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Regarded by clients as a thoughtful, diligent and skilled lawyer

James J. Gallagher, II

Partner

Overview

Jim Gallagher maintains a comprehensive business and tax practice that includes the preparation of wills, trusts, and other estate planning documents. In his business practice, Jim counsels and advises clients on business formation and management, including the drafting of operating agreements and stockholder agreements. He is experienced in the preparation, review, and negotiation of documents for the purchase and sale of assets or stock or other equity interests, as well as commercial and employment-related contracts. Through the representation of physicians and physician groups, Jim has also developed a thorough understanding of federal and state healthcare regulatory compliance issues, which accentuates his ability to counsel healthcare industry clients on business and tax matters.

In his trusts and estates practice, he counsels clients on diverse matters, from implementing transfer tax minimization strategies to understanding the fundamentals of a basic estate plan, such as the use of powers of attorney and healthcare directives, and the coordination of an estate plan with existing retirement plans and insurance policies. In addition to drafting and reviewing trust instruments and utilizing them to address clients’ needs for tax planning, asset protection, and family wealth preservation, Jim is well-versed in estate administration, trust reformation, and the relocation of trusts to Delaware.

Recent Matters

  • Development of estate plans, including strategies for lifetime gifting and transfer tax minimization that employ limited liability companies, trusts, and other entities
  • Advising local, national, and international business owners of closely held Delaware entities on formation, management structure, tax planning, ownership transfer, and succession planning>
  • Navigating federal and state income and employment tax issues arising out of sale and merger transactions
  • Advising medical practices on mergers and acquisitions, federal and Delaware regulatory compliance, hospital integration, and buy-sell arrangements
  • Advising local business entities on the implementation of employment agreements, bonus compensation strategies, and non-compete agreements
  • Counseling clients on the uses of Delaware trusts as part of multi-generational transfer planning and in connection with asset protection strategies
  • Advising personal representatives or beneficiaries concerning matters of estate and trust administration, including estate, gift and income tax issues, and post-mortem planning and tax-saving strategies
  • Representing clients in the resolution of tax controversies with the Internal Revenue Service and Delaware Division of Revenue
  • Advising nonprofit organizations on management issues and application for federal tax exemption

Professional Affiliations

Delaware State Bar Association

  • Section of Taxation, Chair, 2013-2014
  • Estates and Trusts Section, Secretary, 2017-2018
  • Health Law Section

American Bar Association

  • Taxation
  • Business Law
  • Real Property, Trust and Estate Law
  • Health Law

Wilmington Tax Group
Estate Planning Council of Delaware
Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, Tax Committee

Publications

Articles & Publications

News & Events

News & Events

Community

Community

Home Owners of Edgewood Hills, Board Member and President

Recognition

Honors

Chambers High Net Worth, Recognized for Private Wealth Law in Delaware, 2020 - Present

Best Lawyers, 2018 - Present

Delaware Today Top Lawyers

  • Trusts & Estates, Healthcare Law, 2018
  • Business-Commercial law, 2019
  • Healthcare Law, 2021

Corporate INTL Tax Planning - Law Firm of the Year, 2018

University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Associate Editor

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