David A. Handler, P.C. 
Professional Profile
David A. Handler is a partner in the Trusts and Estates Practice Group. Mr. Handler is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), and a member of the professional advisory committees of several non-profit organizations, including the Chicago Community Trust, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Goodman Theatre, WTTW11/98.7WFMT (Chicago public broadcasting stations) and the American Society for Technion - Israel Institute of Technology. He is among a handful of trusts & estates attorneys featured in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and was identified as one of the top 100 Illinois lawyers in the 2006 list of "Illinois Super Lawyers." He is a member of the Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trusts Advisory Board, and an Editorial Advisory Board Member of Trusts & Estates Magazine for which he currently writes the monthly "Tax Update" column. Mr. Handler is a co-author of a two-volume book on estate planning, Drafting the Estate Plan: Law and Forms (CCH). He has authored many articles that have appeared in prominent estate planning and taxation journals, magazines and newsletters, including Lawyer's Weekly, Trusts & Estates Magazine, Estate Planning Magazine, Journal of Taxation, Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trusts Journal. He is regularly interviewed for trade and news periodicals, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Lawyer's Weekly, Registered Representative, Financial Advisor, Worth and Bloomberg Wealth Manager magazines. Mr. Handler is a frequent lecturer at professional education seminars. Mr. Handler concentrates his practice on trust and estate planning and administration, representing owners of closely-held businesses, principals of private equity/venture capital/LBO funds, executives and families of significant wealth, and establishing and administering private foundations, public charities and other tax-exempt entities. Mr. Handler is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Law and received a B.S. Degree in Finance with highest honors from the University of Illinois College of Commerce.
Memberships & Affiliations
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) Fellow
Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trusts Advisory Board
Professional Advisory Committee of the Chicago Community Trust
Chicago Estate Planning Council
WTTW11/98.7WFMT Planned Giving Advisory Committee (Chicago public broadcasting stations)
The Goodman Theatre Professional Advisory Board
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago Professional Advisory Committee
The Art Institute of Chicago Gift Planning Advisory Committee
American Society for Technion - Israel Institute of Technology
American Bar Association - Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
West Northfield School District 31 School Board
Editorial Advisory Board Member of Trusts & Estates MagazineOther Distinctions
Listed in Chambers USA, America's Leading Lawyers for Business, 2006-2010
Listed in The Best Lawyers in America
Listed as one of the Top 100 lawyers in Illinois in the 2006 "Illinois Super Lawyers"
Publications
"Drafting the Estate Plan: Law and Forms" (CCH)
Chapter titled "Asset Freeze and Valuation Reduction Techniques" in "Estate Planning for Illinois Attorneys: The Basics and Beyond," published by Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (IICLE) 2001, 2003 and 2007 and bi-annual supplement
Contributing Editor of the American Bankers Association "Estate Planning Manual" (1998-1999)
Articles:
Venture Capital Review:
"Using Derivatives to 'Transfer' Carried Interests in Private Equity, LBO and Venture Capital Funds" - Spring 2006
Trusts & Estates Magazine:
Monthly Tax Update column - 2003 - present
"Economically Zeroed-Out GRATs Produce the Best Results" - January 1999
"Discounts: Know When to Hold 'Em" - October 1999
"Guaranteed GRATs: GRATs Without Mortality Risk" - December 1999
"GRAT Remainder Sale to a Dynasty Trust" - December 1999
"Retaining Testamentary Power of Appointment" - January 2000
"RPM Trusts: Turning the Table on Chapter 14" - July 2000
"The HEET Trust: A New Twist on Section 2503(e)" - July 2000
"Locking-In The Benefits of Investment-Driven Estate Planning Strategies" - January 2001
"The Estate Trust Revival: Maximizing the Full Basis Step-Up for Spouses" - August 2001
"Uses and Benefits of Conservation Easements After the 2001 Tax Act" - December 2001
"Fresh Thinking About Gift-Splitting" - January 2002
"The GRAT Remainder Sale" - December 2002
"Tax-Free Gifts of Prepaid Tuition" - February 2003
"Avoid FLPs" - May 2003
"FLPs vs. RMAs" - August 2003
"Tax Year in Review" (pullout supplement) - 2002-2009
"Bona Fide Sale" - February 2005
"The Power of Grantor Trusts" - March 2006
"The Case for Principle Trusts and Against Incentive Trusts" - October 2008
"The Net Gift Strategy: Good for a Bear Market" - December 2008
Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trusts Journal:
"RPM Trusts: A Better Way to Transfer Wealth" - Volume 50, No. 15, July 20, 2009
"Life After Strangi: What to Do with Existing Entities" - Volume 29, No. 3, May 13, 2004
"GRATs and RPM Annuity Trusts: A Comparison" - Volume 29, No. 4, July 8, 2004
Estate Planner's Alert RIA:
"Practice Alert: Accumulation QTIP Trusts: The Overlooked Provisions of the Marital Deduction Regulations" - March 2000
Estate Planning Magazine:
"The LPA LID: A New Way to `Contain' Gift Revaluations" - June 2000
CCH Journal of Practical Estate Planning:
"Self-Adjusting GRATs" - October 2005
CCH Financial and Estate Planning:
"Self-Adjusting GRATs" - March 2006
CCH Journal of Retirement Planning:
"Self-Adjusting GRATs" - February 2006
Chase Journal:
"Investment-Driven Estate Planning: Why Make It If You Can't Keep It?" - Volume IV, Issue 2, 2000
Journal of Taxation:
Co-author of "Tax Consequences of Outstanding Trust Liabilities When Grantor Status Terminates" - Volume 95, No. 1, July 2001
Co-author of "Formula Disclaimers: Procter-Proofing Gift Revaluations" - March 2002
Estate Tax Planning Advisor:
"Using Net Gifts to Reduce Gift Tax Exposure" - February 2003
Lawyer's Weekly:
"RPM Annuity Trusts: A `GReAT' Alternative - January 2004
Northwestern Mutual Advanced Planning Bulletin:
"Making and Optimizing Gifts and Bequests to Pay Educational and Medical Expenses" - July 2007
On Wall Street:
"Lessons from the Michael Jackson Estate - So Far" - August 2009
“The Future of the Estate Tax Is Upon Us” - December 2009
Seminars
American Bankers Association National Graduate Trust School (1998-99, 2004)
The Philanthropy Roundtable Annual Meeting (1999)
Cannon Financial Institute Courses and Teleconferences (2000-2001)
Tax Management Educational Institute Symposium on EGTRRA (2001)
Southern Nevada Estate Planning Council (2002)
Northwest Suburban (IL) Estate Planning Council (2002)
Chicago Bar Association - Probate and Trust Law Section (2002, 2003)
The International Forum Annual Meeting (2003)
Chicago Estate Planning Council (2003, 2005)
IICLE Annual Estate Planning Short Course (2003-2008)
AICPA Advanced Estate Planning Conference (2003, 2005, 2010)
Appraisers Association of America Annual Meeting (2003)
BNA Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trust Advisory Board Meeting (2004, 2009)
Kellogg Alumni Club of Chicago (2004)
Orange County Estate Planning Council (2004)
William Blair & Company, LLC (2004)
Notre Dame Annual Estate Planning Institute (2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010)
IICLE Spring 2005 Seminar (2005)
IIR Family Office Management Conferences (2006)
IICLE Illinois Estate Administration Conference - Creative Use of Disclaimers (2006- 2008)
JPMorgan Private Client Services Group (2006)
Financial Planning Association - Illinois Financial Forum (2006)
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) Council of Advanced Practitioners Program (2006)
Virchow, Krause & Company, LLP 2006 Financial & Estate Planning Group Meeting (2006)
David Vaughan Investments Tax, Estate & Retirement Planning Forum (2006)
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council (2007)
Lorman Educational Seminar (2007)
Sun Valley Estate Planning Conference (2008)
New York University Institute on Federal Taxation (2004, 2008, 2009)
University of Miami Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning (2009, 2010)
Sidney Kess New York Estate, Tax and Financial Planning Conference (2009)
American Institute on Federal Taxation (2009)
Chicago-Kent College of Law of Federal Tax Institute (2009)
Southern Nevada Estate Planning Council (2009)
ICLEF 37th Annual Midwest Estate Tax and Business Planning Institute (2010)
Northern Trust and ALPFA LAW -- Trends in Trust Law (2010)
WTTW/WFMT and Museum of Science and Industry -- Enhancing CLATs (2010)
