA Sales & Use Handbook
· Former Chairman, Tax Section of the Tennessee Bar Association
· Former Chairman, Estate Planning Committee of the Nashville Bar Association
· Former Chairman, Committee of the Tax Section of the Nashville Bar Association
· Commentator and lecturer at various tax seminars
Articles
4/5/2011, Estates of Decedents Passing in 2010 - Extension of Election to Opt Out of Estate Tax and Allocation of Basis to Assets
12/17/2010, Estate and Gift Tax Provisions Contained in the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010
1/13/2009, Interest Rate Cut from IRS Provides an Easy Way To Transfer Wealth Free Of Estate And Gift Taxes
9/18/2008, Firm Ranked Number One for Health Care, Government Relations, Mass Tort Litigation, Bankruptcy, Antitrust and Tax Law in Nashville and Tennessee
7/8/2008, Board Members and Executive Directors of Nonprofit 501(c) organizations: Look Out for the New Form 990 Tax Return!
9/11/2007, Waller Lansden News: Best Lawyers in America Honors 45 Waller Lansden Attorneys
10/7/2005, Ask the Legal Professional As Seen in the Nashville Business Journal on October 7, 2005: Are there any new incentives to make charitable contributions before year-end?
9/26/2005, Congress Allows 100% Deduction for Cash Charitable Contributions Made Before December 31
9/2/2005, Opportunities Available for Employers to Provide Tax-Favorable Disaster Relief
8/16/2005, An Update on Deductions for Personal Use of Aircraft
6/28/2005, Tennessee Modifies the Unlimited Liability Exception to the Franchise and Excise Tax
6/10/2005, Now is the Time to Get Your Tax-Exempt House in Order
4/4/2005, Waller Lansden Attorneys Richard Johnson and Joseph Woodruff Testify on Charity Regulations
3/18/2005, Major Overhaul of Tennessee's Limited Liability Company Act Introduced in Legislature
3/4/2005, Will Construction: Does a Will Really Mean What it Says?
1/31/2005, How to Overcome the Fear of Planning for Succession As Seen in the Family Business Section of the Nashville Business Journal on January 28, 2005
12/31/2004, Waller Lansden Attorney Richard Johnson Elected a Fellow of The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel
10/14/2004, Sixteen Waller Lansden Attorneys Named in the 2005-2006 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America
Published by Woodward White, Inc.
2/25/2004, IRS Permits Full Deduction for Non-Business Use of Private Airplanes