2021
AWARDS WINNERS
Recognizing Leaders Across the Family Office and Wealth Management Industry in North-America
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DECADES OF EXPERIENCE BEAR FRUIT IN TESTING TIMES Tom Burroughes, Group Editor at Family Wealth Report, talks to Lawrence I. Richman, Chair of Neal Gerber Eisenberg’s private wealth services practice group. What sets you apart from your peers this year and why? While facing the unprecedented challenges of the past year, we relied on our long-tenured team’s experience to provide seasoned counsel to our clients seeking to preserve and transfer wealth, structure multigenerational businesses and address tax and succession planning issues during a period of great uncertainty. With our decades of experience guiding clients, we have witnessed first-hand how global events impact financial markets and eventually affect our clients and their plans. As leader of our Private Wealth practice group, I am proud of how our team responded quickly yet thoughtfully to our clients’ needs to maintain stability during tumultuous times. How have your colleagues contributed towards the success of your organization? At our firm’s inception, we committed to a culture and style of practice that encourages collaboration among colleagues at all levels. This commitment has only strengthened over time. Our private wealth group is complemented by the professionals in our corporate, tax, real estate and intellectual property groups and other practice areas who work together to seamlessly support our clients’ needs with the right resources at the right time. What are you doing to do to stay on the front foot in a fast growing but also challenging region such as this? Our history and experience serve us well in structuring family offices for prominent families. To maintain our position as a groundbreaker in the field, we keep
abreast of market research and fluctuations. We monitor legislative nuances and changes to adeptly navigate the operational, regulatory and wealth management issues that family offices must address to thrive. Family offices are a core practice of Neal Gerber Eisenberg, and we’d very much like for that to continue. Our reputation for skillfully crafting and executing well-structured family office plans critical to support intergenerational wealth will only persist if we continue to succeed. Ultimately, success comes from understanding the family’s priorities and values. Our client service is most advantageous when we use our legal acumen to recognize innovative methods to align a recent development with those priorities and goals. What have been the challenges you have had to overcome to reach such a standard? At a time when many law firms have evolved into institutions, NGE continues to believe that rendering legal services is a person-to-person endeavor. Relationships matter to us. We have earned the status of trusted partners of our clients through our consistent and thoughtful counsel. We built a practice and a reputation among clients and market peers that place our firm solidly among much larger firms. This success results from our intense focus on building a deep appreciation and understanding of our clients’ businesses while fostering and maintaining strong relationships with families and individuals. Whom do you look to for inspiration and ideas? For over 35 years, we’ve succeeded - and helped clients succeed - through our commitment to open communication and meaningful collaboration. We find inspiration in understanding their
businesses, goals and dreams and then working tirelessly to design strategies to achieve them. What do you hope will be the result of receiving this accolade? How does it help your business in this region? We are proud to serve a roster of clients that extends coast to coast in the United States and around the globe. Our hope in receiving this award is to raise our profile to audiences who may not yet be familiar with NGE. Being named Law Firm of the Year by Family Wealth Report is a worthy recognition that will further credential our team and our firm to new clients.
The judges chose Neal Gerber Eisenberg as category winner as they clearly stood out with their highly-regarded acumen for crafting and executing well-structured family office plans that support intergenerational wealth during these challenging times.