OToole_Martin

Martin W. O’Toole

Partner

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, New York, by Best Lawyers®. He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell, included in Super Lawyers from 2007-2022 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 fields of Trusts & Estates Law and Elder Law. 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

  • Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® for Trusts and Estates Law; Elder Law
  • Selected to the Upstate New York Super Lawyers list, 2007-2022
  • Named to The Daily Record’s Power 20 in Trust & Estates list, 2021 and 2022
  • Named as Best Lawyers® 2011 Trusts and Estates “Lawyer of the Year” in Rochester, NY
  • 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

NEWS

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

PRACTICE AREAS

ADMISSIONS

  • New York

EDUCATION

  • Cornell University, J.D., magna cum laude
  • Hamilton College, A.B., magna cum laude

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, New York, by Best Lawyers®. He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell, included in Super Lawyers from 2007-2022 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 fields of Trusts & Estates Law and Elder Law. 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

  • Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® for Trusts and Estates Law; Elder Law
  • Selected to the Upstate New York Super Lawyers list, 2007-2022
  • Named to The Daily Record’s Power 20 in Trust & Estates list, 2021 and 2022
  • Named as Best Lawyers® 2011 Trusts and Estates “Lawyer of the Year” in Rochester, NY
  • 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

NEWS

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

PRACTICE AREAS

ADMISSIONS

  • New York

EDUCATION

  • Cornell University, J.D., magna cum laude
  • Hamilton College, A.B., magna cum laude
OToole_Martin
Martin W. O’Toole