Our Leaders

Michael Arlein

Partner
Patterson Belknap

Michael Arlein is Chair of the firm’s Trusts and Estates group for Patterson Belknap’s practice group devoted to Founders & Entrepreneurs and has been with the firm since 2000. Mr. Arlein focuses his practice on estate and tax planning for high-net-worth individuals and families, including founders and entrepreneurs, Wall Street professionals, principals at venture capital and private equity firms and hedge funds, real estate developers, corporate executives, professional athletes, entertainers, and artists. In recent years, Mr. Arlein has worked with the founders of numerous venture-backed companies in connection with their estate and tax planning. Mr. Arlein has developed deep experience implementing planning strategies for Qualified Small Business Stock. Please visit the Founder Focus Resource Center where you will find unique content on topics of interest to founders and entrepreneurs and their professional advisors.

Mr. Arlein’s practice extends to all aspects of sophisticated planning, wealth preservation, and philanthropy. He has extensive experience preparing wills and trusts and implementing complex strategies involving grantor-retained annuity trusts (GRATs), family partnerships and limited liability companies, life insurance, Delaware trusts, and other wealth transfer techniques. Mr. Arlein frequently represents clients in administering large estates and trusts and in resolving complex estate and gift tax audits. He also has considerable experience negotiating and preparing prenuptial agreements, designing estate plans for international clients, and counseling clients on estate planning opportunities that arise in connection with the sale of privately held businesses and digital assets.

In recent years, Mr. Arlein has worked with the founders of numerous venture-backed companies in connection with their estate and tax planning. Mr. Arlein has developed deep experience implementing planning strategies for Qualified Small Business Stock. Please visit the Founder Focus Resource Center where you will find unique content on topics of interest to founders and entrepreneurs and their professional advisors.

In 2022, Chambers High Net Worth recognized Mr. Arlein as a Band 1 top-tier practitioner in one of its Private Wealth Law guides for New York. He served on the Board of Directors of the Estate Planning Council of New York City and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).