Practices

Kristen A. Curatolo is a partner at Seward & Kissel and co-head of the firm’s Private Clients/Trusts and Estates Group. Kristen concentrates her practice on trust and estate planning and administration. Her clients include multiple generations of ultra-high net worth families, private equity and hedge fund principals, public figures, and leaders in the financial and maritime industries. She advises individuals, institutions and family offices regarding the administration of complex trusts and estates.

Kristen also regularly counsels clients on nonprofit formation (public charities and private foundations), grant-making, board fiduciary duties, governance and compliance issues.

Kristen is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC). She is ranked by Chambers & Partners, High Net Worth, New York: Private Wealth Law, with interviewees enthusing: “Kristen is a phenomenal attorney. She is smart, thoughtful, and connects well with clients” and “She is fabulous. She’s great at thinking outside the box.”

She has contributed to The Complete Estate Planning Sourcebook (published by Wolters Kluwer), regularly writes and speaks on estate planning topics, and currently serves as an Affiliate Member of the New York City Bar Estate & Gift Taxation Committee.

Kristen is licensed to practice in New York, New Jersey, Florida and Connecticut. Prior to joining Seward & Kissel, Kristen was a partner in the Trusts & Estates Group at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York City.

Publications
  • Co-Author, “Celebrity Estate Planning: Misfires of the Rich and Famous VI,” Probate & Property Magazine, Volume 37, Number 6, November/December 2023
  • Co-Author, “Strategies to Mitigate the ‘Burn’ of Grantor Trust Status,” Bloomberg Tax Management Estates, Gifts, and Trusts Journal, May 2023
  • Co-Author, “How to handle oversized minor’s trusts and custodial accounts” Trusts & Estates, September 2021
  • Co-Author, “Grantor Trust Reimbursement Statutes,” Trusts & Estates, February 2021
  • Contributor, “Year in Review,” Trust & Estates Magazine
  • Contributor, “The Complete Estate Planning Sourcebook,” Wolters Kluwer
  • “Planning at the Eleventh Hour: Part II: Augmenting A Practitioner’s Checklist for Clients Near Death ,” Penton Wealth Management, Trusts & Estates, March 21, 2019
  • “Planning at the Eleventh Hour: A Practitioner’s Checklist for Clients Near Death,” Penton Wealth Management, Trusts & Estates, May 18, 2016
  • “Sales to IDGTS: A Hearty Recipe for Tax Savings,” Fall 2014
  • “Reading Between the Lines, Putting “Personal” Back into Personal Law,” American Bar Association, Probate & Property Magazine, March 2014
  • “Planning for Franchisee Succession, Asset Protection,” American Bar Association, The Franchise Lawyer, Fall 2013
Events
  • Presenter, 26th Annual Estate, Tax, Legal Financial Planning Seminar, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Foundation, May 16, 2024, St. Petersburg, Florida
  • Moderator, Panel Family Legacy and Philanthropy – Structuring a Non-profit or Family Foundation, Freedom Capital Markets Winter Family Office Summit, February 8, 2024, Salt Lake City, Utah
  • Panelist, Estate Planning Misfires of the Rich and Famous 2023, New York City Bar Association Webinar, July 12, 2023
  • Panelist, Blockchain: Tax, Trust and Estate Issues, New York City Bar Association Webinar, June 12, 2023
  • Presenter, Do’s and Don’ts When Structuring FLPs, Hybrid 2023 May Tax Meeting, American Bar Association, Section of Taxation, May 5, 2023
  • Presenter, Strategies to Mitigate the “Burn” of Grantor Trust Status, Bank of America Webinar, March 27, 2023
  • Presenter, Current Developments in Estate & Gift Taxation, Strafford Publications, November 16, 2022
  • Panelist, Creative Estate Planning for Private Equity and Hedge Fund Partners, JPM Global Headquarters, November 15, 2022
  • Presenter, Gifting Strategies: Leveraging Your Client’s Gift Tax Exemption, Strafford Publications, November 1, 2022
  • Presenter, To Reimburse or Not to Reimburse? Grantor Trust Reimbursement Statutes Offer a Solution to a Trustor’s Income Tax Woes, But Beware of the “Burn”, Notre Dame Estate Planning Institute, November 2022
  • Panelist, Estate Planning Misfires of the Rich and Famous 2022, New York City Bar Association Webinar, July 13, 2022
  • Presenter, Structuring Incomplete Gift Non-Grantor Trusts: Key Provisions, Tax Planning, Trust Situs and More, Strafford Publications, July 12, 2022
  • Presenter, Hybrid 2022 May Tax Meeting, American Bar Association, Section of Taxation, May 14, 2022
  • Presenter, Structuring Non-Grantor Trusts for Wealth Transfers and Income Tax Planning, Webinar, Strafford, February 8, 2022
  • Presenter, Grantor Trust Reimbursement Statutes, Connecticut Bar Association, Estate & Probate Section, February 7, 2022
  • Panelist, Recent Developments in Federal and NYS Tax Law Affecting Estate Planning, New York City Bar Association Webinar, November 3, 2021
  • Co-Presenter, Grantor Trust Reimbursement Statutes, 33rd Annual RPTE Virtual National CLE Conference, April 22, 2021
  • Gifting Strategies: Leveraging Your Client’s Gift Tax Exemption Now and Planning for 2026 (and Beyond), Webinar, Strafford, 2019
  • Planning at the Eleventh Hour: A Practitioner’s Checklist for Clients Near Death, Norfolk & Plymouth Estate and Business Planning Council, Randolph, Massachusetts, 2017
  • Planning at the Eleventh Hour: A Practitioner’s Checklist for Clients Near Death, Webinar, Penton Wealth Management, Trusts & Estates, 2016
  • Probate Boot Camp, National Business Institute, 2015
  • Digital Assets, Planning with; Bequeathing of; Disposing of; and Protecting Your Digital Assets After Your Death, Rockland County
  • Estate Planning Council, Nyack, New York, 2014
  • Women, Money and Power in American Society, Princeton Senior Resource Center, Princeton, New Jersey, 2014
Press Mentions