Trusts & Estates Counsel
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Trusts & Estates Counsel – Private Wealth Practice
Location: Philadelphia (Hybrid)
ABOUT US
Sterlington PLLC is a full-service law firm focusing on complex corporate,
litigation, executive compensation, and private wealth matters. We focus on the
economic and the legal aspects of our matters.
Among other strengths, Sterlington is the ultimate law firm for founders, senior
executives, and UHNWIs as well as their related businesses.
Learn more at: www.sterlingtonlaw.com/ [https://www.sterlingtonlaw.com/]
PRACTICE
Sterlington’s Private Wealth group is led by Daniel Cooper, a seasoned private
wealth practitioner who built this practice around a straightforward conviction:
the most consequential moments in a family’s financial life deserve the most
capable counsel. He is joined by deputy head Emalee Welsh and partners Daniel
Carmody and Alexandra Buckingham. You would work within an integrated team of
trusts and estates, income tax, and estate administration lawyers alongside
estate and fiduciary accountants, so expertise sits inside the practice rather
than down the hall.
The practice serves founders at liquidity, executives navigating complex
compensation structures, multigenerational families managing legacy assets, and
UHNW individuals whose estates demand sophisticated planning across tax, trust
law, asset protection, and family governance. We operate at the intersection of
law and wealth strategy; organized around what our clients keep, not just what
we document.
WHAT YOU’LL DO
Your work will span the full arc of complex private wealth practice:
* Design and implement advanced estate plans for clients with taxable estates
exceeding $75M — including GRATs, SLATs, IDGTs, BDITs/BDOTs, QPRTs,
non-grantor trusts, CLTs, CRTs, and private foundations
* Advise on estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax strategy,
including multi-generational wealth transfer and dynasty trust structures
* Oversee trust and estate administration — probate, fiduciary compliance,
post-mortem tax planning, and decanting
* Counsel on business succession planning: transfer of closely held entities,
buy-sell agreements, recapitalizations, and GRAT/installment sale
strategies
* Coordinate with family offices, investment advisors, accountants, and
fiduciaries to deliver integrated, seamless counsel
* Manage sensitive, multi-party family dynamics with the discretion and
emotional intelligence these relationships require
EXPERIENCE
* J.D. from a top-tier law school; LL.M. in Taxation or Estate Planning
strongly preferred
* Active membership in a U.S. state bar (PA, FL, NY, CA, TX, IL, or DC
preferred)
* Minimum eight years of experience in trusts and estates law, with a focus on
UHNW clients
* Mastery of federal estate, gift, and GST tax laws; familiarity with
state-level nuances and fiduciary income taxation
* Proven track record of handling planning and administration matters for
clients with net worths exceeding $75M
* Experience advising family offices, business owners and multigenerational
wealth structures
COMPENSATION
Compensation at Sterlington is competitive and structured around the quality of
the person and the context they bring. We take both seriously. Full-time
employees are eligible for Medical, Dental, Vision, and 401(k).
Sterlington uses E-Verify to confirm employees' work authorization.
At Sterlington, we believe that world-class talent has no boundaries. We are
committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment where unique
perspectives are valued and every individual has the opportunity to thrive. We
encourage all qualified candidates to apply.