Overview

Tate Taylor joined Trenam in 1991, and previously served ten years on the firm’s Executive Board, nine as Chair.  He currently Co-Chairs the firm’s Private Client Services Practice Group. Tate also is a member of the Board of Directors of Raymond James Trust N.A., where he chairs the Board’s Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and is a member of the Audit Committee.

Throughout his career, Tate’s  practice has been closely associated with the preservation and management of wealth generated in the Florida communities served by Trenam.  A significant portion of his practice is given to assisting entrepreneurs, investors and their families and advisors with inter-generational transfers of business investments that minimize gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer taxes, maintain family cohesion and foster business continuity and growth.  Tate collaborates regularly with advisors from around the country in assisting Florida-based families whose holdings extend throughout the United States and the world.

Representative Matters

Tax and Wealth Transfer Planning
  • Complex estate planning documents
  • Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts/Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts
  • Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts/Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts/Inter Vivos QTIP Marital Trusts
  • Premarital agreements
Representing Fiduciaries in Complex Estate and Trust Administration and Litigation
  • Modification and decanting of trusts
  • Estate and trust accountings/distribution and release agreements
  • Design and administration of complex IRA/trust structures
  • Advising litigants in complex probate and trust litigation matters
Family-Owned Business/Family Office Planning and Administration
  • Limited Liability Companies, Limited Partnerships and S Corporations
  • Business succession planning
  • Intra-family purchase and sale transactions involving family-owned business interests
  • Family office organization and administration
Tax Compliance and Controversies
  • Preparation of Gift, Estate and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Returns
  • Represent taxpayers and fiduciaries in examinations of gift, estate and income tax returns
  • Represent taxpayers and fiduciaries before the IRS Appeals Office
  • Represent taxpayers and fiduciaries requesting “9100” relief from the IRS to make late GST elections/allocations
Charitable Planning/Tax-Exempt Organizations
  • Formation of private family foundations, supporting organizations and public charities
  • Advising foundations on grant-making and complex grant agreements
  • Charitable Remainder Trusts/Charitable Lead Trusts
  • Use of Donor Advised Funds in tax and estate planning matters

Honors and Distinctions

  • Tampa Magazine’s Top Lawyers List, 2020-2024
  • Board Certified in Tax Law, Florida Bar
  • AV® Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
  • The Best Lawyers in America
    • Trusts & Estates, 2009-2025
    • Tax Law, 2022-2025
      • Lawyer of the Year, 2023
  • Florida Super Lawyers, Trusts & Estates; Tax Law, 2006-2024 (10+ years recognition)
    • Top 100: Florida Super Lawyers, 2018
    • Top 50: Tampa Bay Super Lawyers, 2018
  • Florida Trend’s Legal Elite, 2012, 2019, 2022

Professional Involvement

  • The American Bar Association, Tax Section
  • The American Bar Association, Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section
  • The Florida Bar, Tax Section
    • Former Executive Council Member
  • The Florida Bar, Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
    • Former Executive Council Member
  • Tampa Bay Estate Planning Council
    • Former Member of Board of Directors
  • Contributing author, several of the Florida Bar’s popular CLE Manuals, including Basic Estate Planning in Florida, Trust Administration in Florida, and Not For Profit Corporations in Florida.

Community Involvement

  • Tate has volunteered his time in the service of a variety of charitable organizations.  He currently serves on the Professional Advisors Committee of the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay.

News

Thought Leadership