Estate Planning, Wills & Trusts - Top Atlanta Law Firm

We assist our clients in developing personal estate plans that achieve their objectives for transferring their wealth and facilitating family harmony.

We work with our clients to fulfill these family objectives through the use of partnerships, trusts, charitable foundations and other charitable vehicles to maximize the amount received by their beneficiaries and designated charities while minimizing tax liabilities and the expenses of administration. See Probate & Estate Administration. Since federal Estate Tax Laws have changed, Income Tax Planning has become an integral part of Estate Planning. See Tax Planning & Tax Return Preparation.

Implementation of these plans includes the drafting of various legal documents such as Wills, and various tax saving trusts including Credit Shelter Trusts, Marital Deduction Trusts, Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts and Charitable Trusts. Revocable Living Trusts are sometimes used as an alternative to Wills for the disposition of assets and in the case of incapacity. As part of our estate planning review, we encourage clients to plan for the unexpected by considering Incapacity Planning where General Powers of Attorney and the Georgia Advance Directive for Health Care are useful instruments to have in place.

Our attorneys, who are licensed in Georgia, Florida and Pennsylvania, have extensive experience in this area of practice. Jacquelyn “Jackie” Saylor is an officer of the Estate Planning and Probate Section of the Atlanta Bar Association. C. Murray Saylor, Jr., Linda Muir, Ed Rappaport, and Kasey Libby are also members of the Estate Planning Section. Murray Saylor was the Chair of the Estate Planning Section of the American Academy of Attorney/CPAs. He is an attorney/CPA with an advanced degree in accounting from Wharton who was head of a national CPA tax practice. Furthermore, both Murray and Jackie volunteer for the Probate Information Center (PIC) in Fulton and DeKalb counties.

Jackie and Murray Saylor have written articles for The Mortmain, the official magazine of the Estate Planning and Probate Section. Jackie serves on the Editorial board of The Mortmain. Jackie Saylor was co-editor and co-author of Women and the Law: A Guide to Women’s Legal Rights in Georgia; she wrote the chapters on “Power of Attorney,” “Living Wills” and “Durable Power of Attorney” and she co-wrote the chapters on “Wills, Trusts and Starting Your Own Business” with Murray Saylor. Murray Saylor has also written articles for the American Association of Attorney/CPA magazine and The Atlanta Lawyer.

Ed Rappaport has written an article for the Estate Planning Magazine about Estate Planning and he has written about planned giving for healthcare professionals in Financial Planning for Physicians and Healthcare Professionals. Ed also has given presentations about Estate Planning issues at the North American Law Summit on Tax and Legal Considerations for Professional Athletes and at a lecture to the Sports and Entertainment Section of State Bar of Georgia. Linda Muir has written an article in the Georgia Bar Journal, as well as multiple articles in Paisley Magazine about Estate Planning issues. James Killough has written an article about Wills, Trusts, Estate Planning and Probate Practice in The Brunswick News.

Jackie and Murray Saylor have given presentations on Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts and Income Tax Planning for the State Bar of Georgia, the Atlanta Bar Association, and the West Georgia Health Foundation Planned Giving Seminar for planned giving professionals. Additionally, Jackie and Murray have appeared on local television advising people on Estate Planning issues.

The attorneys at The Saylor Law Firm LLP have won numerous accolades for their work in this area of practice. Jackie and Murray Saylor have been given Georgia’s Top Rated Lawyers Award in Estate Planning by Martindale-Hubbell from 2012-2016. Jackie and Murray have also been given Georgia Trend’s Legal Elite, the Best Lawyers in Taxes, Estates & Trust Category. Both attorneys have won the Georgia Super Lawyers designation for Estate Planning & Probate. Additionally, Jackie has been honored as a Top 50 Women Lawyer in Georgia by Georgia Super Lawyers.