R. Nicholas Nanovic

Partner

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Nicholas Nanovic provides estate planning and tax law counsel to individuals and business owners. Having attained the designation of an Accredited Estate Planner® by the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils and an LL.M. in Taxation, Nick is uniquely qualified to handle complex legal matters.

Nicholas Nanovic is Chair of the firm’s Wills, Trusts, and Estates Practice Group.

Nick strongly believes that every adult should have an estate plan that includes the essential documents of a Will, Power of Attorney, and Advance Health Care Directive. He partners with his clients to design comprehensive and customized estate plans that meet each client’s specific goals. Nick goes beyond the basic drafting of legal documents and discusses the importance of other actions, such as the proper titling of assets and updating of beneficiary designation forms. For especially complex matters, such as the minimization of death taxes, Nick regularly works with clients to establish plans that include sophisticated techniques, such as the use of Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts and Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts. Nick works regularly with clients who have charitable intentions, and he has been awarded the designation of Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®) by the American College of Financial Services. He has also attained the designation of an Accredited Estate Planner® (AEP®), which is awarded to recognize estate planning professionals who meet stringent requirements of experience, knowledge, education, professional reputation, and character, and who commit to the team concept of estate planning.

When a loved one dies, Nick assists the Personal Representative of that person’s Estate by navigating the challenges of probate. He has worked with individuals in counties throughout Pennsylvania and has assisted them with the legal requirements of administering an Estate, such as providing proper notice to beneficiaries and filing the Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax Return. Nick also assists individuals and charities who are beneficiaries of an Estate when they are seeking guidance to ensure that the Estate distributes the proper inheritance to them.

Nick also assists individuals and businesses in tax matters, including personal income tax, business tax, and gift and estate tax. He has represented these clients regarding audits of income tax returns, gift tax returns, and sales tax returns. He helps his clients negotiate their outstanding tax liabilities with the IRS and Pennsylvania Department of Revenue, including the submission of Offers in Compromise and application for installment agreement payment plans.

In the community, Nick serves on the Board of Governors of the Lehigh Valley Community Foundation. Passionate about the importance of estate planning for all individuals, Nick also volunteers with the Wills for Heroes program, which is administered by the Pennsylvania Bar Association, to provide free basic estate planning documents to first responders and military veterans in Pennsylvania. He currently serves as Coordinator for Lehigh and Northampton Counties. Nick was a member of the Leadership Lehigh Valley Class of 2012.

The Pennsylvania Super Lawyers Magazine has named Nick to its Rising Stars list 10 times, a distinction awarded to less than 2.5% of attorneys across the state.

  • University of Miami School of Law, LL.M. in Taxation, 2008
  • University of Miami School of Law, J.D., 2007
  • University of Notre Dame, B.B.A., 2004
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Bar Association of Lehigh County
  • Northampton County Bar Association
  • Carbon County Bar Association
  • Estate Planning Council of Lehigh Valley
  • Lehigh Valley Community Foundation, Board of Governors
  • Wills for Heroes, Volunteer and Coordinator for Lehigh and Northampton Counties
  • Estate Planning Council of the Lehigh Valley, Former President and Board Member
  • Leadership Lehigh Valley, Class of 2012
  • “Estate Planning for Retirement and Beyond,” Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), April 2021
  • “Demystifying Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax,” CE Seminar for CPAs and CFPs June 2019
  • “The Probate Process From Start to Finish,” National Business Institute, August 2018
  • “New Changes to the Tax Law – What Lawyers Need to Know,” Carbon County Bar Association Bench Bar Conference, April 2018
  • “IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program and the Offer in Compromise,” November 2015
  • “Cocktails and Case Studies: Succession Planning,” October 2015
  • “Pennsylvania’s New Power of Attorney and Common Estate Planning Pitfalls,” April 2015
  • 2013, 2015-2023 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers® Rising Stars
  • 2020 Lehigh Valley Business Forty Under 40