Bill represents privately-owned businesses, individuals, and fiduciaries in the areas of estate and trust administration, estate planning, business law, estate and gift tax controversies, and contested trust and estate proceedings. He believes it is important for lawyers to be both students and teachers, and he devotes significant time to both. Bill understands that exceptional results in any legal matter stem from knowledge of the finer points. Bill also serves as a mediator in complex trust and estate cases; and he serves as an expert witness in litigation cases involving trust, estate, transfer tax and related issues.

Education

• Walnut Hills High School, Diploma, 1968
  Cincinnati, Ohio
• Denison University, B.A., History, 1972
  Granville, Ohio
• Ohio State University College of Law, J.D. (cum laude),1976
  Columbus, Ohio
• Certificate of Completion, Mediation of Disputes for Lawyers, Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School, October 2-6, 2017

Bar Admissions

• Ohio 1976
• United States District Court, Southern District of Ohio 1976
• United States Tax Court 1986

Professional Affiliations

• Cincinnati, Ohio, and American Bar Associations
• Cincinnati Bar Association (Trustee, 2013 - 2017)
• Member of OSBA Estate Planning, Trust, and Probate Law Section Council (Chair, Business Entities Committee)
• Fellow, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel
• Cincinnati Estate Planning Council (President, 2008-2009)
• Editorial Advisory Board, Probate Law Journal of Ohio

Recognitions

• Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, 2021, “Litigation - Trusts and Estates Law,” Cincinnati
• Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, 2018, “Closely Held Companies and Family Businesses Law,” Cincinnati
• Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, 2017, “Tax Law,” Cincinnati
• Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, 2014, “Litigation – Trusts and Estates Law,” Cincinnati
• Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, 2013, “Trusts and Estates Law”, Cincinnati
• Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, 2012, “Litigation – Trusts and Estates Law”, Cincinnati
• “U.S. News and World Report – Best Lawyers, Best Law Firms in Cincinnati, Tier 1 in “Trusts and Estates Law”, “Litigation – Trusts and Estates Law”, “Tax Law”, and “Closely Held Companies and Family Business Law.”
• Highest rating (AV) from the attorney and law firm rating service, Martindale-Hubbell
  
• OSBA Board Certified in Estate Planning, Trust, and Probate Law
  
• Listed in The Best Lawyers in America in categories of “Trusts and Estates Law”, “Litigation – Trusts and Estates”, “Tax Law”, and “Closely Held Companies and Family Business Law.”
• Recognized by Thomson Reuters as an Ohio Super Lawyer, as well as one of the top 50 Cincinnati Super Lawyers (top five in 2012 and 2014) and one of the top 100 Ohio Super Lawyers
  
• Recognized by Cincy Magazine as a Leading Lawyer in the field of Trust law
• 2011 Trustees’ Award, Cincinnati Bar Association

Recent Professional Contributions

• Modernization of Ohio LLC Law, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, January/February 11, 2021
• Co-Chair with Ken Coyne of the Marvin R. Pliskin Advanced Probate and Estate Planning Seminar, September 11, 2020
• Instructor with Ken Coyne and Kacey Marr Vaught of a 15 week course on Estate Planning and Drafting, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, presented January through April, 2019
• The Unexpected Case of Nancy Powell, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, May/June, 2018
• Presentation regarding Estate of Nancy H. Powell v. Commissioner, 148 T.C. 18 (2017), ACTEC 2018 Ohio Meeting, Cincinnati, Ohio, April 29, 2018
• Update on IRC § 2704(b)(4) Proposed Regulations, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, November/December, 2016
• Amendments to Ohio LLC Statutes, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, July/August, 2016
• Valuation Beyond the Basics, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, May/June, 2016
• Presentation regarding Valuation: Beyond the Basics, ACTEC 2016 Ohio Meeting, Columbus, Ohio, April 16, 2016
• Presentation with Ken Coyne regarding Changing Trusts in Changing Times, Butler County Bar Association Probate Law Seminar, February 15, 2016
• Instructor with Mark Stiebel and Ken Coyne of an 18-week course on Estate Planning and Drafting, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, presented January through May, 2016
• Immortalizing the Settlor’s Voice, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, May/June, 2015
• Presentation with Kenneth P. Coyne regarding Trust Modifications Based on the Ohio Trust Code: The Grantor & Trustee Perspectives, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, 32nd Annual Advanced Estate Planning Institute, February 27, 2015
• Instructor with Mark Stiebel and Ken Coyne of an 18-week course on Estate Planning and Drafting, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, presented January through May, 2014
• Presentation entitled “Ten Things You Need To Know About Portability,” Best Ideas, Cincinnati Estate Planning Council, May 8, 2014
• Presentation regarding Portability, 54th Annual Southwestern Ohio Tax Institute, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, December 6, 2013
• Co-author, Valuation of Oil and Gas Interests, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, July/August 2012
• Instructor with Mark Stiebel of an 18-week course on Estate Planning and Drafting, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, presented January through May, 2012
• Panel presentation regarding Valuation of Oil and Gas Interests, ACTEC 2012 Ohio meeting, Columbus, Ohio
• Presentation regarding Estate Planning in a Time of Legislative Dysfunction, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, 52nd Annual Southwestern Ohio Tax Institute, December, 2011
• Presentation regarding Federal Estate Tax: Recent Developments and Practical Implications, OSBA 2011 Annual Convention, May 6, 2011, Columbus, Ohio
• Selected Income Tax Issues for Estates and Trusts (including Carryover Basis for 2010 Decedents), Probate Law Journal of Ohio, March/April 2011
  
• Presentation regarding Selected Income Tax Issues for Estates and Trusts (including Carryover Basis for 2010 Decedents), sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, 28th Annual Advanced Estate Planning Institute, February 11, 2011
• Presentation regarding Federal Estate and Income Tax Update and Planning Strategies, sponsored by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, November 18, 2010
  
• Panel presentation regarding Audits & Appeals of Gift & Estate Tax Cases, ACTEC 2010 Ohio meeting, Cleveland, Ohio
  
• Instructor with Mark Stiebel of an 18-week course on Estate Planning and Drafting, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, presented January through May, 2010
  
• Presentation regarding Estate Tax Apportionment, sponsored by the Ohio State Bar Association, Marvin R Pliskin Advanced Probate and Estate Planning Seminar, September 11, 2009  
• Presentation regarding Interplay Among IRC Sections 2033, 2035, 2036, and 2043 In FLP/FLLC Estate Tax Inclusion, ACTEC 2009 Ohio Meeting, Columbus, Ohio
  
• Estate Tax Apportionment - silence may be golden, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, May/June 2009
  
• Presentation regarding Estate Tax Apportionment Clauses: Better To Say A Lot or Say A Little?, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, 26th Annual Advanced Estate Planning Institute, February 27, 2009
  
• Instructor with Mark Stiebel of an 18-week course on Estate Planning and Drafting, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, presented January through May, 2008
  
• Presentation regarding Drafting and Discussion Points for Ohio Estate Tax, sponsored by the Cincinnati Bar Association, October, 2007
  
• Transfer Tax Valuation – It Helps to Have a Good Imagination, Probate Law Journal of Ohio, September/October, 2007
  
• Presentation regarding Hard To Value Assets:  Thinking Inside The Box, sponsored by the Ohio State Bar Association, Marvin R. Pliskin Advanced Probate and Estate Planning Seminar, September 14, 2007
  
• Presentation regarding Foundational Principles in Federal Transfer Tax Valuation, sponsored by the University of Kentucky, 34th Annual Midwest/Midsouth Estate Planning Institute, July 21, 2007

Community Activities

• Member of Board of Trustees, Bethesda Foundation, Inc. (Past Chair of the Board)

Attorneys

• William R. Graf
• Kenneth P. Coyne
• Naveen V. Ramprasad
• Nicholas M. Eaton

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