Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP

Founded in 1854 and headquartered nearby on Wall Street, Carter Ledyard & Milburn prides itself on its self-described "can do," "get the deal done" philosophy. Notably, Franklin D. Roosevelt was an associate at Carter Ledyard before he became the Governor of New York and President of the United States.

Committed to the City

An historic New York City firm, Carter Ledyard is committed to its hometown. The firm helped refinance bonds to rebuild Ground Zero as part of the World Trade Center Project, counseled the Battery Park City Corporation in the renovation of one of the only historic in Manhattan piers that remains, and completed pro bono work on land protection issues for New Yorkers for Parks. Several partners and associates have been elected to and served on city and environmental boards, including the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York State and Friends of Van Cortlandters for Parks.

The firm is also committed to the United States on the global stage. Its cross-border practice groups offer legal counsel to corporations in countries, including Israel, Canada, China, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Ireland, seeking to conduct business in the United States.

A Firm of Many Talents

Carter Ledyard attorneys have extensive expertise in multiple legal areas. They advise financial institutions on restrictive covenants and during noncompete litigation. The firm counsels clients, including CooperSurgical, Inc., and Trinity Biotech PLC, in the medical device and biotech fields on transactional matters and during litigation. It also handles bond litigation for BNY Mellon and represents Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC in trademark matters and during litigation. Carter Ledyard has worked with the Long Island Power Authority on the Long Island Solar Farm, the biggest solar energy project in the state of New York, and Spectra Energy Corp. in the creation of natural gas transportation infrastructure in New York and New Jersey. The firm has a long-standing tradition of servicing the needs of U.S. and foreign individuals and families with a high net worth as well as various tax-exempt organizations.

Getting to Know You

With approximately 80 attorneys and approximately a two-to-one partner-to-associate ratio, Carter Ledyard emphasizes quality over quantity. Most cases are handled by a partner and one or more associates. For junior associates, this structure means getting direct experience working with a variety of partners. The firm aims to guide juniors via on-the-job feedback and two evaluations each year.

• We assisted Word Gold Trust Services, LLC (WGTS), a subsidiary of the World Gold Council, with the development and regulatory approval of the first exchange traded fund to track a commodity. The SPDR Gold Trust launched in November 2004 on the New York Stock Exchange (Ticker: GLD) with an initial public offering of approximately $100 million and, as of January 2024, holds approximately $58 billion in gold bullion. We continue to represent WGTS as the sponsor of the trust.
• We represented the taxpayer in the important tax planning case of Walton v. Commissioner, 115 T.C. No. 41 (December 22, 2000), whereby the Tax Court agreed with us that, where annuities payable under two-year Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs) were payable to the grantor and, if applicable, the grantor’s estate, the retained annuities should be valued as term annuities that would be payable in all events. This court found the contrary IRS regulation in question invalid, thus allowing for GRATs to be created with, and for taxpayers to be able to transfer future appreciation to their descendants with, no gift tax cost. “Walton” GRATS have since become highly popular tools in estate planning.
• We represented the only shareholder to object to the settlement of a shareholders
  derivative suit which included indemnification of the former CEO for his liability under
  Section 304 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX). SOX 304 required the CEO to pay back
  any bonus compensation received during a period for which the public company was
  required to correct its financial statements as a result of misconduct. In a case of first
  impression, we persuaded the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to invalidate the
  indemnity and thereby preserved a $186 million claim for the public company. Cohen v.
  Viray, 622 F.3d 188 (2d Cir. 2010).

• Midsize Mansfield Certification, 2023-2024—Diversity Lab
• The Best Lawyers in America^© and in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch
• ThomsonReuters’ SuperLawyers
• Chambers—High Net Worth, Israel, Environment, Native American Law, Corporate
• Inaugural ABA Award for Estate Law