Matthew P. D’Emilio
Managing Member
Matthew P. D’Emilio
Managing Member
Practice Focus
Trusts, Estates, and Tax
Fiduciary Litigation
Contact
Direct: (302) 468-5958
Fax: (302) 691-6834
Email: mdemilio@mdsulaw.com
Administrative Support
Judy W. Keating
Direct: (302) 468-5965
Email: jkeating@mdsulaw.com
Matt practices in the areas of estate planning and wealth transfer, estate and trust litigation, estate and trust administration, business transactions, and tax law. He routinely counsels both individual and corporate trustees in all matters related to estates and trusts, including providing representation in the Delaware Court of Chancery and the Pennsylvania Orphans’ Court. In addition, Matt is regularly involved in a variety of other trust matters including trust modifications, terminations, mergers, decantings, nonjudicial settlements, and trust situs changes.
Matt also represents many individual clients across the country in estate planning and asset protection planning matters, and frequently advises on highly sophisticated wealth transfer strategies. Matt also provides general business and tax planning advice to companies and non-profit entities, and serves as Assistant General Counsel to the Supreme Council of the Royal Arcanum, a fraternal benefit society in the United States and Canada. Matt is a frequent lecturer in the area of trusts and estates. Following law school, he served as law clerk to the Honorable Henry duPont Ridgely, Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court.
Since 2016, Matt has been recognized by Chambers and Partners as a leading Private Wealth Attorney (Band 2), and since 2012, he has been recognized by Super Lawyers in the areas of estate planning and trust and estate litigation. In 2016, Matt was named one of Delaware Business Times “40 under 40.” Since 2015, Matt has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Trusts and Estates.
Thought Leadership
- Trusts & Estates Journal
- Don’t Overlook a Trust’s Material Purpose, Co-Authored (September 2021)
- Associated Press
- No time like the present: End-of-life plans and the pandemic, Quoted
- The Legal Intelligencer
- Understanding Eligible Designated Beneficiaries under the SECURE Act, Guest Article
- Delaware Trust Conference
- Best Practices for Trust Modifications, panelist (2019)
- Litigation Update – Delaware Trust Cases and National Trust Cases – Lessons Learned, panelist (2018)
- Mastering the Chess Pieces – Effectively Utilizing the Tools in the Delaware Statutes, panelist (2017)
- Knowing Me, Knowing You – Directed Trusts and Investments, panelist (2016)
- Using Nonjudicial Settlements, Mergers, and Decantings to Move Trusts, panelist (2015)
- Delaware State Bar Association
- Fundamentals of Will Drafting and Estate Administration, panelist (2017)
- Understanding Delaware’s Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets and Digital Accounts Act, panelist (2015)
- Delaware Bankers Association
- Silent Trusts: Keeping Secrets Can Be Risky Business, Co-Authored (Summer 2022)
- Basic Income, Estate, Gift and GST Issues, panelist (2015)
- Estate Planning Council of Southern Delaware
- Planning with Personal Residences, lecturer (2011)
- National Business Institute
- New Era of Estate Planning in Delaware, lecturer (2011)
- Delaware Tax Institute
- Income Tax Developments, lecturer (2009)
-
Estate Planning Instructor, 2014, University of Delaware Certified Financial Planning Program
Professional Associations
- Delaware State Bar Association, Member
- Taxation Section, Member, Past Chair (2011-2012)
- Delaware Estate Tax Subcommittee, Member
- Estates and Trusts Section, Member, Past Secretary (2019)
- Fiduciary Access to Online Accounts Subcommittee, Member
- Revocation Upon Divorce Subcommittee, Member
- New Lawyers Section, Past Treasurer (2011-2012)
- Taxation Section, Member, Past Chair (2011-2012)
- Pennsylvania State Bar Association, Member
- Estate Planning Council of Delaware, Member
- Delaware Bankers Association, Member
Honors & Awards
- American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Fellow, 2022
- Delaware Today, 2014 and 2015 Top Lawyer – Trusts and Estates
- Super Lawyers Rising Star, 2012-2019 – Estate Planning
- Five Star Estate Planning Attorney, 2014
- Best Lawyers in America, 2015-2021 – Trusts and Estates
- Chambers and Partners – Private Wealth Law Attorney (2016-2022)
- Delaware Business Times, “40 Under 40” (2016)
Charitable Activities
- Delaware Dreams, Inc., a 501(c)(3) Entity, Board Member
- Nemours Fund for Children’s Health Planned Giving Committee, Member
Education
- Villanova University School of Law, LL.M. (Taxation), 2012
- Villanova University School of Law, Certificate in Estate Planning, 2011
- Villanova University, B.S., 2003
- Widener University School of Law, J.D. magna cum laude, 2006. Delaware Journal of Corporate Law, Articles Editor
- Moot Court Honor Society
- Order of the Barristers
Admissions
- Delaware, 2006
- Pennsylvania, 2008
- Massachusetts, 2014
- U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, 2007
- United States Tax Court, 2008