Estate Planning
As an estate planning attorney, you are a trusted advisor for your clients’ most sensitive personal family issues. Every person, regardless of their level of wealth, may benefit from a carefully reasoned, prepared and executed estate plan.
Estate planning lawyers commonly work on the following issues.
- Drafting wills and assisting in probate
- Creating and administering trusts
- Structuring family businesses for continuity in future generations
- Asset management and disposition
- Tax planning and creditor protection
- Charitable giving
- Marital agreements
- Disability planning
As an estate planning attorney, you have the flexibility to work in a small or solo firm environment, at a boutique estate planning firm, or as part of a large law firm, corporate trust department or charitable organization.
Core Courses
If you choose to practice estate planning law, you will need to take these courses.
- Wills & Estates
- Trusts and Fiduciary Responsibilities
- Estate & Gift Tax
- LARW III: Estate Planning and Drafting
- LARW III: Estate Administration Drafting
Recommended Courses
Here are some courses that you should also consider. You should choose courses that interest you or that will further your career objectives.
- Marital Property
- Nonprofit Organizations
- Elder Law
- Guardianship Practicum
- Federal Income Taxation
- Taxation of Business Entities
- Business Associations I
- Business Associations II
Related Courses
Here are courses that are related to the practice of estate planning law.
- ADR Survey: Negotiation, Mediation & Arbitration
- Negotiation Theory & Practice Practicum
- The Business Negotiator
- Accounting for Lawyers (recommended for students who have not taken college-level accounting)
Clinics