Ms. Clapp’s practice emphasizes estate and business planning, estate administration, commercial transactions, taxation, and trusts. She is a frequent lecturer on limited liability companies, choice of entity, estate planning, and probate. Ms. Clapp is former president of the Boise Estate Planning Council and is a member of the Southwest Idaho Planned Giving Council. She has previously served as chair of the Idaho State Bar Section of Taxation, Probate, and Trusts, and as chair of the Idaho Law Foundation Continuing Legal Education Committee, and was previously on the steering committee for the Idaho Leave a Legacy program. Ms. Clapp is currently on the governing board of the Idaho State Bar Section of Law Practice Management and is a member of Trust and Estate Professionals, Inc. Since 2003, Ms. Clapp has been listed in the Best Lawyers in America for Trusts and Estates. Ms. Clapp is also recognized in Best of the U.S. for attorneys. Ms. Clapp received the Tribute to Women in Industry Award in 2000 and has been recognized by the Idaho Business Review as Accomplished Under 40 in 2003. Ms. Clapp has also been honored by the Board of Commissioners of the Idaho State Bar for outstanding service in recognition of her commitment to the Bar and Foundation through service to the CLE Committee and participation in the Taxation, Probate and Trust Law Section.

Ms. Clapp has practiced since 1991 and has many years of legal experience working as a business and estate planning attorney. She also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Stephen S. Trott of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and worked in the Boise District Counsel’s Office for the Internal Revenue Service.

Ms. Clapp received both her bachelors degree and law degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Idaho.

Examples of Planning Experience

Estate Planning

Wills

• Simple provisions
• Credit shelter or bypass trusts
• Marital trusts
• Charitable bequests

Trusts

• Inter vivos or revocable trusts
• Educational trusts
• GRITs
• Irrevocable life insurance trusts
• Dynasty trusts
• Court-approved testamentary trusts

Guardianship and Conservatorship

• Guardianship and conservatorship petitions for appointment of fiduciaries
• Documents relating to estate accountings and court approval of proposed transactions
• Prepare documents terminating guardianships and convervatorships
• Represent fiduciaries in proceedings including review of visitors reports, addressing concerns of attorney for incapacitated person, attending court hearings, addressing disputed issues, and court hearings
• Appointed by court to act as guardian ad litem in such proceedings
• Represent alleged incapacitated person to contest imposition of guardianship or conservatorship

Family Limited Partnerships or Entities

• Advised clients on use of family limited partnerships and LLCs to fractionalize interests for estate taxation discounts
• Drafted agreements for limited partnership and prepared and filed certificates of limited partnership with Secretary of State
• Reviewed and calculated estate discounts for entity interests
• Reviewed and applied Internal Revenue Code and rulings applicable to family interests
• Prepare gifting documents

Charitable Planning

• Planned Gift preparation
• Charitable remainder trusts
• Remainder interests in assets
• Private foundations
• Creation of tax exempt public charities, including all Internal Revenue Service filings

Family Business Interests

• Option contracts
• Redemption on or purchase agreements
• Gifting
• Liquidity and succession planning to continue business after death
• Liquidate or sell business after death or disability

Estate Administration

Formal and Informal Proceedings

• Informal applications for probate and appointment and petitions for formal probate of will and appointment
• Represent clients in supervised probate proceeding and prepare pleadings for court approval of all distributions and transactions

Administration of Estate

• Organize and value estate assets for court inventory and estate tax returns
• Review and approve 706 and state estate tax returns
• Represent personal representative in administering and distributing estates, including funding of trusts, selling of property, qualification of corporate personal representative in other states, determining expenses of administration, conducting ancillary probates outside of Idaho, and calculating and finalizing distribution of estate
• Represent heirs or beneficiaries to ensure rights are protected

Estate Disputes and Claims

• Negotiate and prepare settlement agreements between interested persons and prepared petitions for court approval of settlement agreement
• Represent clients in contesting proposed estate distribution
• Represent creditors in petitioning court for accounting and inventory of estate assets and allowances of contingent claim arising from ongoing non-probate litigation

Ancillary Proceedings

• Represent non-resident clients in preparing ancillary probate documents
• Retain counsel from other states to conduct ancillary probates in those jurisdictions and review and approve ancillary proceedings

Examples of General Business Experience

• Formation of corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, general partnerships, and related documents
• Find entities
• Buy and sell entities business, business assets or partial business ownership
• Shareholder agreements
• Employment contracts
• Employee incentive agreements
• Annual minutes and reports
• Act as general counsel for family business interests and coordinate all family advisors, attorneys and projects
• Liquidate and close businesses