Meeting/Event Information

This program will explore how gift planners can build strong, productive relationships with attorneys, financial advisors, accountants, and other professional partners. Participants will learn strategies for communicating effectively across disciplines, clarifying roles, and keeping donor goals at the center of the planning process. The seminar will highlight practical approaches for navigating complex gifts while fostering trust and collaboration among all parties involved. Attendees will leave with tools and insights to strengthen advisor relationships and create a more coordinated, donor-centered gift planning experience.

SPEAKERS

Thomas J. Duffy, CFP, MBA, CRPC, CDFA, RSSA, TPCP

Tom is a Certified Financial Planner Professional earning this prestigious credential from the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards in 1996. Tom has been active in the financial planning and wealth management profession since 1993, working with individuals, families and business owners always putting the interest and needs of clients first.

Tom is a lifelong New Jersey resident residing in Eastern Monmouth County with his wife Kristi and occasionally their adult daughter Julia. Tom holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Monmouth University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Science from Kean University. Tom is also active with the New Jersey Chapter of the Financial Planning Association serving on the Board of Directors, completing service as Board Chair in 2012. Tom is also a trustee of the Estate and Financial Planning Council of Central New Jersey.

Tom is very involved teaching financial literacy, continuing to volunteer with Junior Achievement Finance Park as often as he can. Tom was an adjunct college instructor teaching Estate Planning at Rutgers Business School and Financial Planning at William Paterson University from 2010-2020.

Dana A. Bennett, Esq. LL.M. (taxation)

Dana is a partner at Bennett Law LL in Red Bank. She devotes her practice to estate planning, probate and estate administration, estate and gift tax matters, income tax planning for trusts and estates, charitable planning and estate planning for retirement benefits.

Ms. Bennett is admitted to practice in New Jersey and New York. She is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and Past Chair of the Board of Consultors of the Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association. She is also the current chair of the Monmouth County Bar Association's Probate and Administration Committee and is a member of the American and New York Bar Associations. Ms. Bennett is also a member and former President of the Estate Panning Council of Central New Jersey.

Ms. Bennett received her B.A., cum laude, from Villanova University, her J.D. from Seton Hall University School of Law and her LL.M. in Taxation from New York University School of Law.