By Mark Pierce, Esq.
About Wyoming Trust & LLC Attorney
Wyoming LLC Attorney has formed
0
companies (and counting)
Our Basic Premise
The premise behind our practice is the fundamental belief that all families deserve quality legal advice regarding their estate plan, business plan and asset protection. Mr. Pierce, the owner of the firm, has been an attorney for over 30 years. He graduated from the University of Wyoming with an accounting degree (honors) and passed the CPA examination on his first sitting. Mr. Pierce previously served as a Bankruptcy Panel Trustee – administering over 1,000 cases. He offers legal services in the areas of estate planning, trust planning, wealth strategy planning, wills, trusts, plans for minor children, plans for parents, Medicaid planning, estate & federal tax planning, business tax planning, probate avoidance strategies, probate law services, special needs planning, special needs trusts, guardianship, small business planning, business exit planning & strategies, and asset protection.
Mr. Pierce became interested in this field as a result of his experiences as a young man with his family's business in Thermopolis, Wyoming. He watched as this business and inheritance was devoured by government intervention, estate taxes and divorce. This interest has been honed in 30+ years experience as an attorney, accountant and business person.
Mr. Pierce is dedicated to making sure that none of his clients ever has to go through what he and his family went through. To help achieve that goal, in addition to his accounting degree, Mr. Pierce obtained his Juris Doctorate Degree with an emphasis in tax and estate planning from the University of Colorado – Boulder – in 1983. He continues to maintain the highest level of knowledge and expertise through ongoing education and frequent attendance at nationally recognized conferences on advanced planning topics.
We are a member of the prestigious Wealth Counsel Practice Excellence, a group of individuals devoted to the financial, emotional, legal and psychological well being of the American Family.
Why Choose Us?
Let us guess, the question of which attorney or website to choose has been driving you mad. After all, these are your most important decisions... decisions which shouldn't be left to chance. There is Legal Zoom, with some of the documents you need, but it lacks the critical legal advice. In fact, we are cheaper than they are, and their lack of advice will end up costing you even more.
Your other option is an attorney with plenty of advice: they merely want your first born as payment. Allow us to help…We are founded on the belief starting companies, forming asset protection trusts and planning your estate should not be prohibitively expensive.
Now, your next question is probably… why do we charge so little? There are three answers. The first is because we have streamlined most of our back office processes. You'll notice we can collect your payment and information online. This both reduces errors and minimizes time spent. We pass these savings along to you. The second answer is because we would rather make money through higher volume than higher prices. Helping a thousand average people a year supersedes assisting a dozen High Networth Individuals. The third is that we have done this for thousands of clients and can quickly identify what makes your situation unique and how to help you.
Mark Pierce
Skilled businessman, accountant and attorney with extensive experience in diverse areas of the law, including bankruptcy, corporations, estate planning, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, mergers and acquisitions, oil and gas, securities, tax, transportation and real estate. Essentially, a life-time planning and preserving estates; primarily through complex tax and state law planning strategies, but also through experience with debtor/creditor relationships and bankruptcy.
Highlighted Business Achievements:
Assisted in developing and managing from 1989 until 2000 a publicly and then privately-held software company which grew from a start up in 1986 to over $50M in sales by 1999, two years after our sale of the entity but while still working for the new owners.
Acquired in 2004 and grew systemically, and via acquisitions, a transportation company with local, interstate and international operations. This required a complete retooling of management, staff and operations and the creation of a cultural environment devoted to service. The company had $3.2M in gross revenues in 2003 which topped at $11.6M in 2009.
Shortened Resume:
- CEO and Owner – Sunset Moving & Storage - Fort Lauderdale, FL: 2004 to 2011
- Partner and In-House Counsel – Coral Companies - Denver, CO, and San Jose, CA: 1989 to 2000
- Associate –Ballard, Spahr, Andrews & Ingersoll – Denver, CO: 1983 to 1989
- JD – University of Colorado – Boulder, CO (1983)
- Moot Court Competition
- Top 15% Class Rank
Highlighted Legal Achievements:
Worked in the estate planning section of a large multi-national law firm for two years representing the interests of three large, old east coast families. This rotation was done under the auspices of one of the most highly respect estate planning attorneys in the business at the time
Drafted registration statements and assisted in bringing effective approximately 15 initial public offerings and 10 secondary offerings from 1983 through 2000, drafted offering memorandums for approximately 40 private placements and managed approximately ten mergers/acquisitions. Represented numerous public companies in their Exchange Act filings, including Forms 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, 13D and Forms 3 and 4 and in developing their Exchange Act compliance procedures.
Andrew Pierce
Andrew is a paralegal for the firm. He likes to say he doesn't sell Wyoming LLCs because he is in Wyoming, but is in Wyoming for the LLCs. Prior to WY, he lived in the Caribbean where he owned a successful business development company. During this time he learned to navigate the various tax regimes each island offered to maximize value for his investors. This is where he honed his expertise in corporate structuring.
He has a degree in Mathematics and Philosophy, with a minor in Economics, awarded from F.A.U. in Boca Raton, Florida.
Family Story
Our family moved to the United States in the 1600s. They were starving in Norway and so Michigan, where people weren't starving, was viewed as a great alternative. Most of our family remained farmers during this era, but some moved to Ohio and helped found Oberlin College. Fast forward two hundred years and our family had migrated to Wyoming. They took their skills at pumping water wells and began drilling for oil instead! Here is our family fortune in 1921:
And here it is again later that year:
Needless to say, we continued working for a living. Our family managed to rebuild and formed a successful oil field services company which lasted through the 1970s. It survived two World Wars, a Great Depression and catastrophic medical accidents. What finally did it in? Estate taxes and a messy divorce. Worse yet, the family visited an estate planning attorney, but thought the $100 per hour fee was extravagant... until the estate tax bill came due.
Hence our saying that while professional advice may be expensive, not getting it costs a whole lot more.
Finally, here is a picture of Mark's father Bruce as a 13 year old. Driving laws were more lax then than now:
Mark's Full Resume
Qualifications Summary
Skilled businessman, accountant and attorney with extensive experience in diverse areas of the law, including bankruptcy, corporations, estate planning, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, mergers and acquisitions, oil and gas, securities, tax, transportation and real estate. Essentially, a life-time planning and preserving estates; primarily through complex tax and state law planning strategies, but also through experience with debtor/creditor relationships and bankruptcy.
Litigation experience primarily in federal court: bankruptcy and securities. Excellent writing and communication skills acquired through hard work since I have very little natural writing skill.
Key Accomplishments
In 2011 had a "Forrest Gump Moment" and decided (with substantial input from my family) to move back to my home state of Wyoming after more than 25 years away, occupying our family's residence in Story (near Sheridan) which we had inherited after the death of my parents. Took over an existing tax and estate planning practice in Sheridan and began changing the primary focus of that practice to the implementation of family business generational transition strategies. Attended several seminars in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and re-tooled the practice to provide an effective platform for the implementation of this focus, including a professional assistance network with individuals and firms throughout the U.S. with an emphasis in this type of estate planning.
Acquired in 2004 and grew through acquisitions and systemically a transportation company with local, interstate and international operations. This required a complete retooling of management, staff and operations and the creation of a cultural environment devoted to service. The company had $3.2M in gross revenues in 2003 which topped at $11.6M in 2009. This was a complex business from the stand point of governmental regulation and required not only skill in corporate management and development, but also intense and prolonged interaction with governmental agencies, including the DOD, DOT and GSA. Sold and liquidated this business in early 2012.
Assisted in developing and managing from 1989 until 2000 a publicly and then privately-held software company which grew from a start up in 1986 to over $50M in sales by 1999, two years after our sale of the entity but while still working for the new owners. Acquired opportunities for the business, including products and management in a private equity capacity, which primarily involved tax structuring under IRC 368 and related Code provisions. Oversaw legal, finance and public report functions and assisted HR with a staff of approximately 120 people. Worked with diverse cultural and ethnic groups (Chinese, Indians, Texans and Brits) and consumed in excess of $3M in accounting and legal services over an 11 year period which now allows me to effectively evaluate professional services from several stand points not normally found within the legal community.
Drafted registration statements and assisted in bringing effective approximately 15 initial public offerings and 10 secondary offerings from 1983 through 2000, drafted offering memorandums for approximately 40 private placements and managed approximately ten mergers/acquisitions. Represented numerous public companies in their Exchange Act filings, including Forms 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, 13D and Forms 3 and 4 and in developing their Exchange Act compliance procedures.
Worked in a municipal bond department for two years drafting memorandum and providing for closings at the state, municipal and special improvement district level. Extensive tax and state issue research function. Assisted in developing a schematic for funding and implementing privately-held "security facilities," writing the definitive constitutional law memorandum on the subject, which was rejected by my firm and, subsequently, accepted by Gary Hart's firm, which made a fortune through the financing of privately-held prisons on the back of my efforts.
Managed approximately 1,000 Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases as a Panel Trustee for the District of Colorado from 1988 through 1990. Prepared and filed as debtor's counsel approximately ten Chapter 11 proceedings and too many Chapter 7 proceedings to even count or remember. Litigated on behalf of debtor several "exceptions" claims and other matters and won all of them – resulting in my obtaining a large Arizona banking organization as a client approximately two months before it folded in 1990.
Represented clients before the Securities and Exchange Commission on informal and formal investigations. Secured no action conclusions in most instances and represented three U.S. District Court cases to satisfactory results. Worked as second chair with Leonard Davis (Chicago 7 fame) in representing Joe "the Pig" Pignatiello, winning a directed verdict in a widely publicized criminal securities case.
Worked in the estate planning section of a large multi-national law firm for two years representing the interests of three large, old east coast families. This rotation was done under the auspices of one of the most highly respect estate planning attorneys in the business at the time. Continued to hone these skills over the past 30 years through the experience listed above. Experience and Education.
CEO and Owner – Sunset Moving & Storage - Fort Lauderdale, FL: 2004 to 2011 • Partner and In-House Counsel – Coral Companies - Denver, CO, and San Jose, CA: 1989 to 2000 • Associate –Ballard, Spahr, Andrews & Ingersoll – Denver, CO: 1983 to 1989 • JD – University of Colorado – Boulder, CO (1983); Moot Court Competition; Top 15% Class Rank • Staff Tax Accountant – Coopers & Lybrand - Denver, CO: 1980 • CPA – Wyoming - Passed examination on first sitting: 1979; Beta Alpha Psi Honor Society
Bachelor of Science, Accounting (Honors) – University of Wyoming – Laramie, WY: 1979 Publications The Colorado Lawyer (1985): Securities Act Section 4(1)(1/2): Judicial Exemption as Applied to the Closely-held Business; University of Colorado Law Review: The Convertible, Participating Mortgage: Federal Income Tax Considerations with Professor Norton L. Steuben
Parting Thoughts
Planning your affairs properly saves much grief in the end. We can help you treat asset protection with the seriousness it demands. Our Wyoming attorney helped write the State's trust laws and is well versed in entity formations from his time taking companies public. Whether you require a Wyoming Asset Protection Trust, help forming a Wyoming LLC or just need a registered agent in Wyoming, we stand ready to help. Contact our Wyoming law firm today and see what our attorney can do for you.
