Services

• Accounting & Auditing
• Business Advisory and Risk Services
• Business Valuation & Litigation Support
• Employee Benefits
• Entrepreneurial Services
• Financial Services - Pittsburgh
• Financial Services - Florida
• Financial Staffing Solutions
• International Services
• Mergers, Acquisitions & Transaction Advisory Services
• Public Company Services
• Tax Compliance & Consulting

 

Michael S. Leone, CPA, JD, LLM (Tax)

 

Director, Entrepreneurial Services Group — West Palm Beach

561.689.7888
mleone@alpernfl.com

Areas of Specialization

• Technical analysis of federal estate and income taxes
• Assisting attorneys with drafting shareholder agreements
• Limited liability company operating agreements
• Purchase/sale of business agreements
• Wills and trust agreements
• Pre-nuptial and post-nuptial agreements
• Dissolution of marriage
• Property settlement agreements
• Personal injury structured settlement agreements

Mr. Leone also provides assistance to law firms. He is an expert witness in Florida Uniform Principal and Income Act matters, as well as law office management consulting, concerning compensation for partners/shareholders, partnership/shareholder agreements and attorney trust accounting compliance.

Experience

Mr. Leone has over 30 years of experience in public accounting with national and large local CPA firms in the following areas: 

• Tax & estate planning
• Estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxation
• Income taxation of trusts & estates
• Pre-immigration tax planning
• International taxation
• Compliance

Mr. Leone provides tax controversy representation before the Internal Revenue Service and the Florida Department of Revenue. Mr. Leone has lectured and published articles, including such topics as law firm trust accounting, comparative analysis of entity choices for doing business, partnership and shareholder agreements, estate planning for the terminally ill, U.S. estate and gift tax applicable to foreign individuals, and IRS distribution rules for qualified retirement plans.

Professional Affiliations

• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Tax Section
• American Association of Attorney-Certified Public Accountants, Inc.
• Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Estate Planning Conference Past Chair
• The Florida Bar, Law Office Management Assistance Service Advisory Board, Past Chair, Probate and Trust Law
• East Coast Estate Planning Council, President (2008-2009)
• East Coast Estate Planning Council, Past Vice President (2007-2008)
• Palm Beach County Estate Planning Council, Past President (2007-2008)
• Palm Beach Tax Institute: Past President (2000-2001)

Community Involvement

• University of Miami, Citizens Board
• Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, Professional Advisory Committee
• American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science, National Ambassador
• Gold Coast Builders Association, Finance Committee
• Palm Beach Commission for Jewish Education: Budget - Finance Committee; Board of Commissioners

Education

• University of Miami — BA, Accounting; JD, LLM (Tax)