Rack & Olansen

Associate Chairs Successful Professional Development Conference CLE in Richmond
The Professional Development Conference (PDC), organized by Rack & Olansen Associate, Jennifer L. Moccia, as Chair of the event, is a full-day CLE program established by the Virginia State Bar Young Lawyers Conference. This year, the sold-out PDC was held in Richmond on September 23rd, and hosted notable speakers who offered practical advice on timely issues, including client opportunities in a changing legal market and the evolution of social media in litigation.

As Chair, Jennifer assembled a committee who worked with her to develop the theme and lecture topics for the event, select presenters, reserve the venue, prepare the agenda, attain CLE approval, coordinate logistics, market the event, and host and introduce the speakers on the day of the event. The affordable program was approved for 6 CLE credits, 2 of which were ethics credits presented by ReelTime CLE, who displayed Hollywood movie clips to present vignettes and provoke discussion and debate. This stimulating and thought-provoking event has received excellent feedback from registrants, and was attended by the Executive Editor of Virginia Lawyers Weekly, who plans to author an article on the PDC to be featured in the publication.

 The Best Lawyers in America 2012 :
Kevin B. Rack has been recognized once again as one of The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of Trusts and Estates, and Trusts and Estates Litigation.  The selection process comprised of more than 2.5 million confidential evaluations by top attorneys in the country. Mr. Rack was first named to this elite category in 2009.

Associate elected to Virginia Bar Association Young Lawyers Conference Board of Governors
Please join us in congratulating our estate planning associate, Jennifer L. Moccia, for being elected to serve for a two year term on the Board of Governors of the Virginia State Bar Young Lawyers Conference. Jennifer is known for her incredible attention to detail and strong work ethic, as well as growing expertise in the estate planning and elder law fields of practice. In her role as the 2nd District Representative for the Board of Governors, Ms. Moccia will lead the Young Lawyers Conference by serving as a state bar liaison to program committee chairs, coordinating programs and projects for the bar, initiating and voting on policy decisions and participating in state-wide board meetings.

The Young Lawyers Conference (YLC) focuses its efforts on the special interests and concerns of young and new lawyers. Through a diverse group of projects, the YLC is a vehicle through which young lawyers can participate in the governance of the Virginia State Bar, serve the profession and the public, and enhance the public awareness of the legal profession.

National Healthcare Decisions Day- April 16th
Rack & Olansen, P.C. served as a State Liaison for National Healthcare Decisions Day, held on April 16th.  National Healthcare Decisions Day highlights the importance of establishing an Advance Medical Directive in order to ensure that your wishes regarding healthcare decisions are reduced to a legally enforceable writing so that they will be carried out, whether for medical treatment or for the withholding of life-prolonging procedures, in the event you cannot speak for yourself.

Advance medical directives are now widely considered to be a standard document in even the most basic of estate plans.  These instruments, executed in advance of incapacity, allow for the designation of an agent to make health care decisions and authorize medical treatment on your behalf.  In a section of the advance medical directive often entitled, “Health Care Power of Attorney,” the appointed health care agent is given authority to provide direction to health care providers and other parties regarding the type and extent of medical treatment you would, or would not, want to be given to you, including residential arrangements for long term care.

The instructions you give pertaining to the withholding of life-prolonging procedures in the event of a terminal illness or persistent vegetative state are typically set forth in the portion of your advance medical directive commonly referred to as the “Living Will.”

In the absence of an advance medical directive, family members are often required to apply to the courts for appointment as a guardian or conservator in order to address your health care decisions or financial matters, respectively.  Sadly, these proceedings sometimes become family battlegrounds for control, leading to costly and divisive litigation.  Since our law practice focuses on both estate planning and the appointment of guardians and conservators, our experience motivates us to encourage every adult to implement an Advance Medical Directive naming at least two health care agents and clarifying the values and choices to be applied in the making of health care decisions.   And we specifically urge you not to wait until next National Healthcare Decisions Day, just in case.

Virginia Super Lawyers 2011:
Kevin B. Rack has been recognized by the publishers of Richmond magazine and Law & Politics for the fifth consecutive year as one of the Virginia Super Lawyers. Virginia Super Lawyers is an exclusive listing of the top 5% of attorneys in Virginia and West Virginia. The selection process involves peer nominations from more than 18,000 Virginia lawyers and a blue ribbon panel review.

45th Annual heckerling Institute on Estate Planning:
As a graduate of the Master of Laws program in Estate Planning at the University of Miami Law School, our associate Jennifer L. Moccia, has a particular interest in the Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning.  Sponsored by Miami Law School, Heckerling is the nation’s leading conference for estate and tax planning professionals, and is attended by attorneys, accountants, trust officers, insurance advisors and wealth management professionals.  Jennifer attended Miami Law School as a graduate student, and decided it was time for her traditional mid-winter Florida homecoming visit.

The 45th Annual Heckerling Institute, now held in Orlando due to the popularity of the program, featured numerous specialized presentations highlighting estate planning and tax strategies such as: grantor retained annuity trusts, sales to grantor trusts, valuation discounts, post-mortem estate planning, special needs trusts and retirement planning.  The Institute also offered in-depth panel discussions featuring the country’s leading estate and tax planning experts on recently enacted estate and gift tax laws.

Upon her return from Florida, Jennifer has helped prepare our recent correspondence addressing estate and tax planning considerations arising from the Tax Relief Act of 2010, contributed to the Estate Steward Program Seminar presentation summarizing the Tax Act, and has authored various Featured Posts on our recently updated website.

New Associate joins firm:
Rack & Olansen, P.C. is pleased to announce the association of Nicole D. Morris with the Firm.  Mrs. Morris was inducted into the Order of the Coif while earning her law degree at West Virginia University.  She will concentrate her practice in the administration of trusts and estates, and representation of executors, trustees and conservators.

Virginia's Legal Elite 2010:
We are proud to announce that Kevin B. Rack, principal of Rack & Olansen, P.C., is recognized once again as one of Virginia's Legal Elite.  For seven of the past eight years, Mr. Rack has been named as one of Virginia's "Legal Elite" in Virginia Business magazine, a listing of the 300 best lawyers in the Commonwealth. He was named by his peers in the category of attorneys specializing in taxation, trusts and estates.

Rack Elected to Board of Directors for Beach CBDA
Kevin Rack was elected to serve a 3-year term on the Board of Directors for the Central Business District Association of Virginia Beach. Kevin has been a leader in many community organizations and activities, and he will be contributing his knowledge and experience to support the goals of the businesses and professions which make up the Association.

Bringing Breast Cancer to Light
Kevin B. Rack served as Master of Ceremonies for the Bringing Breast Cancer to Light event held September 25, 2010 at the First Baptist Church of Norfolk. The event included presentations by Jennifer Reed, M.D., FACS, Michael Danso, M.D., and Lauries Jesz, RN, CBNC and included a fashion show in which the models were beautiful breast cancer survivors. The events aimed to provide essential information about early detection, treatment and prevention of breast cancer Girl Scouts from local troop 164 were able to use this event to achieve their Gold Award which compares in recognition to the Boy Scouts award of Eagle Scout

Firm Paralegal Elected V. P. of Tidewater Paralegal Association
We congratulate the Firm's litigation paralegal, Priscilla Balderama, CP, for having been elected as Second Vice-President of the Tidewater Paralegal Association for 2010-2011. It is no surprise to us, of course, since we have observed Priscilla's outstanding organizational skills and leadership qualities in her work on behalf of our clients and in support of our lawyers.

The mission of the Association is to provide continuing education, professional development and certification programs for practicing paralegals. In her role as Second V.P., Priscilla will be responsible for building and maintaining membership in the Association. She is the classic team player, so she will prove to be the perfect candidate for this position. Please join us in congratulating Priscilla on this achievement.

Community Tax Law Project Award 2009:
The Community Tax Law Project has recognized the contributions of attorneys of Rack & Olansen, P.C. with its Pro Bono Award for 2009. The Firm was named as an Outstanding Firm by the organization for its generous donation of time and expertise in achieving justice and fairness for the working poor in Virginia.

Two of the Firm's tax attorneys, Flora T. Hezel and Nathan R. Olansen, were given individual recognition as well for their personal commitment to the program. Needless to say, we appreciate this extraordinary effort on their part to give back to the community in this very tangible way, and we hope you will join us in congratulating Florrie and Nate on this honor.

The Community Tax Law Project is a non-profit organization which provides free legal help to Virginia's low wage families experiencing economic harm because of a tax problem. Their services directly strengthen the financial stability of working families and ensure that all Virginians receive fair and equal treatment in tax disputes.

Rack & Olansen, P.C. is proud to be a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Inc. (NAELA)