Boardman Law Firm

Madelyn D. Leopold, Partner

Wills and Trusts • Probate and Trust Administration • Estate Planning • Business Succession Planning • Elder Law

Madelyn works with individuals who want the satisfaction of knowing that their personal affairs are in order. Her focus is on listening and following through. She wants her clients to understand and be comfortable with the documents they sign.

In her estate planning practice, Madelyn helps her clients provide for their families, partners, and chosen charities while avoiding unnecessary estate taxes. She guides her clients in the appropriate use of wills and trusts. Her practice focuses on practical solutions to family issues, whether in choosing a guardian for young children or helping seniors to preserve their independence and integrity. She also assists individuals and corporate fiduciaries through probate and trust administration with a focus on concluding the proceedings in an efficient and timely manner.

Among Madelyn's special interests are planning for disposition of the family cabin and the family business. In both situations, good planning is crucial to maintaining family harmony and keeping that special asset in the family.

Madelyn is also experienced in helping clients preserve Wisconsin's landscape through the use of conservation easements. As a result of her interest in environmental issues, she has formed and worked with a number of tax-exempt charitable organizations.

Madelyn divides her time between Boardman's Madison and Baraboo offices.

Practice Experience

• Boardman Law Firm: Partner, 1995 to the present; Associate, 1990-1994
• Goodwin, Procter & Hoar, Boston, MA: Associate, 1986-1990

Education

• JD, magna cum laude, Order of the Coif, Boston College Law School, Boston, MA, 1985; Executive Editor of the Boston College Law Review, 1984-1985
• Law Clerk to the Honorable David S. Nelson, U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts, 1985-1986
• BA, Art and American History, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Brown University, Providence, RI, 1970

Community Involvement

• Madison Symphony Chorus, 2004 to the present
• Choral Union, 2008 to the present
• Mayor's Blue Ribbon Committee on Clean Elections, 2008 to the present
• St. Clare Hospital Foundation (Baraboo) Finance and Audit Committee, 2007 to the present
• Wisconsin Women Forward for Environmental Education, 2007 to the present

Writings, Seminars & Contributions

• Co-author with Paul Schmidt of the chapter on Social Security in Advising Older Clients and Their Families, Vol. I, (2nd ed), (State Bar of Wisconsin 2007)
• Presenter at programs sponsored by the UW Law School in 1996 and 1997 on limited liability companies.
• Presenter at programs sponsored by the State Bar of Wisconsin on choice of business entity
• Presenter at Bagels with Boardman informational programs, 1999 through 2004
• Numerous presentations to professional and community groups, including Attic Angels and the Planned Giving Council of SW Wisconsin

Board Member

• Aldo Leopold Foundation, Director, 1991-1994, 2004 to the present
• United Way of Dane County Foundation, Board of Trustees, beginning June 2009
• 1000 Friends of Wisconsin, Inc., Director, 2001-2005
• Friends of the Arboretum, Inc., Director, 1995-2001

Other Memberships

• National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA), SW Wisconsin chapter
• Planned Giving Council of SW Wisconsin

Hobbies & Interests

• Music
• Prairie restoration
• Ultimate Frisbee (as an avid parent-spectator)
• French and all things French

Favorate Quote

• "Acts of creation are ordinarily reserved for gods and poets, but humbler folk may circumvent this restriction if they know how. To plant a pine, for example, one need be neither god nor poet; one need only own a shovel."
  - Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac (Oxford University Press, 1949)