Jill Snyder, owner of Law Office of Jill A. Snyder, LLC, is a trust and estate attorney. Prior to opening her practice, she worked as a senior attorney in the Division of Enforcement of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

What brought you to Baltimore? 

I was living in Washington, DC, when I met and married my husband who is from Baltimore. After we got married, his job took us to Chicago for a few years and then we moved to Baltimore to raise our children.

Why is being involved in The Associated and giving back to the Jewish community important to you? 

My family was very involved in the Pittsburgh Jewish community throughout my childhood, so it was natural for me to gravitate toward The Associated upon my relocation to Baltimore. My first introduction to The Associated was through my participation in a two-year women’s leadership program called Dor Tikvah. This program taught me about the many ways that The Associated meets the needs of our Jewish community and the greater Baltimore community. Upon completing Dor Tikvah, I created a volunteer program called Mitzvah Makers with the support of The Associated. This program was designed to provide bi-monthly hands-on volunteer activities for families with young children. It was important to me to expose my children to charitable giving from a young age with the hope that they would incorporate this value into their lives and pass it on to future generations.

I also served as a member and chair of the Administration Committee of The Associated, which is responsible for developing policies and procedures regarding matters such as gift acceptance, donor advised funds, charitable gift annuities, and life insurance. This year, I am pleased to join the board of The Associated in addition to serving as Co-Chair of the Lawyers’ Division with Searle Mitnick.

You are a Trust and Estate attorney. How did you get into this type of law? 

When I first graduated from law school, I was an attorney in the Enforcement Division of the Securities and Exchange Commission. I loved investigating and prosecuting financial crimes, but the travel was very demanding and no longer desirable once I had children. I spent six years at home with my three young sons before opening my own estates and trusts law practice. I became passionate about this area of law after my father died because I wanted to help families avoid the mistakes that we made by failing to timely plan and communicate.

What’s one piece of legal advice you would give related to your area of expertise? 

It is much less expensive and stressful to plan ahead than to clean up messes that may arise in the event of death or incapacity.

How have you seen this area of law change over the years? 

When I first began practicing this type of law, the primary focus of estate planning was on tax planning to reduce or eliminate estate taxes. Now that the tax exemption amounts are so high and very few people’s estates will be subjected to estate tax, planning has shifted from being tax-driven to values-driven. I enjoy talking to clients about leaving a legacy. Of course, I still talk to clients about tax planning, but the discussion now includes income tax and capital gains tax considerations in addition to estate taxes.

What is something most people do not know about you? 

After taking the bar exam, I participated in an army volunteer program on an air force base in Israel for three weeks before starting my job at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Join Jill and other legal professionals at our Cybersecurity event!