Section Requests Name Change

At the ABA Annual Meeting this August, the Section will request approval to change its name to Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law. The change of name is an outcome of a communications and branding plan the Section is developing. It became apparent that the current Section name no longer represents of the work of the Section or the practices of its members, particularly on the “probate and trust” side. The Section received its current name in 1936, when the practice of many lawyers included probate matters. Since this time, practices have changed dramatically and the name no longer accurately reflects the services that Section members provide to their clients. Most law firm and law school departments dealing with these matters have changed their group or department names to “estate planning,” “wealth planning,” “estate and trust” or some variation. Rarely is the word “probate” included. The other leading organization representing lawyers in this field is the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, which dropped “probate” from its name some time ago.

The motion to change the Section name was approved by the Section council on March 5, 2007. The motion to approve the new name will be put before the Section membership at the Annual Business Meeting of the Section on Saturday, August 11, and before the ABA House of Delegates later that week.

In Memorian - Ed Winn

Edward Burton Winn passed away at age 86 on March 11, 2007, in Dallas, Texas. Winn was Chair of the Section of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law from 1963-1964 and also served on the American Bar Association Board of Governors. He was a leader in the legal profession. At one point, he was recognized as one of the top 100 lawyers in America and one of the top 12 lawyers in Texas. In 1985 Winn received the William W. Treat Award from the National College of Probate Judges. He was partner in the law firm of Winn, Beaudry, & Winn LLP until his retirement a few years ago.

Memorial donations may be made to Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Yale Law School in New Haven, and the Center for American and International Law in Dallas.

Join RPPT in Washington D.C.

Join the ABA Section of RPPT as we hold our 18th Annual Spring Symposia. The 2007 symposia will be held April 26-27th, in Washington D.C. Noted speakers and experts in the fields of real estate and estate planning will be leading courses on some of the current issues and hot topics in these areas of law. All sessions will be held at the Park Hyatt and Fairmont Hotels in the heart of our nation's capitol.

Take this opportunity to earn CLE credit while networking with colleagues and learn about the Section’s activities and news. Come explore the great city of Washington D.C.!

For more information visit: www.abanet.org/rppt/2007

Meeting Highlights:

• The Section of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law introduces its inaugural Young Lawyers Institute, to be held on Friday, April 27, 2006, at the Park Hyatt. The Young Lawyers Institute will feature a full day of continuing legal education programming expressly designed for attorneys who are new to the fields of real estate or trusts and estates law.

  The real estate program, entitled “Essential Legal Issues in Commercial Real Estate,” will feature prominent real estate practitioners discussing purchase agreements, due diligence, choice of entity for purchaser, finance, leasing and insurance, including title insurance.

  The estate planning program will focus on planning considerations prior to a client’s death. The program will consider both tax and non-tax issues and will include an overview of the estate and gift tax, a discussion of some of the most popular planning techniques, and a review of planning for specialized assets. In addition, there will be an ethical component that will qualify for ethics credit for CLE purposes.

  Each program will conclude with a joint cocktail reception for attendees, panelists and leadership from the Section. The registration fee for this one day event, including lunch and reception, is $150 for practicing young lawyers, and complimentary for law students.

• Thursday, Real Property Division Luncheon featuring well-known national real estate developer, Victor MacFarlane, speaking on D.C. opportunities.
  
  
• Friday, Section luncheon speaker, novelist James B. Stewart, will examine the major events in business, law and politics that shape American society. The San Francisco Examiner called him “the journalist every journalist would like to be.”
  
  
• The Community Outreach Program is designed to teach young lawyers and minority lawyers what they may have never learned in law school or need to brush up on now in order to get started in these specialized fields. The program consists of six continuing legal education courses presented by ABA’s Real Property and Probate Law Section and ABA’s Tax Section. In all, twelve hours of continuing legal education courses will be presented. The classes will be held on Thursday, April 26, 2007 for eight hours of courses and a networking cocktail party afterward. On May 10th, another four hours will be held in conjunction with the Spring meeting of the Tax Section. The entire program is free to Minority Bar members.