Adam is a Partner in the Firm’s Estate Planning and Administration Group where he advises individuals and traditional and non-traditional families on all aspects of estate planning, planned charitable giving, probate, and estate and trust administration.
Adam has extensive experience in the preparation and administration of wills, trusts, powers of attorney and sophisticated estate planning techniques, including generation-skipping trusts, qualified personal residence trusts, life insurance trusts, and charitable lead and remainder trusts. Adam enjoys working closely with clients to create and execute plans that achieve their personal goals while minimizing taxes, maximizing benefits to beneficiaries, and preserving wealth.
Activities and Affiliations
- American Bar Association (Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section)
- District of Columbia Bar Association (Former Chair, Estate Planning Committee, DC Bar Taxation Community; Estates, Trusts and Probate Law Community)
- Maryland State Bar Association (Estate and Trust Law Section)
- New York State Bar Association
- Graduate of Class I of the ACTEC Mid-Atlantic Fellows Institute (2019-2020)
- National Capital Gift Planning Council
- Greater Washington Community Foundation (Formerly on the Professional Advisors Council (PAC) and Grants Committee)
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Books
- Maryland Estate Planning and Probate Laws Annotated, Thomson-West (2013-14 ed.)
Publications
Blog Posts
November 9, 2020
One question that clients frequently ask is “How often should we review our estate planning?” Although a comprehensive estate plan should not require frequent, extensive review, we recommend regular, periodic reviews of your core estate planning documents (will, revocable trust, financial power of attorney, advance health care directive) to ensure the documents accomplish your current objectives, especially if your circumstances or wishes have changed.
You should also consider the potential impact of changes in tax laws on your estate plan. Under a 2017 law, the federal estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemption amounts were temporarily doubled (see “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: Impact on Estate and Gift Planning,” Pasternak & Fidis Reporter (Spring 2018)). For 2020, the exemption amount is $11.58 million and… MORE >
July 16, 2019
One of the largest expenses a family will incur is very likely the cost of a child’s education. In order to encourage early participation in saving for education expenses, Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code permits states to provide tax-advantaged savings plans (“529 plans”). A 529 plan account may be used to help pay for a beneficiary’s tuition at an elementary or secondary public, private, or religious school (capped at $10,000 per year). It can also be used to pay higher education expenses, such as tuition, fees, books, supplies (including computers and related equipment), and room and board (on-campus and off-campus housing, with certain limitations), at an eligible higher education institution. An eligible higher education institution is generally any college, university, vocational school, or other postsecondary educational institution eligible to participate in a student aid program… MORE >
March 9, 2018
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”), signed into law at the end of December, includes major changes to the Internal Revenue Code. The Act is the most sweeping tax legislation to be enacted in decades and affects nearly all American taxpayers. Under the Act, the federal estate, generation-skipping transfer (GST) and gift tax exemption amounts have increased dramatically.
The estate tax exemption amount is the amount that an individual can pass at death to anyone without incurring estate tax, and the GST tax exemption amount is the amount that an individual can pass to grandchildren and more remote descendants without incurring GST tax. In addition to the estate tax exemption, there is the unlimited marital deduction, which permits an individual to transfer an… MORE >
