Attorney Profile

Chuck Durante brings over 35 years of professional leadership to the planning of strategies for the inter-generational passage of personal and business property. He advises fiduciaries on the administration of trusts and estates, counsels foundations and other non-profit organizations, and advises clients in the related areas of Delaware statutory trusts, Delaware holding companies and Delaware limited liability companies.

Chuck advises many of Delaware’s leading trust institutions in matters of planning, administration and risk management. He is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, past chairman of the Estates and Trusts Section of the Delaware State Bar Association and past president of the Wilmington Tax Group. His work includes defense in a number of will contests and litigation of significant public impact.

Chuck has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America^® for tax law. Chambers USA: High Net Worth has ranked Chuck among Delaware Private Wealth practitioners. A Chambers market expert commented that Chuck is “very well informed on Delaware Trust law and is exceptional with clients.  He takes time to understand the needs of the clients as well as the trustees and big trust companies.”  In addition, Chuck was identified in Delaware Today Top Lawyers and Super Lawyers for trusts & estates law, and he is AV^® rated in Martindale-Hubbell's Preeminent™ Peer Review certification.

Chuck is the President of the Delaware State Bar Association and a statewide leaders in the profession. He is chair of the Board of Editors of Delaware Lawyer, a quarterly magazine published by the Delaware Bar Foundation. He is President of the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame, Trustee of the Delaware Historical Society and President of the Delaware Sportswriters and Broadcasters Association. Chuck was the prime author of Delaware’s campaign finance reform law of 1990. In 1998, he received the Alumni Award of Haverford College for sustained service to the College.

Chuck was a sportswriter and columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer from 1974 through 1980. He began his newspaper career with The Wilmington News-Journal and The Delaware State News, and continues to write on topics touching on the law of trusts and estates, American history, Delaware sports and public affairs. He is a member of the Delaware Track and Field Hall of Fame.

Publications

• "Growing Influence, Unanswered Questions", Delaware Banker, Fall 2018, Vol. 14 No. 4  (pp. 22-27)
• "Rethinking Delaware's Tax Structure, Delaware Lawyer", Delaware Banker, Winter 2017, Vol. 13 No. 1 (pp. 22-27)
• "Diluting The Voting Rights Act", Delaware Lawyer, Fall, 2016, Vol. 34 No. 3 (pp. 22-26)
• "The Delaware Trust: A Device to Avoid Forced Heirship", Delaware Banker, Fall 2015, Vol. 11  No. 4  (pp. 24-26)
• "Discretionary Distributions: Considering Other Resources", Delaware Banker, Fall 2014, Vol. 10 No. 4  (pp.22-25)
• "When Does a Signed Document Not Create a Trust?" Trusts & Estates, November 2013 (pp. 40-50) (co-author with Greg J. Weinig and Scott E. Swenson)
• "Notification to Remainder Beneficiaries: A Business Judgement," Delaware Banker, Winter 2013, Vol. 10 No. 1
• Editor, Delaware Statutory Trusts: The Best Features of This New Form of Entity, LexisNexis Emerging Issues Analysis. November 2010
• "Special Needs Trusts: What Trust Departments Need To Know", Delaware Banker, Winter 2011, Vol. 9, No. 1
• "Delaware Evolving Into Jurisdiction of Choice for Trusts", The Legal Intelligencer: Trusts & Estates Special Edition, November 2009
• "Delaware Law Has Made It Easier for Grantors to Hide Trusts or Disclose Them", Delaware Banker, Fall 2009, Vol. 7, No. 4