Casey F. Rickard is a Member of Branscomb Law, practicing in its Estate Planning & Probate Group and Tax Group. His practice focuses on nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations, estate, asset protection and tax planning, and probate and fiduciary administration. Federal tax law is a substantial component of his work in these areas.
Casey regularly represents nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations in matters involving formation and qualification, governance, federal and state tax compliance, charitable and exempt-purpose activities, significant transactions and organizational restructuring. He advises organizations and their governing boards throughout the organizational life cycle, including formations, affiliations, mergers, restructurings, asset transfers and dissolutions.
Casey also advises individuals and families on estate and gift tax planning, wealth preservation and asset protection, marital property planning, charitable planning, third-party special needs trusts, and succession planning for closely held business and investment interests. His practice includes wills and revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts, family limited partnerships, limited liability companies and other structures for the preservation and transfer of family wealth.
Casey represents executors, administrators, trustees, beneficiaries and families in probate proceedings and the administration of estates and trusts, including the federal income taxation of estates and trusts, asset valuation and distribution, trust construction, modification and termination, and related post-death planning.
Education
LL.M. in Taxation, University of Florida, 2010
J.D., University of Notre Dame, 2009
Cum Laude
Journal of College and University Law
B.S., University of Louisville, 2005
Magna Cum Laude
McConnell Scholar
Representative Matters
- Represent § 501(c)(3) organizations classified as § 509(a)(1), § 509(a)(2) and § 509(a)(3) public charities, including Type I, Type II and Type III supporting organizations, as well as grantmaking and operating private foundations, in matters involving formation, exemption, classification, governance, operations and federal tax compliance.
- Form and advise nonprofit corporations, charitable trusts and other nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations across a broad range of charitable fields, including educational and youth organizations such as ISD education foundations, public university foundations, private religious schools, scholarship granting foundations and public charities, booster organizations, alumni organizations, youth centers, youth sports organizations, martial arts organizations, child advocacy centers, and organizations serving foster children and youth who have aged out of foster care; museums, arts organizations, historical and preservation societies, garden clubs and civic organizations; animal welfare and animal rescue organizations, estuary protection and other environmental organizations, and agricultural and scientific research organizations; and ministries, charitable thrift shops and other charitable service organizations.
- Represent nonprofit, tax-exempt and member-based organizations outside the traditional charitable sector, including business leagues and trade associations, civic leagues and social welfare organizations, social clubs, fraternal organizations, cooperatives, title holding corporations and property owners associations.
- Advise central and subordinate organizations regarding group exemptions and the structuring, governance and operation of affiliated tax-exempt organizations.
- Structure and advise supporting organizations and other affiliated charitable arrangements, including relationships among operating charities, foundations, property holding organizations and related entities.
- Advise public charities regarding public charity classification and public support requirements, supporting organization requirements, private benefit and inurement, excess benefit transactions, compensation and other insider arrangements, unrelated business income, lobbying and political activity restrictions, fundraising, grantmaking, planned giving, restricted charitable assets, and other federal tax and governance matters.
- Advise private foundations regarding self-dealing, minimum distribution requirements, excess business holdings, jeopardizing investments, taxable expenditures, grants to individuals and organizations, including equivalency determinations for grants to foreign organizations, governance, restructuring and termination.
- Structure and advise nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations in mergers, affiliations, reorganizations, restructurings, conversions, asset transfers, dissolutions and other significant transactions, including matters involving the ownership, use, transfer and preservation of charitable assets.
- Advise nonprofit boards, officers and fiduciaries regarding fiduciary duties, conflicts of interest, related-party transactions, compensation arrangements, real estate ownership and use, significant asset transactions, organizational changes and other governance matters.
- Advise nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations regarding federal tax reporting and compliance and applicable state-law requirements, including state tax exemptions and charitable property matters.
- Design and implement estate plans using wills and revocable trusts, marital and family trusts, irrevocable trusts, grantor retained annuity trusts, life insurance trusts, charitable trusts, third-party special needs trusts, premarital and post-marital agreements, and incapacity planning documents.
- Advise individuals and families regarding estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax planning, lifetime gifting, charitable planning, wealth preservation, asset protection and succession planning, including the use of family limited partnerships and limited liability companies.
- Represent and advise fiduciaries in probate and the administration of estates and trusts, including estate and trust income taxation, asset valuation and distribution, trust construction and modification, decanting, trust termination and related post-death planning.
Professional
Texas Super Lawyers, Rising Star, Estate Planning & Probate, 2019- 2024
The Bend Magazine, Top Attorneys, Tax Law, 2020-2025
Board of Directors, Corpus Christi Estate Planning Council, 2019-2025
Member, State Bar of Texas Tax Section
Community
American Cancer Society, Real Men Wear Pink Ambassador
Volunteer Wills and Probate Attorney, Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid
Personal
Casey and his wife, Lauren, call Corpus Christi home, where they are raising their children, Reece and Melody Lorraine, along with their dog, Hayes.
