Advanced Estate Planning with S Corporations: Tax Structuring, Trust Design, and Succession Strategies for Closely Held Business Owners

Jason J. Kohout, Partner | Foley & Lardner LLP

Jason J. Kohout is a Partner at Foley & Lardner LLP and Chair of the firm’s Family Offices Team. He advises families, business owners, and high-net-worth individuals on tax planning, estate planning, business succession, and philanthropy. With deep knowledge of tax, corporate, and trust law, Jason delivers creative and practical solutions — particularly for clients who own closely held businesses or hold significant philanthropic and nonprofit interests.

• Education & Credentials

Jason earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 2007, where he organized the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program and received the Sidney I. Roberts Award for the best paper on taxation. He holds an A.B. magna cum laude from Harvard College (2004), where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and received the Hoopes Prize for his thesis on Wisconsin school finance.

• Recognition & Leadership

Jason is recognized by The Best Lawyers in America for Charities Law and Trusts & Estates (2020–2024) and has been selected to the Wisconsin Super Lawyers Rising Stars list multiple times (2013–2014, 2017–2019, 2021). He was named an “Up and Coming Attorney” by the Wisconsin Law Journal in 2015 and is an elected Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) — one of the most prestigious credentials in the trust and estate field.

• Professional Involvement

Jason is a Director of the Wisconsin Philanthropy Network and serves in leadership roles with the Milwaukee Bar Association Foundation, the Badger Institute, and CARMEN High School of Science and Technology Charter School. He is a frequent speaker at the Family Office Exchange Family Office Forum, including presentations in 2025 and 2026 on private trust companies and trustee-beneficiary workshops. He has also presented national CLE programs on business succession, estate planning, and tax strategy for attorneys.

• Experience

Jason’s practice centers on estate planning, business succession, and family office structuring for high-net-worth individuals and closely held business owners. He has advised on defective grantor trust sales involving businesses valued over one billion dollars and led Senator Herb Kohl’s landmark $100 million charitable gift to the Greater Milwaukee Foundation — earning the Foundation’s Outstanding Professional Adviser of the Year Award. He also serves as primary outside counsel to universities, health care systems, and tax-exempt organizations on governance, tax compliance, and complex transactions.

Stephanie J. Derks, Senior Counsel | Foley & Lardner LLP

Stephanie J. Derks is Senior Counsel at Foley & Lardner LLP and a member of the firm’s Estates and Trusts Practice. She concentrates her practice on estate planning for high-net-worth families and family offices, business succession planning for closely held business owners, trust and estate administration, and tax compliance. Stephanie brings a deep understanding of the unique dynamics involved in family-owned businesses and strives to deliver creative, comprehensive solutions tailored to each client’s estate, business, and tax planning goals.

• Education & Credentials

Stephanie earned her J.D. cum laude from the University of Wisconsin Law School, where she served as Managing Editor of the Wisconsin Law Review. She holds a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Certificate in European Studies.

• Recognition & Leadership

Stephanie has been recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for Trusts and Estates (2021–2024) and Corporate Law (2022), a distinction reserved for attorneys demonstrating exceptional professional achievement early in their careers.

• Professional Involvement

Stephanie serves as a Board Member of Curative Care Network, Inc. and volunteers with Wills for Heroes. She participated in the 2019–2020 Young Professional Adviser Council with the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. She is a co-presenter at the Family Office Exchange Family Office Forum, including sessions on private trust companies and trustee-beneficiary workshops in 2025 and 2026, and has presented on charitable gifts of special assets at the Planned Giving Council Series multiple times from 2019 through 2022.

• Experience

Stephanie’s practice focuses on helping families and business owners transfer wealth across generations while minimizing tax exposure. She has structured creative trust ownership arrangements to preserve generational family ownership of closely held businesses, implemented GRATs, SLATs, irrevocable trusts, and installment sales for wealth transfer planning, and played an integral role in establishing and advising family offices. She also administers complex estates with significant asset and tax challenges, guiding families through every stage of the administration process.

SESSION 1 – S Corporation Trust Planning and Compliance | 1:00pm – 2:00pm

Master the Subchapter S eligibility rules, trust ownership structures, and drafting safeguards that protect your clients’ S corporation status. Learn to choose between QSSTs, ESBTs, and grantor trusts while avoiding the termination traps that end S elections permanently.

BREAK | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

SESSION 2 – Succession Planning and Dispute Risk Management | 2:10pm – 3:10pm

Navigate the critical compliance deadlines, buy-sell agreement structures, and valuation challenges that arise when S corporation shareholders die. Build succession plans that preserve business value, prevent family disputes, and protect counsel from malpractice exposure.