Retired

Neal E. Tackabery

Neal concentrates his practice in the areas of estate planning and administration. As the senior member of the estate planning and administration group within the firm, he counsels professionals, business owners and other individuals about methods of passing assets to their families in a manner which is both consistent with the client’s desires and tax-efficient.

Neal has been involved in most facets of wealth transfer planning and estate administration, including gift, estate and generation skipping transfer tax planning, grantor trusts, split dollar and other insurance planning, business recapitalization and restructuring, charitable giving, and estate tax audits. Neal’s past experience in business law and employee benefits gives him the ability to advise business owners and executives on their estate plans from a broad-based perspective. He has also counseled clients regarding employment contracts and pre-marital agreements.

Education

  • B.S., Northwestern University, 1972
  • J.D., Duke University, 1975; Editorial Board, Duke Law Journal

Bar Admissions

  • North Carolina, 1975

Areas of Focus

  • Estate Planning
  • Business Succession Planning
  • Estate and Trust Administration
  • IRA Distribution and Beneficiary Planning

Practice Highlights

  • Worked with business owner with terminal illness who had done little prior planning; was able to implement pre-death gift plan which saved substantial estate tax; after business owner’s death, facilitated passing full ownership of business to appropriate child while preserving family harmony.
  • Successfully guided a divided family through estate administration involving family business, retaining trust of all family members during the process.
  • Worked with several families over multiple decades, assisting them in passing wealth to lower generations.
  • Helped establish a strong, growing practice group within the firm.

Professional & Civic Activities

  • Past President, Winston-Salem Estate Planning Council

Awards & Civic Certifications

  • North Carolina Super Lawyers
  • The Best Lawyers in America© – Trusts and Estates and Tax Law
  • Business North Carolina Magazine – Legal Elite