Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman PLC
Paul P. Morf

Paul P. Morf

Position: Member
115 3rd Street SE, Suite 1200
Cedar Rapids, IA 52401-1266
(319) 896-4012 direct
(319) 366-1917 fax
E-Mail: pmorf@spmblaw.com
  
 
 

Firm Leadership Roles:

Non-Charitable Planning: Wills and Revocable Trusts, Credit-Shelter Trusts, Contingent Estate Tax Planning, Qualified Terminal Interest Property (QTIP) Marital Trusts, Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Exempt Trusts, Dynasty Trusts, Incentive Trusts, Perpetual South Dakota Trusts, Supplemental Needs Trusts, 2503(c) Trusts, Grantor Trusts, Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts, Qualified Personal Residence Trusts, Installment Sales to Grantor Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Healthcare Powers of Attorney, Limited Liability Companies and Family Limited Partnerships, Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts, Private Split-Dollar Arrangements, Option Contracts, Installment Sales, Corporate Recapitalizations to Separate Ownership from Control and Business Succession Planning.

Charitable Planning: Restricted Gifts, Charitable Lead Annuity Trusts, Charitable Remainder Trusts, Private Foundations, Private Operating Foundations, Supporting Organizations, Public Charities, Donor-Advised Funds, Charitable Gift Annuities and General Counsel for Non-Profit Entities.

Trust and Estate Litigation: Will Contests (both defending and challenging wills/codicils/revocable trusts), Trust Amendments, Change of Situs, Change of Trustee, Family Settlement Agreements; Litigation to construe a will or trust, litigation regarding buy-sell agreements and oppression of minority shareholders and tax litigation.

Legal Teaching Positions: 

(Adjunct Professorships)

  • University of Iowa College of Law | Courses: Trusts and Estates (2006), Estate Planning (2003, 2004, 2005), Advanced Trusts and Estates Practice (2013), Chair, Annual Probate and Trust Seminar (2009, 2011-2014)
  • Mount Mercy College | Courses: Business Law (2003)

Place of birth: Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Honors & Awards

  • Ranked in Chambers High Net Worth, 2017 & 2018
    • Private Wealth Law, Band 1
  • Named to the Best Lawyers® 2015 & 2018 "Lawyer of the Year" in Cedar Rapids
    • Trusts and Estates
  • Included in The Best Lawyers in America® list, 2007 - 2019
    • Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships), Closely Held Companies and Family Businesses Law, Litigation - Trusts and Estates, Non-Profit/Charities Law, and Trusts and Estates
  • AV Rating by Martindale-Hubbell®
  • Included in Great Plains Super Lawyers list, 2012 - 2018
  • Corridor Business Journal's Forty Under 40, 2006

Memberships

  • American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC)
    • Fellow
    • Member, Fiduciary Litigation Committee, 2012 - 2014
    • Member, Transfer Tax Study Committee, 2013 - 2014
  • Iowa Academy of Trust and Estate Counsel (IATEC)
    • Charter Member, Founding Vice President
    • President, 2019 - Present
    • Vice President, 2012 - 2018
  • Cedar Rapids Area Estate Planning Council (CRAEPC)
    • President, 2008 - 2009; various other officer/director positions
    • CRAEPC is a professional organization comprised of 100-120 estate planning professionals, including attorneys, accountants, trust officers, CLUs and CFPs, and charitable planned giving officers
  • Probate, Trust & Estate Planning Section, Iowa State Bar Association
    • Non-Probate Transfer Committee, Chair, 2007 - 2008: This committee looks at ways to curb unintended and negative consequences associated with the misuse of POD/TOD beneficiary designations, joint tenancy arrangements, and other non-probate transfers. The committee is studying a “blockbuster” will statute that would allow a testator to integrate such non-probate assets into a comprehensive estate plan
    • Member of the Section's Governing Council, 2006 - 2012
    • Probate and Trust Code Reconciliation Committee, Chair, 2003 - 2004: After Iowa adopted a new Trust Code effective in 2001, there was a lot of work to be done to “clean up” the existing probate code and other provisions of Iowa law to clarify the interaction between the Probate Code and the Trust Code, and to repeal law that become obsolete in light of the Trust Code, or which was potentially inconsistent with it. This was successfully completed in 2004, and culminated in a recodification of the Trust Code as Chapter 633A and various other portions of the Trust Code as separate Chapters 633B through 633E
    • Trust Code Committee (ongoing): The Trust Code, which became law in 2001, continues to evolve and be perfected through wisdom gained of experience. This committee proposes changes to the trust code and reviews the proposals of others. It is led by Professor Marty Begleiter of the Drake Law School, who is the principal drafter of the Iowa Trust Code
    • Section Representative to the Disposition of Final Remains Committee, 2006 - 2007: A committee of persons interested in elder law and surrogate decision making regarding the disposition of final remains was created to consider new legislation that would enhance the ability of an individual to control what happens to his or her body after death. This committee included attorneys and non-attorneys, such as funeral directors and state agency representatives. The committee and the bar association worked together to enact new legislation allowing an individual to name an agent of his or her choice to control disposition of final remains
  • Business Law Section, Iowa State Bar Association
    • Non-Profit Corporations Committee: This Committee proposes new law relevant to non-profit governance in Iowa. Two statutes that we recommended that have been passed in recent years are the new Iowa Non-Profit Corporations Act, which governs all non-profit corporations in Iowa, and the Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act, which governs the management, investment, and distribution of funds from charitable endowments. The Section is currently looking at an Act that would clarify the status of unincorporated non-profits in Iowa
  • Taxation Section, Iowa State Bar Association
  • Agricultural Law Section, Iowa State Bar Association
  • Health Law Section, Iowa State Bar Association
  • Linn County Bar Association

Community Involvement

  • Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation
    • Board of Directors, 2019 - Present
  • The Rotary Club of Cedar Rapids
    • Former Foundation Chair
    • Former Assistant District Governor
    • President, 2009 - 2010
  • Mercy Medical Center Foundation, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
    • Member, Planned Giving Advisory Committee
  • United Way of East Central Iowa
    • 2018-2019 Annual Campaign Co-Chair
    • Board of Directors, 2015 - Present
    • Planned Giving Committee Chair, 2014 - 2017
    • Various Campaign Position in past years, including: Mid-Market Campaign Chair; Attorney Campaign Chair
  • Mount Vernon Community School District, Mount Vernon, Iowa
    • Board of Education, 2006 - 2013
  • Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra Foundation
    • Secretary/Treasurer, 2008 - 2013
    • Board Member, 2007 - 2013
  • Indian Creek Nature Center Charitable Trust, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
    • Former Trustee
  • Indian Creek Nature Center, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
    • Former Board Member and Past-President
  • Cedar Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation
    • Former Member, Board of Directors
  • Cedar Rapids Museum of Art
    • Former Member, Board of Directors
  • Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra
    • Former Member, Board of Directors
  • Miracles in Motion
    • Former Member, Board of Directors
  • Iowa Trust for Land Conservation
    • Former Member, Board of Directors
  • Iowa Small Business Development Centers
    • Former Member, Business Succession Advisory Board
  • Brucemore Board of Directors, 2010 - 2013

2019 Presentations

  • Importance of Advanced Directives
    • National Healthcare Decision Day, Mercy Hospital (Cedar Rapids, IA)

2018 Presentations

  • Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs), Installment Sales to “Intentionally Defective” Grantor Trusts, Charitable Lead Annuity Trusts (CLATs), and Qualified Personal Residence Trusts (“QPRTs”)
    • American College of Trust and Estate Counsel’s Heart of America Fellows Institute (Kansas City, MO)
  • The New Tax Law and How It Relates to Estate Planning in Iowa
    • Tenth Annual Professional Advisor Continuing Education Conference hosted by the Iowa State University Foundation Office of Gift Planning (Ames, IA)
  • How the New Tax Laws Will Influence Estate Planning
    • Blue Ribbon Panel, Iowa State Bar Association Tax Law Update Seminar f/k/a Spring Tax School (Des Moines, IA)
  • Co-Chair and Panelist at the U of I Fall Probate CLE
    • University of Iowa College of Law (Iowa City, IA)
  • Hot Topics in Tax-Sensitive Estate Planning
    • Cedar Rapids Estate Planning Council (Cedar Rapids, IA)
  • Philanthropy in Iowa in 2018: Challenges and Opportunities
    • Eastern Iowa Planned Giving Council (Swisher, IA)
  • Moderator, Judicial Panel on Attorney Ethics
    • Wells Fargo Private Bank Trusts, Estates, and Wealth Management Seminar (Cedar Rapids, IA)

2017 Presentations

  • Succession Planning for Farmers and Farm Owners
    • The American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers Annual Meeting (Savannah, Georgia)
  • Estate Planning and Business Succession Planning for Farm Owners
    • The Chicago Farmers Annual Meeting (Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Chicago, IL)
  • Estate Planning for High Net Worth Families
    • Ninth Annual Professional Advisor Continuing Education Conference hosted by the Iowa State University Foundation Office of Gift Planning (Ames, Iowa)
  • Basic Concepts for Farm Managers About Estate Planning in Iowa
    • The Iowa chapter of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers (Ames, IA)
  • Top 10 Charitable Planning Ideas at the Planning For Success Event
    • “Planning for Success” event sponsored by Johnson County Community Foundation and others (Coralville, Iowa)
  • Top 10 Charitable Planning Ideas at the Planning For Success Event
    • “Planning for Success” event sponsored by Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation and others (Coralville, Iowa)
  • Estate Planning Hot Topics Panel
    • Cedar Rapids Estate Planning Council (Cedar Rapids, IA)

2016 Presentations

  • Tax and Non-Tax Issues Related to Estate Planning for Farm-Owners
    • Hertz Farm Management (various locations including Palm Desert CA, Phoenix AZ, Scottsdale AZ, Tucson AZ, Orlando FL, Sarasota FL, and Fort Myers FL)
  • The New Proposed Regulations Under Internal Revenue Code Section 2704
    • Iowa Academy of Trust and Estate Counsel (statewide webinar)
  • Iowa-Specific Laws Relevant to Charitable Planning
    • Mid Iowa Planned Giving Council Annual Fall Conference (Ankeny, IA)
  • Estate Planning for Farm Families and Implications of Proposed 2704 Regulations
    • University of Iowa Law School’s Annual Probate and Trust Seminar (Iowa City, IA)
  • Permanent Land Protection (Conservation Easements, Estate Gifts, and Other Strategies)
    • Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation’s Conservation Legacy Opportunities Seminar (Des Moines, IA)
  • New Proposed Regulations Under Section 2704 and Implications for Valuation Discounts in Estate Planning
    • Planning for the Best Seminar (co-sponsored by University of Iowa Foundation and Johnson County Community Foundation with additional co-sponsors RSM and SPMB) (Iowa City, IA)
To view older presentations, click here.