Gunster, one of Florida’s oldest and largest full-service business law firms, is pleased to announce that two of its private wealth services attorneys, Cristina Papanikos and Alyse Reiser Comiter, recently successfully graduated from the 2015-16 class of the Florida Fellows Institute of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (Florida chapter).
“The institute provided me the unique opportunity to, in an intimate setting, learn from a number of the most respected lawyers in my field, while also forming relationships with Florida’s future leaders in the trusts and estates practice,” says Papanikos of the experience.
“What we gained from the institute was priceless,” added Comiter.
Cristina Papanikos represents fiduciaries and individuals involved in complicated and disputed estate and trust administrations and guardianships. She received her J.D. from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2003. She works in Gunster’s Miami office and serves as a member of the firm’s Women’s Leadership Forum.
Alyse Reiser Comiter focuses her practice on all aspects of estate planning, including drafting wills and revocable trusts, advising on fiduciary matters, assisting with probate and estate administration, and preparing and filing federal estate and gift tax returns. She received her LL.M in taxation from New York University in 2011, and her J.D. from UF in 2010. She works in Gunster’s West Palm Beach headquarters.
The graduating attorneys were nominated by Florida ACTEC fellows and selected through a competitive application process. There were a total of 33 attorneys selected for the inaugural 2015-16 class, Gunster being the only law firm with two representative graduates.
The institute was created in 2015 by Florida ACTEC fellows to develop the profession’s future leaders in trust and estate law through a series of in-depth, educational presentations led by subject matter experts from across the U.S.
Gunster attorney Elaine Bucher is chair of ACTEC Florida and one of the Florida Fellows Institute’s founding members.
To nominate an attorney participant for the 2016-17 class, the nomination form is now available at
www.FloridaFellowsInstitute.
About ACTEC
The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel is a national organization of approximately 2,600 lawyers elected to membership based on demonstrated competence and experience as trust and estate counselors, integrity and commitment to the profession. Fellows are elected by regents of the college after careful review by selection committees. Applications for membership are not accepted. ACTEC members have made significant contributions to the field of trusts and estates law through writing, teaching and bar leadership.
About Gunster
Gunster, Florida’s law firm for business, provides full-service legal counsel to leading organizations and individuals from its 13 offices statewide. Established in 1925, the firm has expanded, diversified and evolved, but always with a singular focus: Florida and its clients’ stake in it. A magnet for business-savvy attorneys who embrace collaboration for the greatest advantage of clients, Gunster’s growth has not been at the expense of personalized service but because of it. The firm serves clients from its offices in Boca Raton Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Palm Beach, Stuart, Tallahassee, Tampa, The Florida Keys, Vero Beach, Winter Park, and its headquarters in West Palm Beach. With more than 170 attorneys and 200 committed support staff, Gunster is ranked among the National Law Journal’s list of the 350 largest law firms and has been recognized as one of the Top 100 Diverse Law Firms by Law360. More information about its practice areas, offices and insider’s view newsletters is available at www.gunster.com.
