Bio

W. Curtis Elliott has practiced law with Culp, Elliott & Carpenter, PLLC since 1983. His peers have recognized him as one of the Best Lawyers in America in tax law. Curtis serves highly affluent family business owners and entrepreneurs in tax and estate planning matters. He provides trust architecture, estate, and tax counsel to multi-generational businesses. He helps clients achieve their family and business goals and solve tax problems. Curtis has helped many private business owners develop sophisticated estate planning and business succession solutions for their companies. His work includes insurance trusts, corporate matters, shareholder trusts, buy-sell agreements, mergers and acquisitions, and real estate tax planning. His service to clients has been in various industry segments, including real estate development, construction, mortgage servicing, healthcare software, data management, freight, distribution, and logistics. Curtis's clients are located in both the Charlotte area and across the southeast United States. Curtis also has extensive courtroom experience in high-stakes estate and income tax cases. He litigates federal tax controversies before IRS Administrative Appeals, the U.S. Tax Court, and the Federal District Courts. His advocacy has resolved some of the most complex tax issues for clients. Curtis handles all types of tax cases, including estate and gift tax audits, civil IRS proceedings, U.S. Tax Court litigation, IRS criminal tax investigations, and tax trials in the state and federal courts. Curtis's tax controversy clients range from Fortune 500 corporations to private companies and decedents' estates. He also handles trust and estate cases for clients. Curtis has been asked to speak at numerous tax controversy and litigation panels across the country – see speaking engagements, below. He is a past Chair of the ABA Tax Section's Committee on Court Procedure and Practice. Curtis is also a past Chair of its Committee on Appointments to the U.S. Tax Court. Additionally, Curtis is a co-author of the nationally published treatise entitled Valuation Practice in Estate Planning and Litigation, published by Clark Boardman and Callahan in 1994.