Thomas E. Peckham

Partner

With more than 40 years of experience in estate planning, Thomas E. Peckham’s practice focuses on the areas of sophisticated estate planning for high net-worth individuals, estate and trust administration, and related tax and business planning. Tom has served as the Massachusetts State Chair of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and is a former member of the State Chairs’ Steering Committee.

Extended Profile

Tom uses discount planning, estate freezing, and leveraged gifting techniques to help his clients make tax-efficient transfers. Since 2007, Tom has taught Advanced Estate Planning in the Boston University School of Law Graduate Tax Program. The Boston Estate Planning Council named Tom “Estate Planner of the Year” in 2013.

Prior to joining Morgan Lewis, Tom was a partner in the estate planning practice of another international law firm, where he served as head of the estate planning group.

selected representations

Over a period of five weeks, met with a new client who was a citizen of an eastern European country, but was subject to US estate and gift tax laws; developed a structure for a plan resulting in eliminating payment of estate tax and creating potential for hundreds of millions of dollars to pass in trust for children, tax-free; met with client again to confirm details of plan; and drafted all required documents. This matter was especially time-sensitive because of the impending public offering by the client’s company.
Over a period of more than 20 years, worked with two generations of a family to design and implement a family foundation. A particularly satisfying part of this engagement has been the enhanced communication that developed between parents and children, and among siblings.
Mediated or acted as facilitator in numerous family disputes as well as disputes between trustees and beneficiaries and among trust beneficiaries
Designed a plan using a limited partnership to transfer a family vacation compound to children along with an income-producing office building to “endow” the vacation property
Led a coordinated effort to develop a sophisticated tax plan, resolve an employment law and minority shareholder issue, and reorganize a client’s closely held company while, at the same time, helping to bring closure to the client’s stalled divorce negotiations
Over the past several years, designed and implemented numerous Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs), resulting in the nearly tax-free transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars to children and trusts for children