Anthony F. Vitiello is the chairman of the Taxation and Estate Planning Group at Connell Foley. His practice is limited to tax planning for individuals, businesses, estates and trusts, with particular emphasis on estate planning and asset protection planning. He brings his innovative expertise to planning estates from five million to over one billion dollars, as well as advising family foundations, closely held corporations, partnerships and limited liability companies on significant tax issues. Mr. Vitiello also maintains a significant practice in gift, estate and income tax audits and controversies.

In the December 2005–2008 editions, Mr. Vitiello was named by the editors of Worth magazine in its list of the nation's "Top 100 Attorneys." Worth's editors looked most carefully at attorneys specializing in trusts and estates and other personal planning matters.  Mr. Vitiello has also been recognized in the 2011 and 2012 editions of Best Lawyers®, one of the most well-respected and long-standing peer-review publications in the legal profession. Best Lawyers recognized Mr. Vitiello's expertise in Trust and Estates, Trust and Estate Litigation and Tax Litigation and Controversy.

Mr. Vitiello has lectured extensively and published on estate planning and related tax matters. He is also certified to provide continuing professional education credits to certified public accountants in New York and New Jersey as well as those individuals holding the certified financial planner designation.

Mr. Vitiello received both his law degree and masters of law (LL.M.) in taxation from New York University (programs ranked fifth and first in the nation, respectively). He began his career with the United States Treasury where he provided legal counsel to the Internal Revenue Service. While in government service, Mr. Vitiello was involved in complex tax controversies in the United States Tax Court, including corporate tax disputes, complex estate tax litigation matters, and cases involving personal income tax.

Honors and Awards:

• New York's Best Lawyers, Tax Law (2013)
• "New Jersey's Top Rated Lawyers" as seen in Inside Jersey magazine (2012)
• Best Lawyers ​in America (2011-2013)
  • Trust and Estates Litigation 
  • Tax Litigation and Controversy 
• New Jersey Super Lawyers (2005, 2006, 2009-2013)
• "Top 100 Lawyers," Worth magazine (2005-2008)

Representative Experience:

• Provided advice relating to - and implemented - estate plans for estates and trusts ranging in value from five million dollars to more than one billion dollars
• Transferred closely held businesses to younger generations at significantly discounted values
• Provided significant asset protection advice to clients with creditor sensitivity, ranging from professionals with the potential for future creditor risk to multinational families (and their trusts) seeking to ensure the insulation of vast multi-generational fortunes from a host of potential risks
• Provided advice concerning and implemented, various charitable giving techniques for clients’ estate plans, including significant family foundations ranging in initial funding from less than $1,000,000 to over $10,000,000
• Successfully defended against numerous audits and civil tax prosecutions including: settled a tax litigation where the Internal Revenue Service asserted in excess of twenty million dollars in gift tax liability, penalties, and interest for less than $300,000; negotiated a settlement with the California taxing authority involving more than $5,000,000 in income tax, penalties, and interest for $200,000
• Negotiated a settlement with the Internal Revenue Service that allowed a taxpayer charged with a civil tax fraud deficiency in excess of $600,000 to pay 15 cents on the dollar
• Successfully settled numerous family partnership/LLC gift and estate tax audits for substantial discounts
• Designed multiple private and third-party insurance premium financing transactions ranging from ten million dollars to over one hundred million dollars in insurance death benefit
• Developed and implemented various off-shore asset protection trusts using Bahamian, Cook Islands, and Swiss structuring components
• Successfully leveraged tens of millions of dollars of real estate value out of a senior generation’s estate into dynasty trusts for multi-generational wealth transfer
• Advised multinational estate planning clients on various aspects of estate, income, and gift taxation, implemented estate plans for individuals with international estate planning issues and created structures for the avoidance of U.S. estate tax consequences for non-resident aliens with U.S. estate tax issues
• Represented and advised hundreds of executors and families in the administration of decedents’ estates, including those with multi-state and multi-national issues; unique, varied, and substantial assets; and complex tax and non-tax issues

Affiliations:

• American Bar Association
• New Jersey State Bar Association
• New York State Bar Association
• United States Tax Court