News
Summary
With deep roots in both Denver and Chicago, Jessica serves clients nationwide with a commitment to provide technical excellence and serve as a trusted advisor. She advises individuals, families, and family offices on sophisticated estate, tax, and business succession planning with a focus on helping clients navigate the legal and interpersonal complexities that arise during major wealth transitions — from first-generation wealth creation to long-term legacy planning. Her practice also includes marital planning; estate and trust administration; advising trustees, personal representatives, and beneficiaries; and fiduciary litigation.
She draws on deep experience with a broad range of planning techniques, including irrevocable trusts, grantor trust strategies, and family entity structuring. Her work emphasizes tax efficiency, long-term viability, and practical implementation. Jessica also advises clients on charitable planning, including the formation and administration of private foundations, donor-advised funds, and complex philanthropic vehicles.
Collaborating seamlessly with the firm’s corporate, real estate, and tax specialists, Jessica provides integrated guidance on advanced succession planning, entity structuring, charitable giving, and strategies aligned with family governance and long-term stewardship goals.
In addition to proactive planning, Jessica counsels clients through all phases of estate and trust administration, including probate, post-mortem tax planning, and fiduciary risk management. She advises personal representatives and trustees on their legal duties and guides families and beneficiaries through the administration process with clarity and care. Her practice also includes managing trust and estate disputes, including pre-litigation mediation, fiduciary conflicts, and trust reformations.
Jessica is known for combining technical precision with empathy and strategic insight. She is particularly skilled at helping families navigate sensitive dynamics, address intergenerational tensions, and structure thoughtful plans that reflect evolving family values.
Awards
Honoree, Best Lawyers in America®, Trusts and Estates, Tax Law (2024 – present)
Honoree, Best Lawyers® “Ones to Watch,” Trusts and Estates (2021 – 2023)
Honoree, Chambers High Net Worth, Band 3, Colorado, Private Wealth Law (2024 – 2025)
All Service Areas
Education
- University of Chicago Law School
J.D.
- The University of Chicago Booth School of Business
M.B.A.
- Loyola Marymount University
M.A., Elementary Education
- Northwestern University
B.A., Psychology
Admissions
- State - Colorado
- State - Illinois
Notable Matters
- Assists individuals and families with the implementation of wealth transfer strategies that reflect personal and familial goals and minimize transfer taxes (including the utilization of family partnerships, taxable gifts, and irrevocable trusts) and advises families on business succession planning.
- Counsels clients on charitable giving techniques (including the establishment and operation of private foundations, public charities, donor-advised funds, and charitable remainder and charitable lead trusts).
- Represents clients in the preparation and negotiation of premarital and postnuptial agreements.
- Provides counsel to surviving family members and corporate fiduciaries relating to the administration of estates and trusts, the federal estate tax return, and the transition of property to beneficiaries.
- Advises personal representatives, trustees, and beneficiaries with regard to trust disputes, contested estates, trust administration, and property division. Counsels personal representatives and trustees on their fiduciary duties.
- Represents charitable nonprofits, including both private foundations and public charities.
Speeches and Publications
Speeches
“The New Normal in Entity Planning: A Practical Application of the Most Impactful Legislation and Judicial Rulings in Recent Memory,” 31st Annual RPTE National CLE Conference, May 9, 2019.
“Philanthropic Planning and Advising 101,” Women’s Estate Planning Council, Oct, 11, 2018.
Publications
“Formalizing Decades of Practice: The Uniform Trust Code Comes to Colorado,” Practical Pointers from Practitioners, Probate & Property, Mar./Apr. 2019
“Litigating Disputed Estates, Trusts, Guardianships and Charitable Bequests,”
“Chapter 7: Representing Fiduciaries in Trust and Estate Litigation,” Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2016
News
Four Hundred Fifty-Three Taft Attorneys Recognized in Best Lawyers in America® 2026 News
Taft Attorneys and Practices Recognized in Chambers High Net Worth Guide 2025 News
Best Lawyers® 2025 Recognizes Sherman & Howard Attorneys News
Chambers High Net Worth 2024 Recognizes Sherman & Howard’s Trusts & Estates Planning Practice, 6 Attorneys
Professional Affiliations
- American Bar Association
Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section, Member (2013 – Present)
Dennis L. Belcher Young Leader (2020-2022)
Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section, Fellow (2018-2020)
- Rocky Mountain Estate Planning Council
Member (2016 – Present)
Former President and Director (2018 – 2022)
- Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation
Education & Workforce Committee
- Colorado Bar Association
Member
- Denver Bar Association
Member
- Chicago Bar Association
Prior Member