Marty is well respected both locally and state-wide as a dean of Trusts and Estates law. He publishes and lectures regularly on Trusts and Estates law. Marty was named the 2011 Trusts & Estates Lawyer of the Year in Rochester by Best Lawyers. He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell, included in Super Lawyers® 2007-2020 in the field of Estate Planning Law and Probate. He was also selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Trusts & Estates. Marty is a magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate from Hamilton College. He was also a magna cum laude graduate from Cornell University where he earned his law degree and has taught a seminar on estate planning.
Marty understands that technical knowledge, while important, is not an end in itself. Rather, his aim is to bring the knowledge to bear in crafting a plan that reflects a client's judgment about the client's family and his or her legacy to them. He is a member of the prestigious American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.
Marty provides estate, succession, and transition planning for owners and principals of closely held businesses and high-net-worth individuals, including:
- Estate tax reduction strategies and techniques
- Charitable planning
- Transition planning for closely held businesses
- Use of trusts to leverage transfer tax credits, deductions, and exclusions
- Estate-planning issues with qualified plan benefits and IRAs
- Life insurance trusts
- Split-dollar arrangements
- Generation-skipping planning
He also represents clients before the Internal Revenue Service on transfer tax controversies. Before entering law school, Marty worked as a systems analyst, and later as a pension analyst, for a large New England insurance company.
Professional & Civic Affiliations
- Member, New York State Bar Association
- Member, Monroe County Bar Association
- Board Member, Society for Chamber Music in Rochester
- Member, Planned Giving Advisory Committee, The Carter Center, Atlanta, GA
- Former Chair, Executive Council, Trusts and Estates Section, Monroe County Bar Association
Honors & Awards
- Named as Best Lawyers® 2011 Trusts and Estates “Lawyer of the Year” in Rochester, NY
- Selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Trusts and Estates Law and Elder Law
- Selected to the Upstate New York Super Lawyers list, 2007-2020
- AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
- Member, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (“ACTEC”)
- Listed in Who’s Who in American Law, 1994-1995 and 2000-2001
- Recipient, Monroe County Bar Association, Raymond Pauley Award for Legal Education Excellence, 2007
- Cornell Law School
- Order of the Coif
- Articles Editor, Cornell Law Review, 1985-1986
- Phi Beta Kappa, Hamilton College
Publications
- Co-Author, "Implications of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act," Rochester Business Journal’s 2018 Guide to Wealth, May 2018
- Author, "2017 Federal Estate Tax Reform Prospects," Rochester Business Journal, March 10, 2017
- Author, "Significant Changes to New York Estate Tax?" Rochester Business Journal, March 14, 2014
- Co-Author, Fifth Edition of the Harris New York Estate Planning Guide
News
Press Releases
- Harter Secrest & Emery Attorneys Named to 2020 Upstate New York Super Lawyers, Rising Stars Lists, August 25, 2020
- Harter Secrest & Emery Attorneys Named to Best Lawyers In America 2020, August 15, 2019
- Harter Secrest & Emery Attorneys Named to 2019 Upstate New York Super Lawyers, Rising Stars Lists, August 14, 2019
Presentations
- "2019 Trusts & Estates Federal and NY Legislative Caselaw Update," Monroe County Bar Association, September 25, 2019
- "Estate Tax Planning After the TCJA," Monroe County Bar Association’s 53rd Annual Tax Institute, November 16, 2018
- Seminar, Estate Planning, Cornell Law School
- Annual Update, Monroe County Bar Trusts and Estates Section, 1998-2014
Admissions
- New York
Education
- Cornell University, J.D., magna cum laude
- Hamilton College, A.B., magna cum laude