Deirdre R. Wheatley-Liss, Esq., LL.M (Taxation), CELA

ABOUT DEIRDRE AND HER PRACTICE

For her clients, Deirdre is a “concierge lawyer,” empowering her clients to use the legal system and tax code to preserve their wealth and pass along their values to their family. She is part of a Team working with you to meet your tax and estate planning goals.

As a member of Porzio’s Wealth Preservation Group, Deirdre helps families with questions about Estate Planning, Asset Protection, Probate, Estate Administration, Estate Litigation, Special Needs Planning, Guardianships, and Elder Law. This website focuses on providing actionable information about these areas of her practice.

While Deirdre focuses on these areas, she doesn’t limit herself to them. She also counsels closely held companies and their owners on business and tax issues. She helps non-profits with tax compliance and operations. Some folks get behind on their taxes, and Deirdre helps them work out a resolution with the IRS or the states. Most recently, she has been tackling data privacy and cybersecurity. People deserve to have their identities and online transactions protected, and companies need to know how to prevent private data loss and what to do if data or assets are stolen.

Deirdre is part of a much larger firm. She has partners who practice in almost every area of law. Having multiple areas of focus makes her a better attorney, allowing her to mix and match ideas and approaches from different disciplines to create solutions to problems. As part of a larger firm, if a problem is outside of her area of experience, she has people that she knows and works with every day who can help solve it.

Deirdre loves what she does. One way to tell is she talks about it all the time. She gives around 40 lectures each year related to her areas of practice, business development or being a woman in business. She even wrote a book on estate planning.

When a person has enjoyed success in her career, Deirdre feels very strongly that it is essential to give back and share knowledge with others. She sits on the Board of the Morris County Chamber of Commerce. In addition, she supports her attorney colleagues as Co-Chair of the Morris County Bar Association (MCBA), Vice-President of the Estate Planning Council of Northern New Jersey (EPCNNJ), President-Elect of the New Jersey

Chapter of the National Association of Elder Law Attorneys (NJNAELA), and Chair of the Tax Steering Committee of the National Association of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA).

One of the best compliments she has received from clients is, “You explained that so well.” You can’t be empowered about the law unless you understand how it impacts your goals and choices. If she has taken something complex and shared it so now you feel confident moving forward with a plan, then she has accomplished her goal.