Carl D. Holborn

Contact
Tel | 414.276.5000
carl.holborn@wilaw.com


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Bio

Education

  • University of Wisconsin (cum laude)
  • University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (M.S. Taxation)
  • Marquette University (M.A.–History)

Carl D. Holborn

Trusted Advisor

Whether he is working with clients to create and administer an estate plan, solving complicated business problems, negotiating with the IRS, or helping to transition a family owned business to the next generation, Carl prides himself on being a trusted advisor to his clients. With a Master’s Degree in Taxation, Carl possesses unique skills to assist his clients in solving legal issues in a tax efficient manner. A clear thinker and easy to talk to, Carl distills complex legal issues into understandable ones that allow his clients to make effective decisions. Carl’s clients are individuals and businesses in a wide variety of occupations and industries that value a trusted advisor as their lawyer.

Carl Assists Clients With

  • Structuring estate plans for affluent individuals and families to maximize wealth preservation from one generation to the next
  • Representation for corporate and individual fiduciaries, as well as beneficiaries in probate and trust administration matters
  • Business succession planning
  • Representation of taxpayers in dealing with tax controversies involving state and federal taxing authorities
  • Planning and structuring charitable donations for both individuals and charitable organizations

Forms Library


Experience/Representative Client Work

  • Preparation and implementation of estate plan for clients with net worth in excess of $75 million
  • Successful preparation and implementation of complex estate plan for client with real estate holdings worth in excess of $25 million
  • Represented a charity in an estate dispute, preserving the full charitable distribution indicated in the original trust documents, an amount that was over $1 million more than the trustee intended to distribute
  • Probate administration of deceased owner of manufacturing firm with a net worth in excess of $7 million
  • Preserved a client’s family farm valued at more than $3 million through successful representation during an estate dispute
  • Negotiated with Internal Revenue Service in a dispute involving complex estate tax issues


Awards/Distinctions

  • Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating™–AV Preeminent, reflecting an attorney who has reached the height of professional excellence and is recognized for the highest levels of skill and integrity
  • Rated a 10.0 out of 10.0 by Avvo, a national attorney rating service which uses a mathematical model to rate attorneys based on experience, professional achievements, industry recognition, and professional conduct
  • Selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America®–Trusts and Estates in 2012–2024
  • Selected for inclusion in Wisconsin Super Lawyers in 2005–2023, Law and Politics and Milwaukee Magazine
  • Editor, Wisconsin Law Review
  • Beta Gamma Sigma, National Honor Society for Graduate Business Students
  • Judicial Intern, Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals

Best Lawyers Award Badge



Articles/Presentations

  • Carl frequently lectures at continuing legal education seminars on various estate and tax issues


Community Involvement

  • Board Member and Co-Chair of Land Trust Committee, Root-Pike Watershed Initiative Network
  • Past Chairman, State of Wisconsin Elections Board
  • Fellow, Wisconsin Law Foundation
  • Member, Kenosha Area Business Alliance
  • Past Board Member, Kenosha County Civil Service Commission
  • Past President, Society of Financial Service Professionals, Milwaukee Chapter
  • Past Board Member and Board Counsel, Women and Children’s Horizons
  • Past Board Member, Kenosha Historical Society
  • Past Board Member, All Saints Catholic School
  • Past Board Chair, Hyslop Foundation Inc.

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