Lana Lane specializes in representing individuals in sophisticated estate, gift, and wealth transfer planning, closely-held business succession planning, and charitable giving.  A key focus of her practice is her expertise in estate planning for retirement benefits, including strategies for optimizing required minimum distributions while minimizing tax consequences for current and future generations.

Lana advises clients in all aspects of wealth transfer planning through the creation of wills, revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts (such as irrevocable insurance trusts, intentionally defective grantor trusts, qualified personal residence trusts, and grantor retained annuity trusts), installment sale transactions to grantor trusts, and the use of lifetime gifting to individuals and charities.  Lana also assists clients with post-death administration matters, including advising on the proper funding, taxation, distribution, and continued administration of trusts and estates.  She regularly works with family offices, investment advisors, and accountants to ensure that each plan reflects the current legal landscape and the long-term goals of the client’s family.

Lana has developed an expertise in the estate planning and post-death administration of retirement benefits, including IRAs and qualified plans.  She regularly advises clients on the integration of retirement benefits into multi-generational planning, including structuring trusts to receive IRAs and qualified plans, navigating SECURE Act distribution rules, optimizing required minimum distributions, and crafting beneficiary designations that are aligned with her clients’ broader wealth-preservation objectives.  

Lana’s background in psychology allows her to advise clients on both the technical and interpersonal aspects of wealth transfer.  She is skilled at navigating sensitive family dynamics, fostering communication across generations, and developing plans that reflect each client’s values.    

Lana is an active member of the St. Louis trusts and estates community and enjoys working closely with other estate planning professionals.  She is a graduate of the Heart of America Fellows Institute of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.  Outside of work, Lana enjoys baking, discovering new restaurants and cuisines, and spending time with her husband and two children.