James J. Steffel, chairman of the Private Client and Family Office Group at Warner Norcross & Judd, recently contributed to one of the industry’s leading publications on family wealth management.
The State of the Art in Family Wealth Management was published by the Family Office Exchange, known as FOX. It is the world’s largest membership-based network for ultra-wealthy families and their family offices, and the leading authority on matters related to legacy wealth management.
The State of the Art in Family Wealth Management is a guide for advisors who manage family wealth, which the publication calls “an exceptionally complex undertaking.”
The 44-page white paper was inspired by the FOX 2013 Thought Leaders Council Summit. Steffel and Warner Norcross are Thought Leaders for FOX.
The 2013 summit was convened to address some of the challenges of passing family wealth from one generation to the next, and to better understand the difference between “state of the industry” and “state of the art” services provided by different professionals who regularly assist family office clients.
“Over the next 10 years, record numbers of wealth owners will be preparing for succession events,” according to the publication. “Meanwhile, the landscape of wealth management providers continues to change shape in an effort to meet the needs of these owners. As a result, the gap in knowledge between wealth owners and advisors is starting to widen — getting worse before it gets better.”
In the white paper, Steffel summarized what is at the core of all legal services that Warner Norcross provides family office clients. “State of the art family office services begin with internal and external teamwork at the highest levels of confidentiality, competency, trust and value,” he said.
For more on this topic, contact Steffel at 616.752.2621 or jsteffel@wnj.com.
