Best Lawyers in North Carolina, United States for Trusts and Estates
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Stephen Brown focuses his practice on business formation and structuring, wealth transfer planning, and litigation involving fiduciaries, trusts, estates and guardianships. He is a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law. Stephen regularly advises individuals on a range of estate planning strategies, including the use of simple and complex trust arrangements to achieve their personal and charitable objectives in a tax advantaged manner. He also has extensive experience a...
Matt Thompson has significant experience advising the firm's clients on estate planning, business succession, asset protection, charitable planning, and fiduciary matters. He is attentive to each client's unique needs, focuses on uncovering true goals and objectives, and works to find practical, effective solutions for the client's situation and problems. Matt is a North Carolina Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law. While his practice is focused on helping to protect...
Working with a select group of entrepreneurs, family businesses, and nonprofits, Adam Tarleton provides counsel on tax, estate planning, and business matters to help clients protect and preserve their wealth and achieve their personal and financial goals. He is certified as a specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law by the North Carolina Board of Legal Specialization. Adam works with high net worth individuals to design and execute estate plans that minimize the tax and other costs of tr...
Matt Kain is a trusted advisor to families seeking advice on complex estate planning, trust and estate administration, and charitable planning matters. Matt also leads the firm’s efforts representing nonprofit organizations with respect to formation, tax compliance, and governance. As a North Carolina Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law, Matt has substantial experience helping high-net-worth families and closely-held business owners achieve their estate, tax, b...
Greg is certified by the National Elder Law Foundation as a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA). He also is certified by the North Carolina State Bar both as a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law and as a Board Certified Specialist in Elder Law. Greg has been rated by his peers as being "preeminent" in his fields of law. He frequently lectures to civic and community groups and at continuing legal education seminars on various topics relating to estate planning and ad...
Bill McNairy advises businesses on structuring private equity transactions, mergers and acquisitions, public offerings, and going private transactions. Bill is a CPA who uses his accounting experience to counsel family-owned businesses on issues related to tax law, trusts and estates, and tax saving strategies. Bill has an active private equity practice. He regularly assists funds with their portfolio company investments, acquisitions and fund formation matters. Bill has worked with a wide va...
Stephen T. Byrd is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships), Closely Held Companies and Family Businesses Law, Corporate Law, Mergers and Acquisitions Law, Tax Law and Trusts and Estates. Stephen T., who practices law in Raleigh, North Carolina, has been recognized since 2018. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Stephen T. is held by other top law...
With his deep knowledge and breadth of experience in law and taxation, Mr. William R. Culp, Jr. helps clients structure their business affairs to maximize their wealth. Mr. Culp represents a wide variety of clients, from entrepreneurs and private investors to large corporate clients. Clients look to him for guidance in structuring complex business arrangements and transactions, and for solutions to the most challenging business problems. Mr. Culp's practice includes real estate and partnershi...
A shareholder at Young Moore, Sue concentrates her practice in the areas of estate planning and administration and wealth transfer. She assists individuals with the preparation, revision and updating of estate planning documents including wills, revocable living trusts, irrevocable life insurance trusts (ILITs), charitable trusts (CRATs, CRUTs, CLTs), spousal lifetime access trusts (SLATS), dynasty trusts, trusts for children, grantor retained income trusts (GRATs), qualified personal residen...
David B. McLean is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Trusts and Estates. David B., who practices law in Greensboro, North Carolina, has been recognized since 2021. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which David B. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Sara Page Waugh's practice is focused on estate planning, trust and estate administration, charitable planning, business succession planning, and tax planning for high net-worth individuals. As a member of the North Carolina and Florida state bars, Sara Page advises clients in both states with respect to their tax and estate planning needs. Her practice includes the preparation and implementation of wills, revocable trusts, and financial and health care powers of attorney. Sara Page also empl...
Deborah L. Hildebran-Bachofen has been practicing with Manning Fulton since 1988. Debbie has a broad range of experience with closely-held corporations, including corporate mergers, acquisition and structuring issues, planning and tax accounting issues, private debt placement, and tax planning. Debbie becomes an important part of the company’s outside management team, advising business owners on day-to-day operations, drafting and negotiating contracts, and advising on financial matters...
Caitlin Horne is a member of Moore & Van Allen’s Wealth Transfer group. She is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, a North Carolina Board Certified Specialist in estate planning and probate law, and holds an advanced degree in Taxation with a Certificate in Estate Planning from Georgetown University Law Center. Caitlin’s practice is focused on providing high-net-worth individuals and multigenerational families with sophisticated estate, tax, and busin...
Thomas Cooper’s practice is focused on tax planning, trust and estate planning and administration, business succession, and transactional and business matters that arise in connection with the acquisition, ownership, and operation of closely held businesses. Thomas supports clients’ existing and prospective business interests, including representing family offices and independent sponsors in their acquisitions of closely held businesses and other investments, advising on capital s...
Chris Jones is a nationally recognized specialist in the areas of estate planning and business succession planning. Chris heads the firm’s Wealth & Estate Planning group and has substantial experience advising and counseling clients regarding sophisticated estate planning, business succession, asset protection, charitable planning, life insurance matters, and international estate planning. Understanding that each client has specific, unique objectives, Chris and his team provide cre...
Areas of Practice: Business Law & Taxation , Mergers & Acquisitions , Wills, Trusts, Estate Planning & Estate Administration Mr. Diab has substantial experience as lead counsel in structuring, negotiating and closing of mergers and acquisitions, representing both buyers and sellers in taxable and tax-free acquisitions, divestitures, strategic alliances, and investments by venture capital and private equity firms since 1990. He has represented closely-held business owners in busine...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.