Ms. Jaye A. Calhoun
Kean Miller, LLP
Jaye Calhoun is a partner in the New Orleans office of Kean Miller. She joined the firm in 2017 and practices in the tax group. Jaye provides clients with full-service tax representation covering federal, state, and local tax challenges and business opportunities. She has more than 25 years of experience and assists her clients with tax compliance and planning, guidance on the use of tax and business incentives, and represents clients in tax audits and controversies. She regularly represents clients in audits and administrative and judicial appeals before the IRS, the State of Louisiana Department of Revenue, and numerous local taxing authorities. Jaye is board certified by the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization in both Taxation and in Estate Planning.

Jaye has been listed for over a decade as one of the Best Lawyers in America (2007-2023), and in Louisiana Super Lawyers (2007-2022). She is AV-rated preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell. Jaye is listed among the top tax lawyers in the State of Louisiana by Chambers USA 2022. She has been recognized by New Orleans City Business as a 2005 Woman of the Year and selected as a 2014 recipient of the Leadership in Law award. Jaye was recognized by New Orleans Magazine as a Top Lawyer in 2012, 2016 and 2020. She was also recognized as a Top Woman Attorney by Louisiana Super Lawyers. She was elected as a Fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel (ACTC) in 2017 and she was accepted into the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation (ABF) in 2019.

Jaye is an Adjunct Professor of Law at Tulane University Law School, Loyola University New Orleans College of Law and Northeastern University D’Amore-McKim School of Business in Boston (online program). She is also a guest lecturer at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington D.C.

Professor Elizabeth R. Carter
LSU Law Center
Professor Elizabeth R. Carter is the A.N. Yiannopoulos Professor of Law and the Judge Anthony J. Graphia & Jo Ann Graphia Professor of Law at the Louisiana State University Law Center, where she teaches and writes in the areas of trusts & estates, tax, family law, and comparative law. In addition to her teaching responsibilities at the Law Center, Professor Carter teaches the courses in Federal Gift and Estate Tax and in Estate Planning in the University of Alabama’s LL.M. program in taxation. She is also an Academic Fellow in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.

Mr. Edmund J. Giering IV
General Counsel
Baton Rouge Area Foundation
http://www.braf.org
Edmund J. Giering IV serves as general counsel to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, a community foundation in Baton Rouge, Louisiana which serves the needs and interests of South Louisiana by helping donors connect with nonprofit organizations to create a lasting legacy and fulfill their philanthropic goals and by leading and investing in civic leadership initiatives that build a more equitable community and address larger social outcomes.

Licensed to practice law in Louisiana and Texas, Mr. Giering is a member of the American Bar Association, the Louisiana State Bar Association, the State Bar of Texas, the Baton Rouge Bar Association, and the Association of Corporate Counsel. His practice emphasizes corporate law & governance, corporate, real estate & complex gift transactions, risk management and nonprofit & exempt organizations. During his tenure with the Foundation, he has managed the development and execution of hundreds of grants totaling more than $100 million in the areas of disaster assistance, emergency relief, health and human services, wildlife, environment and conservation, and education. Mr. Giering also serves as president and a director of Community Foundation Realty, Inc., as secretary and a director of the Gulf Coast Restoration and Protection Foundation and as a director of the E.J. and Marjory B. Ourso Family Foundation and the Newton B. Thomas Support Foundation.

In 2020, Mr. Giering was named the recipient of the Outstanding In-House Counsel Award for distinguished service by a nonprofit in-house counsel by the Nonprofit Organizations Committee of the American Bar Association, Business Law Section.

He actively serves on the boards of numerous professional, civic and charitable organizations, including: Research Park Corporation (Board of Directors; Past Chair), YMCA of the Capital Area (Board of Directors; Past Chair), Shaw Center for the Arts (Board of Directors), Manship Theatre (Board of Directors; Past Chair), LSU E.J. Ourso College of Business Dean’s Advisory Council (Development Committee), University Laboratory School Foundation (Board of Directors; Past Chair), Louisiana Bar Foundation (Board of Directors; Secretary), Association of Corporate Counsel – LA (Board of Directors) and St. Joseph Cathedral (Finance Council).

Mrs. Leslie E. Halle
Shareholder
Gold, Weems, Bruser, Sues & Rundell
Leslie Halle is a shareholder at Gold, Weems, Bruser, Sues and Rundell, located in Alexandria. She received her bachelor’s degree in Accounting from LSU and graduated from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center in 2010. After graduation she clerked for the Honorable Mary L. Doggett, 9th Judicial District Court. Upon completion of her clerkship, she joined Gold, Weems, Bruser, Sues & Rundell. Leslie’s practice focuses on estate planning, succession and trusts. She is a Board Certified Estate Planning & Administration Specialist and currently serves as the Secretary of the Estate Planning Advisory Committee of the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization.

Mrs. Rebecca M Hinton
Special Counsel
Taylor, Porter, Brooks & Phillips, LLP
http://www.taylorporter.com
Rebecca Hinton represents individuals and businesses in the areas of federal, state and local taxation; tax controversies; estate planning; business matters; successions; and trusts. Rebecca is ranked by her peers among Best Lawyers® in tax law. She is an adjunct professor at Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center, and frequently presents at CLE and other seminars on the topics of federal estate and gift taxation, estate planning, and federal taxation. Rebecca serves as secretary of the Estate & Business Planning Council of Baton Rouge. In the community, she is a board member of the nonprofit SportsBR, dedicated to uniting sports and the Baton Rouge community.

Ms. Riley F. Huntington
Koch St. Martin, LLC
Riley F. Huntington is an associate attorney of the law firm of Koch St. Martin. Riley received her bachelor’s degree in business management at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2017. Riley graduated with her J.D. and Diploma in Comparative Law from Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center. During law school Riley was elected to The Order of the Barristers. Additionally, she served on the Board of Advocates and participated in several Dispute Resolution Competitions. Since graduating, Riley has remained active with LSU’s Advocacy Programs by coaching the ABA Negotiation Competition the past two years. Riley’s practice focuses on estate planning, successions, wills, powers of attorney, living wills, trusts, and tax resolution.

Mr. David G. Koch
Member
Koch St. Martin
David G. Koch is a Board Certified Estate Planning and Administration Specialist and a Board Certified Taxation Specialist with a practice focusing in wills and estate planning, probate, federal taxation, business transactions, and IRS resolution. He has “AV” Preeminent rating with Martindale and a Louisiana Super Lawyer in tax law. He has an LL.M. in Taxation from Boston University, where he graduated first in his class. He received his law degree and undergraduate degree in accounting from L.S.U., and is also Certified Public Accountant (inactive). He was member of the Baton Rouge Chamber of Commerce Leadership Class of 2000 and was named as one of Baton Rouge’s “Top Forty under Forty” in 2004. He has served on both the Tax Law Advisory Commission and the Estate Planning Commission for the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization. He has been a featured speaker on estate planning, Louisiana probate law, trusts, and federal taxation issues for professional organizations throughout Louisiana.

Mr. Justin T. Mannino
Partner
Taylor, Porter, Brooks & Phillips, LLP
http://www.taylorporter.com
Practicing law since 2013, Taylor Porter Special Counsel Justin T. Mannino represents individuals and businesses in the areas of federal, state and local taxation; multigenerational estate planning; numerous business and corporate governance and ownership matters; successions; and trusts.

Justin works with individuals and families to prepare estate plans and implement wills, powers of attorney and to establish trust instruments [grantor trusts, multigenerational trusts, and grantor retained annuity trusts (GRATs)]. Justin also advises clients regarding the structure of multi-generational wealth conservation plans to effectively access the exemptions for the gift, estate, and generation-skipping transfer taxes and to transfer intra-family wealth with minimal transfer tax cost and without disruption of business operations. He also handles will contests and disputes, the implementation of wealth conservation plans, and the administration of estates and trusts. Justin offers advice to executors in executing his or her duties as administrator and properly administering complex estates. Justin frequently presents at CLE seminars on the topics of estate planning, successions and federal taxation. Justin is a member of the Baton Rouge Estate and Business Planning Council.

Justin regularly advises clients concerning business and personal financial transactions, including developing the tax structure for sales, mergers or acquisitions of businesses, and drafting buy-sell agreements, asset or stock purchase agreements, operating agreements, or other corporate governance instruments. He provides business planning for closely-held corporations, and provides tax advice for matters from formation to liquidation.

Justin’s additional representative matters and experience include:

Representation of various business owners, including closely-held businesses, in evaluating the best tax structure for sale or purchase of businesses.
Handling large-scale federal and state tax controversies with the Internal Revenue Service and Louisiana Department of Revenue.
Representation of clients in the formation of 501(c)(3) charitable organizations and foundations, including application for tax exempt status with the IRS, and providing advice to nonprofit entities on formation, corporate governance, tax exemption, and compliance with tax-exempt law.
Representation of businesses in corporate matters and mergers and acquisitions, in particular a multi-million dollar merger of a fumigation company which had footholds nationally with a publically-traded corporation.

Justin was a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association Leadership Class of 2016-2017. He is an active member of both the LSBA and the Baton Rouge Bar Association. Justin has been a member of the LSBA Ethics Committee since 2017.

Justin received his J.D./D.C.L. cum laude from Paul M. Hebert Law Center, Louisiana State University in 2013. During his time at LSU Law, Justin served as the SBA Executive President and as the student member of the LSU Board of Supervisors (2012-2013). After LSU Law, Justin continued his legal education at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where he graduated with a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Taxation in 2014. Justin also received a B.S. in Accounting in 2010 from the E.J. Ourso College of Business at Louisiana State University.

A Baton Rouge native, Justin is a 2006 graduate of Catholic High School, Baton Rouge. In the community, he serves on the Board of Directors for the Catholic High School Alumni Association. Justin chairs the worship committee for St. Aloysius Catholic Church.

Ms. Linda S Melancon
Attorney
Legacy Estate and Elder Law of Louisiana, LLC
http://www.legacycenterla.com
Linda S. Melancon, founder of Legacy Estate & Elder Law of Louisiana, LLC, is an attorney practicing in the areas of Estate Planning, "Elder Law," Medicaid and VA Benefits Planning, "Special Needs Planning," and Estate Administration (Successions and Trust Administration). Linda is a Board Certified Estate Planning and Administration Specialist, certified by the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization. She is also accredited by the Veterans Administration to give advice regarding veterans’ benefits. Linda graduated magna cum laude from Mercer University with a double major in business administration and history and then attended Louisiana State University’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center where she graduated with her law degree in 1997.

While in law school, Linda received the Order of the Coif award for graduating in the top 10% of her class and was a member of the Louisiana Law Review. She is a member of the Louisiana Elder Law Task Force, the Academy of Special Needs Planners, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, and the Baton Rouge Aging Network.

Also active in the community, Linda has served as a board member for the Ascension Council on Aging and The ARC of East Ascension. Linda also regularly presents educational seminars for the public, as well as professional groups, on the importance of proper planning.

When not working, Linda enjoys outdoor activities - particularly hiking, biking, and kayaking. Linda has three children and seven grandchildren and very much enjoys spending time with them.

Ms. Ashley C. Meredith
Taylor, Porter, Brooks & Phillips, LLP
Ashley Meredith is a Partner with Taylor Porter, where she practices in a wide array of areas including trusts and estates/estate planning; taxation; successions; tax-exempt organizations; commercial transactions; and commercial litigation. Ashley is admitted to practice before all Louisiana federal and state courts.

Ashley is ranked by her peers among the Best Lawyers® "Ones to Watch" and Louisiana Super Lawyers "Rising Star".

In her estate planning and administration practice, Ashley assists clients with the preparation of their personal estate planning documents, ranging from traditional wills and powers of attorney to large scale trusts and gifting plans to lessen Federal estate and gift tax exposure.

Ashley’s commercial litigation practice has involved representing closely-held corporations and limited liability companies in connection with general business disputes. Ashley's transactional work includes drafting business documents, corporate governance agreements, asset purchase agreements, loan and security documents, UCC documents, and master service agreements, among others.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ashley has co-authored several articles on the developments of the SBA loan programs and the CARES Act within the Taylor Porter Coronavirus - Legal News and Business Resources blog section.

Ashley graduated summa cum laude in 2022 from the University of Alabama School of Law LL.M. program. She graduated cum laude in 2014 from the Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center, where she served as senior editor of the Louisiana Law Review and as copy editor and contributing news writer for The Civilian. Ashley graduated magna cum laude in 2011 from Louisiana State University, where she received her bachelor of arts in Mass Communication and minored in Political Science. She was also a member of the LSU Honors College.

In the community, Ashley is an active member of the Baton Rouge Bar Association, Louisiana State Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. Ashley is a board member of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation - Louisiana Chapter; member of the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center Gala Fundraiser Committee; and a volunteer in community fundraising drives through the Baton Rouge Bar Association, such as the Holiday Star Project.​

Mr. R. Fritz Niswanger
Managing Attorney
Niswanger Law LLC
http://www.niswangerlaw.com
R. Fritz Niswanger is the managing attorney of Niswanger Law LLC in West Monroe, Louisiana. Fritz focuses his practice in the following areas: federal income and transfer tax planning; business entity formations and reorganizations; mergers and acquisitions; trust and estate planning; and asset protection. He is certified as a tax law specialist by the Louisiana Board of Legal Specialization, holds a JD and an MBA from Tulane University in New Orleans, and holds a BA from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.

Ms. Rebecca S. Luster Radford
Associate
Wiener, Weiss & Madison, APC
REBECCA S. LUSTER RADFORD is a shareholder at Wiener, Weiss & Madison, A Professional Corporation in Shreveport. Rebecca’s practice primarily involves taxation, estate planning, successions, trusts, and business and commercial transactions. Rebecca is a frequent speaker on estate planning and taxation topics and is a co-author of Estate Planning in Louisiana, which is part of the Louisiana Practice Series. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Business Administration, cum laude, from Rhodes College in 2008 and a Master of Science in Accounting from the University of Virginia in 2009. Rebecca earned a J.D. and a Graduate Diploma in Comparative Law from LSU's Paul M. Hebert Law Center in 2012, cum laude. Subsequent to her studies at LSU, Rebecca earned a Master of Laws in Taxation from the University of Florida in 2013.