Maisto e Associati

Firm Details:

Founding Partner: Professor Guglielmo Maisto

Number of partners: 13

Number of professionals: 60

Languages: English, Italian, French, German, Spanish

Firm Overview:

Established in 1991 by lawyers with many years of experience in the field, Maisto e Associati is an independent Italian tax law firm.

Over the years, the firm has grown consistently in terms of size and reputation and now counts 60 professionals, including 13 partners, operating from the Milan, Rome and London offices.

Maisto e Associati is distinguished and recognised for its consolidated and high profile experience in managing complex domestic and multi-jurisdictional cases.

Leading independent researchers rank the firm as well as a number of partners individually as tier 1 in the Italian tax scene.

Most of the firm’s professionals participate in advisory bodies and study groups, are frequent speakers at congresses and contribute to publications and to the most prestigious Italian and foreign tax journals, thus maintaining a cutting-edge knowledge of the most advanced tax issues.

The founding partner Guglielmo Maisto (professor of international and comparative tax law at the Università Cattolica di Piacenza) is President of the International Fiscal Association (IFA), member of the Board of Trustees of the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD) in Amsterdam, member of the Practice Council of New York University (NYU) Law’s International Tax Program and member of the Board of the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy. He represents the Italian Association of Industries (Confindustria) at the OECD Business Industry Advisory Committee in Paris. He acted as a consultant to the Ministry for European Community Affairs and was a member of the EU Joint Transfer Pricing Forum. In 2023 he was appointed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance as member of the Technical Committee established for the implementation of the Italian Tax Reform.

Partner Marco Cerrato has been lecturer of Tax at the faculty of laws of the University LIUC of Castellanza between 2000 and 2022 and since 2021 he is the scientific co-director of the advanced training course on the Protection, Transmission and Management of Family Estates jointly organized by Step Italy and the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. He is lecturer and coordinator of the advanced course in International Management of Family Wealth at the International University of Monaco from 2023.

Since 2018 he has been member of the board of the Italian branch of STEP (The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) and he has been its Chairman from 2020 to 2023. Since 2022 he is Deputy Chair of STEP Europe Regional Committee.

Partner Alessandro Bavila is a member of TIAETL (International Academy of Estate and Trust Law) and PAIAM (Professional Advisors to the International Art Market), as well as an international fellow of ACTEC (American College of Trust and Estate Counsel). Since 2023, he is member of the board of the Italian branch of STEP (The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) of which he was previously member of the Scientific Committee.

Partner Stefano Tellarini was admitted to the Association of Chartered Accountants in 2004. He joined Maisto e Associati as partner in 2019, after having acted as a partner in another tax law firm for five years.

Partner Alberto Brazzalotto is a TEP member of the Italian branch of STEP (The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) and a member of PAIAM (Professional Advisors to the International Art Market). He heads the London office since January 2023.

Main Areas of Practice:

Tax Planning for High Net Worth Individuals:

Maisto e Associati has developed unique expertise in the private clients and wealth management area. Clients benefit from a highly experienced team of professionals based in the Milan, Rome and London offices dedicated to the area that provides top class assistance on tax and civil matters that may arise.

The private clients practice is international in its focus, and the firm regularly manages complex, multi-jurisdictional estate planning projects, in cooperation with foreign law firms, selected depending on the expertise required.

The firm advises on efficient estate planning, transfer of businesses, lifetime asset transfers and ownership structures, having developed wide-spanning expertise on trusts, foundations, financial and insurance products. The firm has been very active in assisting clients on the transfer of residence to Italy under the Italian forfait tax regime.

Working on a daily basis with law firms from foreign jurisdictions, the firm has developed a unique expertise regarding the taxation of trusts in Italy. The firm has also been very active in giving tax advice to artists and sportsmen and has an established experience in advising on the tax structuring of charities and other non-profit bodies and on the tax issues associated with the acquisition, holding and sale of cultural assets and works of art as well as other luxury assets such as yachts and aircrafts.

The firm handles complex tax litigation and pre-litigation settlements concerning high net worth individuals, including litigation and settlements involving financial products, life insurance policies, foundations, trusts and unreported foreign assets. The firm is active in tax regularisation procedures.

Assistance on Non-Tax Matters:

Maisto e Associati offers assistance also on nontax matters that may arise in the private clients and wealth management area, both in domestic and cross-border situations. In particular, the team advise clients in relation to family law and succession law, trusts and foundations and estate planning matters in general. The assistance in this area also covers litigation.

London Office:

Clients can leverage on the assistance provided by professionals based in the London office, opened in 1997. Today, with its brand-new office located in the vibrant Mayfair area, ensures a key hub for all international private clients. The team in London advises clients on Italian law only and has developed a strong expertise on private clients’ matters, including taxation of trusts, structuring the purchase of Italian assets, estate tax planning and assistance to clients moving to Italy under the Italian forfait tax regime. Due to the engagements in cross-border matters involving — among the others — the UK and the USA, the team can work very effectively together with foreign counsels on cross-border matters involving such jurisdictions.