News
Missia H. Vaselaney
Partner Cleveland
- E mvaselaney@taftlaw.com
- T (216) 706-3956
- F (216) 241-3707
Summary
Missy focuses her practice on estate planning for business owners and individuals. She has worked with clients to both plan and administer estates that have ranged from the very modest to the large and sophisticated. Where the need has arisen, Missy has represented clients in Probate Litigation matters and before Federal and State Taxing authorities.
In 2002, Missy became an OSBA Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law. She is a featured speaker both nationally and state-wide on estate planning and other related matters on behalf of professional associations. Missy has over 25 years of experience as a practicing attorney and CPA (currently inactive).
Missy is a member of the American, Ohio and Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Associations. She is past chair of the former Cleveland Bar Association’s Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law Section. Missy is a member of the Ohio Society of CPAs and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). She has been a member of the Steering Committee for the AICPA’s National Advanced Estate Planning Conference since 2001 and is a member of the AICPA ENGAGE 2017- Exhibits Advisory Committee. She is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Cleveland and a former Trustee.
Missy is a former Trustee for the Catholic Charities Corporation (1994-2002) and was a founding member and former chairperson of the Catholic Charities Corporation’s Planned Giving Committee. She is also a board member and the former chairperson of the Planned Giving Committee of Lakeland Community College. She is also a Planned Giving Committee member of the United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Cleveland. Missy serves as president of the Pets for the Elderly Foundation, a public charity whose mission is to provide companionship to senior individuals through pet ownership, while saving the lives of companion animals in shelters.
In 2015, Missy was re-elected to the board of directors for the American Lung Association of the Midland States. She is currently chair of its audit committee and is a member of its fund development committee. Missy is certified as an Accredited Estate Planner® (AEP®) by the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils.
Awards
All Service Areas
Education
- Cleveland State University College of Law (1984)
- University of Dayton (1982)
Admissions
- State - Ohio
Speeches and Publications
Professional Education Broadcasting Network Seminars:
“Trust in Estate Planning in 2022: A Year of Change & Challenge,’’ Jan. 26, 2022.
“Health Care Issues in Estate Planning,” Jan. 7, 2022.
“Trust and Estate Planning for Pets,” Dec. 16, 2020.
“Trust & Estate Planning for MDs, JDs, CPAs and Other Professionals, Part 1 & Part 2,” Nov. 10 & 11, 2020.
“Trust and Estate Planning for Family Businesses, Part 1 & Part 2,” Professional Education Broadcasting Network, June 25 and 26, 2020.
“Holding Business Interests in Trusts,” June 19, 2020.
“Special Issues in Small Trusts,” March 27, 2020.
“Health Care Issues in Estate Planning,” Jan. 14, 2020.
“Planning for the Freeze: Trust and Estate Planning to “Freeze” Asset Value,” Nov. 21, 2019.
“Trust and Estate Planning for Collectibles, Art & Other Unusual Assets”, Sept.17, 2019.
“Trust and Estate Planning for Real Estate, Part 1 & Part 2,” June 19 and 20, 2019.
“2019 Trust and Estate Planning Update,” May 14, 2019.
“Trust and Estate Planning for Second Marriages,” March 20, 2019.
“Trust and Estate Planning for Single Clients,” Feb.13, 2019.
“Trust and Estate Planning Issues in Divorce,” Jan. 17, 2019.
Association Presentations:
Presenter, AICPA & CIMA ENGAGE 2021 Conference, “Modifying Irrevocable Trusts to Maximize Flexibility,” July 27, 2021.
“Treatment of Trusts in Divorce” (teleseminar), Atlanta Bar Association, Nov. 8, 2016.
“Postmortem Estate Planning,” Oregon State Bar Association, Nov. 8, 2016.
“What Every Accountant Needs to Know about Probate Litigation” and “Estate Planning for the Modern Family;” Ohio Society of CPAs Annual Cleveland Accounting Show, Oct. 20, 2016.
“Estate Planning for Second Marriages;” West Virginia Tax Institute, Oct.18, 2016.
“Estate & Trust Planning for Non-traditional Families” (teleseminar), Atlanta Bar Association, August 18, 2016.
AICPA Annual Advanced Estate Planning Conference, five topics, July 12, 2016.
“Estate Planning for Non-Traditional Families – A National Perspective” (live replay), Illinois State Bar Association, originally aired Oct. 1, 2015; May 10, 2016.
2016 Estate & Gift Tax Conference; Illinois CPA Society, May 10, 2016.
“Sealing the Deal: Professionalism in the Transactional Practice,” Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association’s Civility & Professionalism Task Force, Nov. 30, 2015.
“Estate Mishaps of Celebrities, Rich and Infamous,” Advisors4Advisors, Nov. 21, 2015.
“Lifetime Gifting in Estate Planning: Leveraging QTIP Trusts, QPRTs, SLATs,” Strafford webinar, March 11, 2015.
News
Pets for the Elderly Enters California Partnership News
Taft Cleveland to Host Estate Planning Council Program and Roundtable News
Vaselaney Presents at Estate Planning Teleseminars News
The Pets for the Elderly Foundation Scoring Benefits for Seniors
Past Events
Professional Affiliations
- American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Member
- Estate Planning Council of Cleveland
Member
- Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association
Member
Community Involvement
- American Lung Association of the Midland States
Member, Advocacy Committee, Advisory Board
- Lakeland Community College
Board Member
Former Chair, Scholarship Committee
Former Chair, Campaign Committee - Sisters of Notre Dame
Former Member, Development Advisory Board
- The Pets for the Elderly Foundation
President
- JD Breast Cancer Foundation
Ongoing Contributor
Past Honoree - United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Cleveland
Member, Planned Giving Committee