NEW YORK–Sterlington has grown its Private Wealth team with the arrival of additional practitioners from Morgan Lewis. Alexandra Buckingham joins the firm as a partner, strengthening a premier team alongside Daniel Cooper, partner and head of Sterlington's Private Wealth practice; partner Emalee Welsh, deputy head of the practice; and partner Daniel Carmody. Buckingham advises ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) and families regarding sophisticated wealth transfer techniques, estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax planning, income tax planning, trust and estate administration, family business succession, and philanthropy.
In addition to four partners, associates Cordelia Ochis, Cody Witmer, and Melissa Bressler; senior estate and fiduciary accountant John Birkmire; and estate administration and tax paralegals Allison Tyler and Colleen Flynn, as well as support staff, have joined the team. The recent arrivals complete the significant move from Morgan Lewis announced last month to build the 15-member Private Wealth team. The team is also actively recruiting to further strengthen its growing practice.
The arrival of these additional team members marks a major expansion of Sterlington's capabilities in advising UHNWIs, family offices, and closely held businesses on estate planning, wealth transfer, tax strategy, and succession planning.
"Sterlington stood out to us because it combines high-caliber legal talent with a commercially minded approach," said Cooper. "Having our full team here allows us to deliver coordinated, sophisticated planning strategies with a practical focus on our clients' needs."
Notably, the team includes accountants working alongside trusts and estates and income tax lawyers, enabling Sterlington to deliver a unique combination of legal and tax advice. Leveraging this important blend of expertise, Sterlington helps clients navigate complex wealth and succession matters with greater efficiency and precision.
"This team adds depth to our private wealth offering and strengthens our ability to serve UHNWIs and family offices at the highest level," said Christopher S. Harrison, head of Sterlington's Corporate and M&A practice and managing partner of the firm. "Their arrival underscores Sterlington's momentum and reinforces our position as a leader in private client work."
The Private Wealth team is based in Sterlington's new Philadelphia office and will also serve clients through Sterlington's New York office.
The team joins a growing roster of leading talent across disciplines at Sterlington. Recent arrivals include Michael Gilligan, an experienced M&A partner who joined from WilmerHale; Kristy Fields in executive compensation who was a partner at Simpson Thacher; Paul Jebely, a Chambers band 1 global private aviation attorney; Jonathan Sherman and Courtney Rockett, highly regarded litigators who were long time partners at Boies Schiller Flexner; Lawrence Waks, a top advisor to global brands and celebrity-backed ventures and former Reed Smith partner; and Jesse Sherrett in international arbitration and litigation who was a partner at A&O Shearman.