According to one client, “Marya provides outstanding legal guidance and insight. She is an exceptionally calm and experienced voice in the middle of a storm and appropriately strong and fierce in supporting clients. She quickly adapts to emerging legal obstacles and readjusts midstream to strategies that fit the situation. Marya’s ability to advise on best courses of action has been invaluable.”

A member of Lathrop GPM’s Executive Committee, Marya Robben also serves as the national practice group leader for the firm’s Private Client Services practice group. She helps clients determine how to build an estate plan to address their goals for their family, friends and specific assets. She works with clients to plan and administer complex estates so they, their families and beneficiaries remain in control of their assets. Marya’s proactive approach to estate planning and administration helps clients avoid probate problems, protect assets from creditors, optimize taxes, plan for and implement business succession and administer complex estates.

Estate Planning

Clients working with Marya benefit from her comprehensive estate planning and legacy management approach. She provides tailored solutions that help clients achieve their personal and financial goals, ensuring the protection and preservation of their legacy for future generations, and properly navigating fiduciary duties to other professionals. She also helps clients with:

  • Business succession planning for closely held and family-owned businesses
  • Charitable giving
  • Disclaimer planning
  • Estate and gift taxation planning and reporting
  • Generation-skipping transfer tax planning
  • Marital deduction planning
  • Trust formation
    • Revocable trusts
    • Irrevocable trusts, including Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts (IDGTs), Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs), Spousal Limited Access Trusts (SLATs), Irrevocable Insurance Trusts (ILITs) and more.

Estate and Trust Administration

In addition to estate planning, Marya serves clients needing trust and estate administration and litigation. This includes providing clients with legal counsel and advocacy regarding:

  • Asset distribution
  • Conservatorship and guardianship administration
  • Creditor management
  • Estate tax reporting and settlement
  • Fiduciary representation and dispute resolution
  • Litigation
  • Probate estate administration
  • Trust administration
  • Valuation management
  • Will contents

As a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), Marya is highly regarded for her contributions to the field. She regularly writes and speaks on estate planning and probate matters, including having been quoted by The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. For 10 years, Marya was an adjunct professor at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, teaching courses on Wills, Trusts & Estates.

When asked about her personal philosophy, Marya Robben said, “I’m called to serve others, which enables me to see this practice from a unique perspective. I want to help clients find peace of mind by listening to their goals, addressing their questions and creating estate plans that carry out their intentions. Whether simplifying the tax code or navigating the wealth transfer process, the aim is to reduce worry, offer a fresh perspective and make the process understandable.” She also noted how proud she is to serve as the practice group leader, connecting teams across multiple offices and supporting others in their career success.