Where There's A Will, There's A Way | Student Education Series
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Join the WDCEPC for a discussion on closing the racial wealth gap through a career in estate planning. Learn about the estate planning profession, pathways to entry and success, and the need for diverse lawyers in the field. A career in estate planning can promote social justice by building, keeping and leveraging wealth for families and communities of color.
Pizza will be available in the Student Lounge on the ground floor of Houston Hall starting at 12:15pm, courtesy of ACTEC.
About the Speakers:
Kenny Jefferson, JD, LLM, is a private wealth services attorney in Holland & Knight's Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles offices. Mr. Jefferson focuses his practice on advising high-net-worth individuals and families on complex estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax planning issues, managing tax compliance challenges and achieving non-tax goals. In addition to his legal practice, Mr. Jefferson is serving a two-year fellowship with the American Bar Association (ABA) Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section. The program aims to develop future leaders and provide a deepening of knowledge through mentorship by top trust and estates attorneys. Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Mr. Jefferson was a tax, trusts and estates attorney at a Washington, D.C., boutique law firm. Before entering private practice, Mr. Jefferson worked as an attorney examiner for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the estate and gift field enforcement division, where he examined numerous estate, gift and fiduciary income tax returns. He routinely leverages this experience in advising clients and their advisors. In addition, he clerked at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and in the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC). Kenny received his B.S. in economics from Virginia Tech, his law degree from Howard University School of Law and LLM from Georgetown University Law Center.
Natasha McFarland, JD, LLM, is an associate at Harrison, LLP, where she focuses her practice on sophisticated estate planning delivered in a straight-forward manner that clients can understand. She advises high net worth individuals and their families on a wide range of matters, including wealth preservation through trust, gift and estate tax planning, generation-skipping transfer tax issues, charitable giving, and related compliance. Prior to practicing law, Natasha spent over five years in professional tax services at EY, advising family enterprises, private business owners, and corporate executives on income, estate and gift tax strategies. She holds a B.S. from North Carolina A&T State University, JD from Howard University School of Law and LLM from Georgetown University Law Center.
Molefi McIntosh, JD, LLM, is an associate at Lowenstein Sandler in the Washington, D.C. office. He counsels businesses and high-net-worth individuals on the tax impacts of a range of estate planning and transactional scenarios, including those implicating cross-border concerns. Molefi’s prior experience includes managing international tax and transaction services at Ernst & Young, where he advised multinational clients in the chemicals, life sciences, entertainment, and other industries on the tax aspects of domestic and cross-border transactions. He has interned with both the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission’s Investment Management Division and the IRS. As adjunct professor and supervising attorney for Howard University School of Law, Molefi co-developed and teaches the Estate Planning and Heirs’ Property Clinic, which addresses the racial estate planning gap and combats problems associated with heirs’ property by assisting low-income and BIPOC clients who historically have not had access to or information about estate planning services. Molefi is a graduate of Howard University School of Law (JD, 2016) and Georgetown University Law Center (LLM 2017).
Shakisha Morgan, Esq., is a learner, strategist, and connector with over a decade of legal experience. An educator at heart, Shakisha is affectionately known as The Legacy Counselor™, and she is the Principal Attorney of The Morgan Firm, LLC. Since graduating from Stanford University & Georgetown Law, Shakisha has devoted herself to increasing access to Black generational wealth through her work conducting community & corporate workshops, delivering guest lectures and keynotes, and providing transformative advice to her clients. She is a published author on topics related to estate planning, multigenerational wealth building, Black wealth, and servant leadership. Shakisha is a philanthropist and enjoys serving as a mentor and a board member of the Young, Black & Giving Back Institute, Inc.
About the Moderator:
Stephanie Perry, Esq., is the Managing Partner of Pasternak & Fidis, where she concentrates her practice on estate planning, estate and trust administration, and premarital and domestic partnership agreements. Stephanie is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and is admitted to the Bar in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia. She has been recognized as one of the area’s top estate planning attorneys by Washingtonian and Best Lawyers. Stephanie is the Immediate Past President of the Bar Association of Montgomery County, Maryland, and President of the Bar Foundation of Montgomery County. Stephanie is also a past Co-Chair of the Steering Committee of the Estates, Trusts and Probate Law Section of the District of Columbia Bar, and a member of the Estate Planning Council of Montgomery County. According to Stephanie, the most rewarding aspect of her practice is “getting to know clients and their families and serving as a trusted adviser who will help them achieve their primary objective of taking care of family.” Stephanie received her B.S. in Political Science and English from Florida State University and her J.D. from Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, Georgia.
