Sullivan & Cromwell's Estates and Personal Clients Group continues to be one of the largest and most active groups of its kind. We represent individual clients throughout the world in all aspects of their business and personal affairs, including:
- Estate planning
- Estate and trust administration
- Family business transition
- Tax planning and litigation
- Trusts and estates litigation and dispute resolution
- Creation and administration of family partnerships, joint ventures and property holding vehicles
- Charitable activities
In addition, we help our clients address a broad range of other personal matters, ranging from employment arrangements, investment structures and personal real estate transactions to the purchase and sale of art, yachts and aircraft, personal financial matters and prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. Sullivan & Cromwell is also known as having one of the most sophisticated tax practices for individual clients of any law firm.
International Practice
For more information on S&C's international estates practice, see Representative International Matters.
The Group represents many wealthy foreign families in their U.S. legal affairs in coordination with the client's "home" counsel and with lawyers in multiple other jurisdictions located around the world. This representation includes the structuring of ownership of U.S. investment and business interests, through corporations, trusts, partnerships and limited liability companies, based upon the client's needs and tax position. We have close relationships with leading lawyers in relevant jurisdictions throughout the world and can arrange and coordinate expert counsel where required.
Family Businesses
The Group regularly advises clients in the structuring and restructuring of ownership of closely held business enterprises, in the U.S. and abroad, to best achieve long-term family goals in a tax-efficient way. One of the major challenges facing family-owned businesses is generational transition, an area in which Sullivan & Cromwell has extensive experience. We draw upon the full resources of the Firm, including lawyers in our Estates and Personal, Corporate, Securities, Real Estate, Litigation and Tax Groups, to help families structure transitions that preserve the vitality and profitability of the company, and at the same time address concerns within the family regarding control and the division of wealth.
Not-for-Profit Practice
Arising in part from its representation of wealthy individuals and families and in part from civic and cultural activities of its partners, S&C has long conducted a very active not-for-profit clients practice.
- The Firm advises major charitable and cultural institutions and private foundations throughout the world.
- The broad provisions of Chapter 42 of the Internal Revenue Code require a detailed knowledge of and experience with the tax laws to advise private foundations properly today, and our representation of private foundations is coordinated by lawyers in our Estates and Personal Clients group.
- The Firm's breadth of practice enables us to provide coordinated advice on virtually any legal issue that can arise for charitable organizations, including executive compensation, structuring of employer-employee policies and procedures, corporate organization and governance matters, real estate, environmental law, banking and investment matters and litigation.
Trusts and Estates Litigation and Dispute Resolution
For more information on S&C's trusts and estates litigation practice, see Estates Litigation. For selected S&C trusts and estates litigations, see Representative Trusts and Estates Litigations.
Sullivan & Cromwell has one of the leading trusts and estates litigation practices worldwide. Cases are often litigated in the courts of several countries simultaneously, presenting complex conflict of laws issues and requiring the coordination of litigation strategy in multiple jurisdictions. The Firm is regularly involved in cases pertaining to disputes within families regarding contested wills, trust administration, challenged gifts and forced inheritance laws. In addition to litigating these cases, we have developed a reputation for bringing about negotiated resolutions of such disputes in creative, tax-efficient ways that minimize family strife, expense and publicity.
Recent Estates and Personal Highlights
The great wealth created in recent years and the continuing globalization of business and finance have produced an increasing interest in financial, tax and estate planning. The most significant categories of work for the Group in 2006 involved the representation of family offices, the fiduciaries of large trusts and estates, not-for-profit organizations and individual clients in all aspects of their business and personal legal affairs.
Lawyers in our Group advised executives and individual and family shareholders on tax and estate planning matters in connection with some of the largest announced leveraged buyouts and other corporate transactions during 2006 in which the Firm was involved. The Group also continues to advise on succession planning for family businesses and in connection with family disputes and other litigation matters.
Recognitions
S&C's Estates and Personal Group is top ranked by prominent legal business media including Chambers USA and Chambers Global. In addition, the Firm's Estates and Personal lawyers are frequently named as leaders in their profession by publications including Chambers USA, Chambers Global, The Best Lawyers in America and New York Super Lawyers.
Representative International Matters
As one of the first "international" law firms, Sullivan & Cromwell for over 125 years has advised individuals and families throughout the world regarding their U.S.-related legal matters. Current Estates and Personal Group projects include:
Latin America
Representation of several different Latin American families in connection with estate and business succession planning. This includes the creation of offshore trusts, foundations and companies designed to retain control of various family-owned entities and to make assets available to the greatest extent to family members who are or may become U.S. persons, while limiting U.S. income, gift and estate taxation.
Multinational
Representation of numerous families with ties to both Europe and the United States in the structuring and administration of trusts throughout the leading offshore trust centers, including Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, the Channel Islands and England. These assignments often involve the incorporation of private trust companies in jurisdictions such as Bermuda, England and Guernsey.
Asia
Long-term representation of a Chinese family with holdings in Taiwan, Hong Kong, the United States and the Cayman Islands. Among many projects, we have advised on (i) various tax-advantaged structures for investment in U.S. commercial real estate intended for major hotel development, (ii) minimizing the income, gift, estate and inheritance tax consequences of residence by family members and family businesses in multiple jurisdictions, and (iii) administering the multi-national estates of deceased family members, including the negotiation of complex cross-border tax arrangements with taxing authorities. This representation, as well as a range of others in which we are engaged, requires the effective coordination with counsel, tax and business advisors in the family's "home" country or countries, as well as in the relevant trust centers and other jurisdictions in which the family may have interests.
Representative Trusts and Estates Litigations
Pritzker v. Pritzker
Representation of members of Chicago's Pritzker family in U.S. and offshore litigation regarding U.S. and Bahamian Trusts.
Denise Rich v. Alec Hackel, et al.
Representation of Swiss trustee involved in trust litigation in New York and Switzerland.
Gianoli, et al. v. Eguiguren, et al.
Representation of Latin American family in international litigation in the courts of the U.S., Chile, Jersey, Guernsey and the Cayman Islands involving will contest, inter vivos transfers and forced heirship laws.
Matter of Carroll Donner
Representation of charitable residuary beneficiary Mills College, which brought objections to executors' final accounting. Eight day bench trial resulted in substantial award to Mills College, which was unanimously affirmed by the Appellate Division, First Department, and the New York State Court of Appeals, in a decision that has since been extensively relied on by lower courts in fiduciary removal and surcharge cases. See, e.g., Matter of Duke, N.Y.L.J., May 24, 1995, p.27, col.2, at p.28, col.6 (Surr. Ct. N.Y. Co.), aff'd, 632 N.Y.S. 2d 532 (1st Dep't 1995), rev'd on other grounds, 87 N.Y. 2d 465; Matter of Janes, 165 Misc. 2d 743, 756 (Surr. Ct. Monroe Co. 1995) modified, aff'd sub nom. In re Estate of Janes, 643 N.Y.S. 2d 972 (4th Dep't 1996), aff'd sub nom. Matter of Lincoln First Bank, N.A., 1997 N.Y. LEXIS 748 (Ct. App. No.53, May 1, 1997).
Gallo Family Representation
Representation of Gallo family interests in estate tax litigation in which the estate's valuation of Gallo stock - critical to the family's overall estate plan - was upheld in the face of an I.R.S. challenge after trial in the Tax Court.
Matter of Lincoln First Bank, N.A.
Representation of the New York Clearing House Association and the New York Bankers Association, amici curiae, in the most significant New York State Court of Appeals case regarding the duties of fiduciaries since Matter of Donner. The Court rejected the application of a proposed "lost profits" or "market index" measure of damages, and held, as amici urged, in accordance with the traditional New York rule, that where a fiduciary's imprudence consists solely of negligent retention of assets, the measure of damages is loss suffered with respect to assets during the period of retention. The Court also confirmed that with respect to investments made prior to January 1, 1995, there was no absolute duty to diversify investments.
Estate of J. Seward Johnson
Representation of preliminary executrices in probate contest. After several months of jury trial, and before verdict, case settled with the trusts under the decedent's will broken and the client-beneficiary receiving approximately $350 million outright.
Practice Contacts
James I. Black III
New York
P +1-212-558-4000
F +1-212-558-3588
[email protected]
Basil P. Zirinis III
New York
P +1-212-558-4000
F +1-212-558-3588
[email protected]
