David S. Finkelstein focuses his practice on providing estate planning, charitable planning, tax and other advice to high net worth individuals and families. His approach is to develop the most advantageous manner to achieve clients’ goals for the management, preservation and disposition of their estates.
Lawdragon Honors
| Honor | Year | Practice |
|---|---|---|
| The Inaugural Lawdragon 100 Leading Global Wealth Lawyers | 2026 | High-Net Worth, Estate Planning, Tax |
Finkelstein has particular experience with estate planning in the context of operating businesses, including:
- pre-IPO and similar planning
- perpetuating the controlling owner’s principles for preservation of the business and its culture
- structuring for controlling owner succession
Finkelstein also advises individual and corporate trustees on their roles and responsibilities as a trustee, and supervises trust administration, investment policies, distribution policies and beneficiary settlements. In his role as partner in the Trusts and Estates Department, Finkelstein serves as a Trustee of numerous trusts and on the governing boards of multiple charitable foundations.
Finkelstein received a B.A. cum laude from Harvard University in 1994, a J.D. magna cum laude from Fordham University School of Law in 1998, where he was an Associate Editor of the Fordham Law Review, and a Masters in Taxation (LL.M.) from New York University School of Law in 2000.
Finkelstein joined Cravath in 1998 and was elected a partner in 2004.