HECKSCHER, TEILLON, TERRILL & SAGER, PC - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Adjunct Professor in the Graduate Tax Program of James E. Beasley School of Law
- Fellow of the American College of Trust
Adam Gusdorff's practice focuses on litigation involving trusts, estates, guardianships, and other fiduciary matters. He represents individual and corporate clients throughout Pennsylvania in a variety of Orphans' Court, Register of Wills and appellate court matters, including will contests, guardianship proceedings, fiduciary surcharge actions and compensation disputes, will and trust interpretation cases, trust modifications, probate disputes, and matters involving charitable organizations. Although Adam focuses his practice on litigation, he also has experience in estate planning, and he advises individual and corporate fiduciaries regarding estate and trust administration issues.
Adam frequently speaks and writes on matters concerning Orphans' Court practice, including general practice and procedure, the use of expert witnesses, evidentiary issues, prosecuting and defending claims against an estate, and the Dead Man's Rule. He is a member of the Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and Montgomery Bar Associations. He currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association Probate and Tax Section, and is a past chair of the Section's Orphans' Court Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee.
Adam is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and is a member of ACTEC's Fiduciary Litigation Committee and its Professional Responsibility Committee. He also has completed a 20-hour Probate Mediation Training program sponsored by ACTEC. Adam is recognized as a Super Lawyer for Estate and Trust Litigation and is listed in Best Lawyers for Trusts and Estates Litigation. In 2022, Adam was recognized by Best Lawyers as the Lawyer of the Year for Trusts and Estates Litigation in the Philadelphia area.
Adam is an adjunct professor in the graduate tax program of James E. Beasley School of Law at Temple University, where he teaches a class with Pennsylvania Superior Court Judge Anne E. Lazarus on Orphans' Court pleading and trial practice. Before attending law school, Adam worked for eight years as a sportswriter in suburban Philadelphia and won a Keystone Press Award for outstanding sports writing in 1998.
Memberships
Philadelphia Bar Association
Probate and Trust Law Section
Executive Committee (2010 - 2012; 2021 - present
Chair, Orphans' Court Litigation Committee (2014 - 2017)
Co-Chair, Orphans' Court Litigation Committee (2020 - 2022)
Rules and Practice Committee
2012 Adam T. Gusdorff, Speaker/Author, "Orphans' Court for the Estate and Trust Practitioner," with Alison Gross, Esquire, Mary Kenney, Esquire, the Honorable Lois E. Murphy, Quarterly Meeting of the Philadelphia Bar Association Probate Section, Pennsylvania Bar Association, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Allison S. Lapat focuses her practice on litigation involving trusts, estates and other fiduciary matters, as well as petitioning the Orphans' Court to modify charitable trusts and settlement trusts for minors. Allison also advises clients on matters concerning real property that may arise during estate planning or estate administration.
Prior to joining Heckscher, Teillon, Terrill & Sager, Allison was an attorney at Stein & Silverman, P.C., where she handled all aspects of a general litigation practice, with an emphasis on commercial and real estate disputes, and a commercial real estate business practice. Before joining Stein & Silverman, Allison was a litigation associate at a large, international law firm. Allison draws on her varied background to help clients develop strategies for understanding and handling issues that arise, whether before or during litigation or in real estate matters.
Memberships
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Bar Association
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Montgomery Bar Association
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to John Terrill, Esq. & Erica Russo
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Margaret Sager
Brittany J. Camp focuses her practice on trust and estate planning and administration. She also focuses on fiduciary aspects of guardianships and litigation settlements for minors and incapacitated persons.
Brittany earned her bachelor's degree from Cornell University in 2009. She then graduated from Villanova University School of Law in 2012 where she was Managing Editor of Operations of the Sports and Entertainment Law Journal. During law school, Brittany was a student attorney for the Villanova Law Federal Tax Clinic where she represented low-income taxpayers in controversies before the Internal Revenue Service and in the U.S. Tax Court.
Prior to joining Heckscher, Teillon, Terrill & Sager, Brittany was an associate in a small general practice law firm in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Brittany went on to earn her Masters of Law in Taxation and Estate Planning Certificate from Villanova University School of Law in 2014.
Memberships
American Bar Association
Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section
New Jersey Bar Association
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property Probate Estates and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Bar Association
Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Montgomery Bar Association
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Kim Fetrow, Esq. & Brittany Camp
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Leanne M. Schenck, Esq. and Karen Conn Mavros
Job Titles:
- Assistant to the Paralegals
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Bradley Terebelo, Esq. & Patrick Russo
Gregory W. Ferris focuses his practice on estate planning, trust and estate administration and tax planning.
Greg graduated magna cum laude from Temple University in 2014, where he majored in Political Science with a minor in Economics and a Certificate of Specialization in Arabic. After graduating from college, Greg served as a police officer in Wilmington, Delaware before attending law school. He then graduated from Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law in 2021 with a Certificate in Business Law.
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Fellow of the American College of Trust
Jack is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel where he served as the President in 2019. He was the founding chair of ACTEC's Asset Protection Committee and is a member of the College's Professional Responsibility, Asset Protection and Legal Education committees. He chaired ACTEC's Task Force on FATF (the Financial Action Task Force) until 2016.
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Michael Breslow, Esq. and Melissa Siravo Hensinger
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Fellow of the American College of Trust
Kim is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. She is also a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and its Committee on Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility.
Kim has been named a Super Lawyer, and is recognized by Best Lawyer. Kim is AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale Hubbell.
2006 Kim D. Fetrow, Speaker, "Passing the Legal Baton from Litigator to Fiduciary and PA's New Uniform Trust Act: How it Applies," with Gale Flandreau, Esq. of The Bryn Mawr Trust Company.
2000 Kim D. Fetrow, Speaker/Author, "Litigation Settlements for Disabled Minors and Incapacitated Persons and the use of the OBRA '93 Special Needs Disability Trust," Orphans' Court Newsletter, and Pennsylvania Conference of State Trial Judges - Orphans' Court Section. Also 1997.
Kim has been devoted to pro bono activities, providing volunteer services in various areas including the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, Wills for Heroes, Thorncroft Equestrian Center, and the Senior Care Center.
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Practice Areas
Fiduciary and Tax Litigation
Education
Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law , J.D., magna cum laude (2001)
Pennsylvania State University, B.A. (1990)
Leanne M. Schenck focuses her practice on trust and estate planning and estate administration.
Leanne graduated magna cum laude from the University of California: Davis with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology and communications. Leanne then graduated magna cum laude from Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law in 2020.
While at Temple, Leanne participated in the Integrated Transactional Program and received the Nancy J. Knauer & Eleanor W. Myers Integrated Transactional Program Award for outstanding achievement in the program. She also served as a teaching assistant for the Integrated Transactional Program.
Upon graduation from law school, Leanne served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Lois E. Murphy of the Montgomery County Orphans' Court.
Memberships
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Bar Association
Montgomery Bar Association
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Thomas Hiscott
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Fellow of the American College of Trust
- Member of the Philadelphia Bar Association
Margaret E.W. Sager's practice includes estate planning for high-net worth individuals, trust and estate administration, fiduciary litigation and related dispute resolution, guardianships of incapacitated persons and charitable giving. In addition to her active fiduciary litigation practice, Margaret acts as a mediator and arbitrator to help other parties and their counsel resolve disputes privately, and without the cost and delay often associated with the judicial process.
Margaret is a frequent speaker on a variety of topics involving estates and trusts, including, most recently, trust modification and change of trust situs, fiduciary litigation, alternative dispute resolution (mediation and arbitration), the compensation of attorneys and fiduciaries, total return trusts, guardianships of incapacitated persons and donor charitable intent. She speaks at professional association meetings, women's groups, bar association events and universities including: the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel ("ACTEC"), the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania Executive Education Program, Cannon Financial Institute's Estate Planning Teleconference Series, the Cambridge Forums and Pennsylvania Bar Institute programs.
Margaret is the author of a number of publications, including, "Attorneys' Fees, Fiduciary Commissions and Costs," and "Guardianships of Incapacitated Persons," both of which are leading compendiums in Pennsylvania for those areas of law.
Margaret is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and serves or has served on many of the College's committees.
She is recognized as a Super Lawyer. Since 2005 Margaret has been named a Top 50 Women Pennsylvania Super Lawyer and in 2022 and 2023 she was also recognized as a Top 100 Philadelphia Super Lawyer. Margaret is recognized by Chambers and Partners in their High Net Worth Guide as a Band 1 Leader in the Field in Private Wealth Law Disputes in Pennsylvania. She is listed as one of the leading trust and estate attorneys by Best Lawyers in America, and was recognized by Best Lawyers as a Lawyer of the Year in 2014. Margaret is AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale Hubbell.
Margaret is a member of the Philadelphia Bar Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and the Philadelphia Estate Planning Council, which recognized her as the Council's Estate Planner of the Year in 2022. She is also a member of the Weeders Garden Club.
Memberships
Philadelphia Bar Association
Probate and Trust Law Section (1985 - present)
Chair (2000)
Chair Elect/Treasurer (1999)
Vice Chair (1998)
Secretary (1997)
Executive Committee (1992 - 1996)
Secretary, Rules and Practice Committee (1998 - 1991)
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Member, Real Property, Probate & Trust Law Section (1985 - present)
Montgomery County Bar Association (2001 - present)
Bucks County Bar Association (2018 - present)
American Bar Association
Member, Real Property, Probate & Trust Law Section (2005 - present)
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Director/Board Member (1996 - 1997)
Co-Chair, 1997 Annual Meeting Program Committee (1996 - 1997)
Membership Committee (1995 - 1996)
Program Committee (1994 - 1995)
Five County Rules Committee (1995 - 1999)
Philadelphia County Representative
The Weeders Garden Club, Gladwyne, Pennsylvania
Member (2014 - present)
2020 Margaret E.W. Sager, Speaker/Author, "State Income Taxation of Nongrantor Trusts: Taking Your Trusts on the Road," webinar by the American Law Institute and American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, with Richard Nenno, Esquire and Richard Greenberg, Esquire, January 2020.
2019 Margaret E.W. Sager, Speaker/Author, The Wharton School Executive Education Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, periodic speaker on estate planning and related tax topics, 2007 through present, most recently in January 2019, including such topics as "Estate Planning and Death Concepts" and "Do Trust Still Matter."
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Fellow of the American College of Trust
Martin Heckscher's practice consists of estate planning and trust and estate administration, with a special emphasis on fiduciary litigation. He is a nationally recognized authority on attorneys' fees and commissions in connection with the administration of trusts and estates. Martin is also co-author, with partner Margaret Sager, of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute's "Attorneys' Fees, Fiduciary Commissions and Costs," the leading legal materials on these issues related to trusts, estates, and guardianships in Pennsylvania. He frequently provides expert testimony in court cases involving fiduciary matters.
Martin has been listed as a leading trust and estate attorney by Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and Town & Country Magazine, and he is AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell.
Martin is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. A graduate of Harvard University and Harvard Law School, Martin served as a former president of the Harvard University Alumni Association. He serves on the board of the Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill Cemeteries. He is an honorary trustee of the Presser Foundation, and is a member of the Philadelphia Orchestra's Council of Emeriti Directors following more than 25 years as a member of the Orchestra's Board of Directors.
Memberships
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel
Philadelphia Bar Association (1996 - Present)
Chair, Probate and Trust Law Section (1986)
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Secretary, Committee on Orphans' Court Rules (1986 - 1992)
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Pamela S. Dumont, Esq., Karen ( Kim ) Fahrner, Esq. & Gregory Ferris
Merideth E. Ketterer focuses her practice on trust and estate planning and administration.
Merideth grew up in Hanover, Pennsylvania and graduated cum laude from Temple University with a bachelor's degree in Strategic Communication and a minor in Business Studies.
In 2019, Merideth graduated from Temple University Beasley School of Law. After law school, Merideth completed a judicial clerkship with the Honorable John J. Matheussen, Superior Court of New Jersey, Gloucester County. She also served as President of the Temple University Young Alumni Association for the 2018-2020 term.
Prior to joining Heckscher, Teillon, Terrill & Sager, Merideth was an associate at a boutique trusts and estates law firm in Princeton, New Jersey.
MEMBERSHIPS
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
New Jersey Bar Association
Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Bar Association
Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Montgomery County Estate Planning Council
Montgomery Bar Association
Michael Breslow focuses his practice on estate planning, trust and estate administration, and estate and gift taxation.
Michael was named a Rising Star Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters in trust and estate law 2019 - 2021. He was also named a Best Lawyer in Trusts and Estates in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to joining Heckscher, Teillon, Terrill & Sager, Michael was an associate in a small business, tax and estate planning firm. He also clerked for the Honorable Mala Sundar, J.T.C., in the Tax Court of New Jersey, in Newark, New Jersey.
Memberships
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
New Jersey Bar Association
Philadelphia Bar Association
Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Montgomery Bar Association
Job Titles:
- Vice Chair
- Planning Council Member
Erica A. Russo focuses her practice on estate planning, trust and estate administration and estate and gift taxation. Erica advises individuals and families in the preservation and transfer of wealth by crafting customized estate plans to accomplish each client's estate and tax planning goals. Erica also advises fiduciaries in the administration of trusts and estates, including the modification of irrevocable trusts.
Erica graduated cum laude from Franklin & Marshall College with a degree in Spanish. She then graduated cum laude from Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law where she was an Articles Editor for the Villanova Law Review. During law school, Erica was a summer clerk at Heckscher, Teillon, Terrill & Sager.
Erica was nominated for and graduated from the second session of the Mid-Atlantic Fellows Institute ("MAFI") sponsored by the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel in 2022. MAFI is a six session education program designed to develop future leaders of trust and estate practice. In addition, Erica was named a "Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America (2024)".
Memberships
American Bar Association
Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property, Probate Estates and Trust Law Sections
Philadelphia Bar Association
Property and Trust Law Section, Young Lawyer Division Liaison (2019 - 2021)
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Montgomery Bar Association
Montgomery County Estate Planning Council
Member, Board of Directors (2022 - present)
Patrick Russo focuses his practice on estate planning and trust and estate administration.
Patrick earned his bachelor's degree from Rutgers University - Camden in 2010. He then graduated magna cum laude from Widener University School of Law (now Delaware Law School) in 2014 where he received Certificate of Achievement Awards in Federal Income Taxation, Federal Estate and Gift Taxation, and Estate Planning. During law school, Patrick worked full time as an income tax preparer for a small Philadelphia tax business preparing federal, state and local income tax returns for corporations, partnerships and individuals.
Patrick was nominated for and graduated from the inaugural session of the Mid-Atlantic Fellows Institute ("MAFI") sponsored by the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel in 2019. MAFI is a six session education program designed to develop future leaders of trust and estate practice.
Prior to joining Heckscher, Teillon, Terrill & Sager, Patrick clerked for the Honorable Matthew D. Carrafiello in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Orphans' Court Division, and also worked as an associate in two New Jersey tax and estate planning firms. Patrick completed his Masters of Law in Taxation at the Temple University Beasley School of Law in 2018, and was the recipient of the Faculty Award, given to a graduate who demonstrates outstanding achievement in academic studies.
Memberships
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
Philadelphia Bar Association
Probate and Trust Law Section
Montgomery Bar Association
Philadelphia Estate Planning Council
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Jennifer Kosteva, Esq. and Lance Lacheen
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Adam Gusdorff, Esq. & Allison Lapat
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Practice Areas
Estate and Tax Planning
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Fellow of the American College of Trust
Tom is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. In addition, Tom is recognized in Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers, and has an AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rating from Martindale Hubbell. Tom is also recognized by Chambers and Partners in their High Net Worth Guide as a Band 2 attorney.
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant to Jill Fowler, Esq. and Merideth E. Ketterer