Estate and Tax Planning For Individuals and Probate Matters

Commercial Real Estate Transactions and Leasing

Attorney Grievance Matters and Ethics Compliance

      Our corporate practice focuses on the representation of small companies with sales volume under $50 million. We provide advice and counsel in the areas of Federal and State corporate laws, securities laws, commercial financing, real property acquisitions and mergers and acquisitions. We are able to provide considerable expertise in the tax aspects and structuring of acquisitions, divestitures and corporate finance matters. The base of our corporate clientele consists of companies that we helped to form, aided through the start-up stages and continue to represent in tax planning, acquisitions, corporate finance and contractual agreements.

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      Approximately thirty (30%) percent of our practice activity focuses on estate planning matters including income, gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer tax planning, charitable giving, the transfer of family owned business enterprises, the creation of charitable foundations and trusts and the resolution of disputes about the management and disposition of family owned businesses. Our office acts as counsel to executors and trustees and works closely with major CPA firms to effect tax planning opportunities and savings for individuals, estates and in the administration of trusts.

      The firm also provides tax advice and counseling for individuals and corporate enterprises and in particular, provides tax guidance for acquisitions, mergers, rollups, financing workouts, restructurings and all forms of financing.

      In this connection, the firm is familiar with and has effectively used limited liability companies, family limited partnerships, charitable trusts and other tax planning devices to implement client objectives. We actively work with certified public accountants in the implementation of client objectives.

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      Our real estate practice focuses on the acquisition, financing, development, leasing and disposition of interests in commercial real estate. The firm also handles residential real estate transactions and has been corporate counsel to the Westchester County Board of Realtors, Inc., the Westchester Multiple Listing Service, Inc., the Putnam County Association of Realtors, Inc. and the Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service, Inc. for approximately twenty-five years. In 2001 the firm became counsel to and formed the Realtor Association and first full service multiple listing service in Manhattan. Edward I. Sumber has been the author of over one hundred forty articles on real estate transactions, real estate matters, real estate brokerage law, tax aspects of real estate transactions and real estate litigation. The firm has engaged in numerous transactions involving hotels and motels, as well as specialty buildings used in professional practices such as medical office complexes, veterinary practices, funeral homes and their related real property. The firm actively represents a diverse clientele in their real estate activities.

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      The firm is involved as advisors and counsel to attorneys concerned about legal ethics. It represent attorneys before the departmental disciplinary committees in the State of New York. Edward I. Sumber, is the past Chairman of that Grievance Committee (appointed by the Judges of the Appellate Division). Mary F. Kelly, who acts "Of Counsel" to the firm, is also a past Chairman of that Committee. In this connection, the firm acts as counsel to law firms by analyzing conflicts of interest in corporate and litigation matters and in providing general advice regarding the supervision and maintenance of high ethical standards by staff members. Both Mr. Sumber and Ms. Kelly are frequent lecturers to Bar Associations in the Hudson Valley on ethics and grievance matters.

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