Friday–Sunday, April 24–26, 2026
Friday: 12:55–5:50 p.m. / Reception 6–8 p.m. ET
Saturday: 8:30 a.m.–1 p.m. / Reception 6–7 p.m. ET
Sunday: 8:30 a.m.–12:50 p.m. ET
| Live-Interactive MCLE Credit: | 12.0 (Ethics: 2.0) |
| GAL for Incapacitated Persons CE Credit: | 5.0 |
All registrants will receive access to a complete set of downloadable digital instructional materials.
Live on Site (receptions and continental breakfasts included):
Webcast: $550
Telephone: $600
Please note: This seminar is not eligible for Virginia CLE government, new lawyer, pro bono, law student, legal aid, or paralegal discounts.
Cosponsored with the Wills, Trusts and Estates Section of The Virginia Bar Association, Conner-Zaritsky is a perennially anticipated program of national reach and sophisticated content.
Earn a full year’s worth of MCLE credits—all 12—with 2 hours of ethics at one outstanding seminar while you:
All registrants will receive access to a complete set of fully searchable digital instructional materials that can be downloaded and printed as desired. A link to these materials will be emailed to you two business days before the seminar. Please ensure you provide an accurate email address at registration.
In addition, a brief printed seminar outline will be provided at the program for note-taking.
Live-on-site registrants (only) may order a complete set of printed materials for an additional fee if registered by 5 p.m. on Monday, April 13. Printed materials will be distributed at the program.
| Webcast: | 10 minutes prior to seminar. If you register for a webcast the day of the seminar, your e-mail receipt will include a link to launch the seminar and download the materials. |
| Telephone: | Online registration ends 10 minutes prior to seminar. Call (800) 979-8253 to register up to one hour prior to the seminar. |
| Live on Site: | Online registration ends at 11:59 p.m. the day preceding the seminar. The registration option that includes printed materials ends at 5 p.m. on Monday, April 13. Walk-in registration is permitted only if space is available. |
Cancellation and transfer requests will be honored until 5 p.m. the day preceding the seminar. Live-on-site registrations cancelled between April 10–17 will incur a $100 fee. After April 17, the cancellation fee is $200.
Full refunds or transfers are available up to two days after a webcast in the unlikely event that you experience technical difficulties.
If you are attending in person and have dietary restrictions, please email dwoodland@vacle.org.
Private recording of this program is prohibited.
Email distance_ed@vacle.org to be notified when or if this program is made available on demand.
Friday Afternoon
| 12:35 | Registration |
| 12:55 | Introductory Remarks Frank A. Thomas, III, Moderator |
| 1:00 | Trust and Estate Scouting Report: Uncovering Tax and Fiduciary Trends to Better Plan and Prepare William I. Sanderson For at least the last two decades, the federal wealth transfer tax has been in a state of continued—sometimes gradual, sometimes fast-paced—evolution. This presentation will review the landscape of federal legislation dealing with the estate and gift tax, and it will address trends in recent cases, regulatory guidance, and administrative updates that have an impact on estate planning and estate administration. |
| 2:00 | Break |
| 2:05 | Virginia Developments in Estate Planning and Administration Alvi Aggarwal This session will review significant state law developments. |
| 3:05 | Break |
| 3:15 | Top 30 Best Practices When Advising Clients with Disabilities Kristen Lewis This presentation will review the “Top 30 Best Practices” when advising families with special needs issues, including the “network” of Special Needs Trusts that serves as the foundation for securing the future of persons challenged by disabilities; the team of “allied professionals” that helps design and implement a comprehensive Special Needs Estate Plan; and the most common challenges (and solutions) encountered in Special Needs Estate Planning. |
| 4:30 | Break |
| 4:35 | Circular 230 and Related Rules Chris Rizek Tax practitioners are subject to several different ethical and practice regulation regimes, such as Internal Revenue Code provisions, state bar or CPA licensing rules, and Circular 230. This session will consider how these rules may affect trust and estate practitioners, particularly how they may differ in various specifics such as conflicts and conflict waivers (e.g., Model Rules 1.7 and 1.8; Cir. 230, § 10.29), confidentiality (Model Rule 1.6; IRC § 7216), fees and handling client funds (Cir. 230, §§10.27 and 10.31; IRC § 6695(f)), and advising taxpayers with respect to return positions (Cir. 230, §§ 10.34, 10.37; IRC § 6694). We will conclude with a discussion of proposed changes to Circular 230 (esp. proposed §§ 10.21 and 10.51) and how these rules may affect practitioners in the future. |
| 5:50 | Adjourn |
| 6:00 | Reception—Sponsored by TCV Trust & Wealth Management |
Saturday Morning
| 7:30 | Continental Breakfast |
| 8:30 | Demystifying the Valuation Process Kathi Ayers, Craig Stephanson, Lauren Jenkins Valuation is central to effective planning and administration, but the process can be overwhelming. In this interactive panel, two experienced estate planning attorneys and a valuation expert will walk through the valuation process from engagement through the final report, offering practical insights, common pitfalls, and best practices to help practitioners work confidently and collaboratively with valuation professionals and deliver better outcomes for their clients. |
| 9:30 | Break |
| 9:35 | Estate Planning Strategies for QTIP Trust Assets Read Moore The assets of a QTIP trust may be a substantial part of a client’s estate that are subject to estate taxes on his or her death. The provisions of the trust instrument and tax law, however, complicate the use of typical estate planning strategies for QTIP trust assets. This presentation will address the special gift tax and estate tax rules that apply to QTIP trusts and discuss strategies to minimize wealth transfer taxes for QTIP trust assets in light of these special tax rules as well as typical governing instrument provisions and limitations. |
| 10:35 | Break |
| 10:45 | Post-Mortem Planning: It’s Not Too Late to Plan Ellis Pretlow, Tom Yates In this presentation, we will dive into the many planning opportunities that present themselves after death. We will examine the impact that utilizing various techniques can have on income, gift, estate, and GST tax and survey issues that arise in the valuation process and preparation of the estate tax return. We will also consider the power of disclaimers and various tax elections for an estate and its beneficiaries. |
| 11:45 | Break |
| 12:00 | Artificial Intelligence and the Estate Planner: Resistance Is Futile Gerry Beyer Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly being incorporated into estate planning practices. AI products can increase the speed by which you prepare, review, and summarize estate planning related documents, tax returns, and client communications. Likewise, the speed by which you can conduct legal and financial research is faster than ever. This presentation is designed to explain how AI operates, the potential use of AI in your practice, warnings about the use of AI, and how to address the ethical issues that arise when using AI. |
| 1:00 | Adjourn |
| 6:00 | Reception—Sponsored by Truist Wealth |
Sunday Morning
| 7:30 | Continental Breakfast |
| 8:30 | The Two of You Came to Me for Estate Planning—But Let’s Talk About What Happens When You Get Divorced! (Ethics) Bruce Stone Sound and routine estate planning advice can lead to surprising and harmful consequences to one or both of our married clients if they divorce. Given divorce rates, are we obligated under VRPC 1.1 to routinely incorporate family law concepts into our estate planning advice to married clients? But would that create impermissible ethical conflicts for us under VRPC 1.7? Can we even advise married clients in advance on their estate planning options if they should get divorced? When we represent married couples, what are our obligations under VPRC 1.6 to maintain confidentiality of communications with one but not both of the spouses? |
| 9:30 | Break |
| 9:45 | Dogs, Horses, Turtles, and More! (Almost) Everything an Attorney Needs to Know to Help Clients Plan for Their Pets This session equips estate planning attorneys and professionals with the tools to ensure pets are properly accounted for in their clients’ plans—from straightforward “Pet Custodian” designations to more sophisticated “Pet Trusts.” The session will cover practical strategies for handling reluctant family members, creative planning options, and tax considerations around pet planning. You will laugh, you will cry, it’s better than “Cats.” Okay, maybe not better than Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Broadway musical “Cats,” but join Kelli Brown to learn how to turn an overlooked topic into a meaningful service and give clients peace of mind knowing that their pet family members are protected. |
| 11:00 | Break |
| 11:05 | Hot Topics Farhad Aghdami, Howard Zaritsky This session will cover significant developments or topics of interest that may have arisen after the program and speakers are set for the coming year. |
| 12:20 | Q&A Panel Farhad Aghdami, William I. Sanderson, Howard Zaritsky In this session, several of our speakers will respond to audience questions. |
| 12:50 | Adjourn |
Alvi Aggarwal, Yates Campbell & Hoeg, LLP / Fairfax
Farhad Aghdami, Williams Mullen / Richmond
Kathi L. Ayers, Vaughan, Fincher & Sotelo, PC / Tysons
Prof. Gerry W. Beyer, Texas Tech University School of Law / Lubbock, TX
Kelli Brown, Goldberg Simpson, LLC / Prospect, KY
Lauren A. Jenkins, Offit Kurman, P.A. / Vienna
Kristen M. Lewis, Harrison, LLP / Atlanta, GA
M. Read Moore, McDermott Will & Schulte / San Francisco, CA
Ellis H. Pretlow, Bessemer Trust / New York, NY
Christopher S. Rizek, Holland & Knight / Washington, DC
William I. Sanderson, McGuireWoods LLP / Washington, DC
Craig Stephanson, Valuation Services, Inc. / Arlington
Bruce Stone, Goldman Felcoski & Stone, P.A. / Coral Gables, FL
Tom Yates, Yates Campbell & Hoeg LLP / Fairfax
Howard M. Zaritsky / Rapidan
Frank A. Thomas, III, Frank A. Thomas, III PLC / Orange
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Overnight Accommodations
Our room block at The Omni Charlottesville (seminar location) has sold out. We have secured a block of rooms at the Graduate by Hilton, less than one mile away.
Graduate by Hilton Charlottesville
1309 West Main Street
Charlottesville, VA 22903
For details and to reserve, please visit Graduate room block.
Area Attractions
Our half-day seminar format leaves Saturday and Sunday afternoons free for you and your family to enjoy Charlottesville’s:
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