Private Wealth & Closely-Held Business / Litigation
Crowe Dunlevy Secures Jury Verdict in Closely Held Business Ownership Trial
Sep 25, 2026
Will your estate plan hold up when wealth, business and family collide?
We help individuals, families and closely held business owners protect, manage and transfer wealth in ways that reflect both their financial objectives and the realities of family life. Our work ranges from wills, revocable trusts and medical powers of attorney to advanced estate and gift tax planning, charitable strategies, probate and trust administration. We represent clients across the wealth spectrum, including ultra-high-net-worth individuals, domestic and international families, artists, athletes and multiple generations of the same family. We listen closely, read between the lines and build creative but disciplined plans designed to provide flexibility, withstand IRS scrutiny and stand the test of time.
The best time to plan is before the value moves
Starting, expanding or selling a business can change a family’s financial future quickly. We work with closely held business owners before a liquidity event to evaluate ownership, freeze values when appropriate and position future appreciation outside the taxable estate. Because our team can address both the business transaction and the transfer of the resulting wealth, we provide continuity from early planning through closing and beyond. The earlier we are involved, the more options clients may have to protect value, manage taxes and preserve control.
We connect the strategy, the assets and the execution
Our service goes well beyond drafting estate planning documents. We help implement the plan, coordinate with financial institutions, retitle assets into the appropriate vehicles and prepare the returns that document the strategy. Our work includes:
- Wills, revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts and powers of attorney
- Advanced estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax planning
- Life insurance trusts and other wealth transfer vehicles
- Charitable planning, charitable trusts and private foundations
- Family office planning and coordination
- Probate, trust administration and fiduciary guidance
- Gift and estate tax returns
- Gift and estate tax audits and disputes
Our hands-on approach allows us to see the entire picture in real time and address technical issues before they become expensive problems.
As tax laws change, our plans our designed to adapt
Estate tax exemptions, charitable giving incentives and market conditions do not stand still. We help clients identify when to act, whether that means making gifts during a market dip, preserving flexibility when the law is uncertain or building provisions into documents that can respond to changing circumstances. Our approach is sophisticated and creative, but also measured: we recommend strategies that fit the family’s current financial needs, support its long-term goals and are structured to withstand scrutiny.
Protecting wealth starts with preparing the people inheriting it
Concerns about giving up control, creating dependency or fueling family conflict are often as important as the tax analysis. We help parents and grandparents engage the next generation, choose executors and trustees thoughtfully and understand how fiduciaries should work with beneficiaries and other family members. With fiduciary disputes on the rise, we build protections into the plan and step in when probate, trust administration or family relationships become contested. Our technical experience matters, but so does our ability to serve as an objective voice when the decisions are personal, and the stakes are high.
