Accounting
Using trusts and estate planning to fight systemic racism
Estate and trust planning by financial advisors on behalf of Black Americans can tear down the historical barriers that have led to persistent racial disparities today, according to a new study.
The weight of personal or historical trauma related to wealth, low rates of representation for Black advisors and other minority professionals and daily signs that America is giving up on efforts to acknowledge and confront systemic racism could prove exhausting to anyone in wealth management seeking to lift up historically excluded groups through their work. And those come on top of the difficulty of breaking into the profession and running a successful business.
That’s why Lynne Marie Kohm,
“When professionals feel this fatigue, a good strategy for coping is to see that the help he or she can give just one client or just one family can and does make a tremendous difference,” Kohm and Farley said in an email interview. “Throwing one back into the sea may not make a difference to the beach loaded with thousands of starfish, but it makes all the difference to that one. Every client is worthy of attention, and serving just that one client can bring the joy of making a difference in a sea of challenge. Wealth building provides empowerment. And that client’s family wealth building will make a difference for the next generation.”
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Personal and historical contexts
The study in the Dec. 1 issue of the Thurgood Marshall Law Review followed the researchers’
Kohm and Farley’s paper traces the history of systemic racism in finance before exposing several myths that further impede Black generational wealth transfers. In all, they compiled a compelling case that estate and trust planning with advisors, attorneys, tax professionals or experts from any part of the fields touching wealth management alters the course of history.
“Trusts protect wealth and allow for family wealth growth and transfer, and having a transfer plan for wealth also works to protect wealth from waste and amelioration, effectively increasing wealth,” Kohm and Farley wrote. “Without changes deeper economic divides will be created in American society, leading to more extreme inequalities. Examining what role wealth has and can have in individual lives and families may be a key to beginning to dismantle racism one estate plan at a time to minimize or even extinguish this racial divide in the larger society.”
As they take on that work, though, advisors must also win over clients who have valid personal or historical reasons for avoiding professionals in fields like finance and medicine, according to Pat Brown, a wealth manager in the Lawrence, Kansas-based office of
It prompted him to think of the idea of Black Americans from young to middle-aged households buying insurance policies and establishing a trust to collect the assets and other means of passing down wealth, he said. However, professionals like advisors and doctors have to navigate some distrust in the process.
“There are Black folks even today that don’t think they should go to doctors in 2025 because of the beliefs their parents and grandparents had that got taught to them,” Brown said. “Some of the simple strategies of establishing a trust and funding a trust are a great way of creating wealth and getting it passed down to generation after generation.”
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Key takeaways
Kohm and Farley cover hundreds of years of history in the first section of the paper, with discussions of race massacres in Tulsa and elsewhere, vagrancy laws, the Freedman’s Savings Bank, redlining and housing segregation, and the legacy of racism in patents. Then they proceed to address six myths about trusts and estate planning: It’s only for the rich; the family already understands the older members’ wishes upon death; it’s too challenging; lawyers aren’t trustworthy; it’s too expensive; and the clients don’t care about what happens to “my stuff” when they pass away, the authors write.
Trusts may pose varying degrees of complexity, but they offer a solution to many of those problems — especially when there is
“A settlor is simply the property owner who chooses to manage that property with a trust,” Kohm and Farley wrote. “That trust settlor has all power and authority to make the highest and best use of his or her wealth through accountable management of the assets in that trust — which can include anything from the family farm to the family innovations. Using that power and vesting it in a trusted individual or family member is wiser than leaving it to memory or a conversation that is hoped to be remembered, or to the default intestate succession rules of a state government, which could take years, and result in tremendous asset waste.”
To illustrate the specific importance among Black Americans, they include the examples of family farms that have failed to reach another generation after the original owners’ deaths or even celebrity cases such as the costly legal wrangling after Prince’s death in 2016. Instruments such as a special needs trust, a supplemental needs trust or a
On the other hand, Kohm and Farley point out that many Black families may avoid these key questions entirely if they involve working with a professional who doesn’t understand their cultural experience. Similar to the field of planning in which fewer than 2% of certified financial planners are Black, the dearth of Black estate lawyers poses a challenge to convincing many prospective clients of the benefits of trust and estate planning.
“Clients want to be served by lawyers with whom they have things in common. Naturally, this is important with race, culture, ethnicity, faith, etc,” Kohm and Farley said. “Overcoming fear and distrust of lawyers and decades of distrust of the law is not an insignificant hurdle, but can be well-bridged by black lawyers serving black families.”
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Finding the encouragement in difficult work
While that area speaks to
“It was really not only instructive for us, but encouraging,” Kohm and Farley said of their study. “Every moment of work we spent on it was often upsetting, sometimes therapeutic, but in the end encouraging, and creating in us a desire to continue to work to make a difference. In many ways we sensed that our work was to honor those whose stories were critical to this research.”
Jody Padar, an author and speaker known as “The Radical CPA,” and Katie Tolin, a growth strategist for CPAs, together launched a training and technology platform called XcelLabs.
XcelLabs provides solutions to help accountants use artificial technology fluently and strategically. The Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs and CPA Crossings joined with Padar and Tolin as strategic partners and investors.
“To reinvent the profession, we must start by training the professional who can then transform their firms,” Padar said in a statement. “By equipping people with data and insights that help them see things differently, they can provide better advice to their clients and firm.”
The platform includes XcelLabs Academy, a series of educational online courses on the basics of AI, being a better advisor, leadership and practice management; Navi, a proprietary tool that uses AI to help accountants turn unstructured data like emails, phone calls and meetings into insights; and training and consulting services. These offerings are currently in beta testing.
“Accountants know they need to be more advisory, but not everyone can figure out how to do it,” Tolin said in a statement. “Couple that with the fact that AI will be doing a lot of the lower-level work accountants do today, and we need to create that next level advisor now. By showing accountants how to unlock patterns in their actions and turn client conversations into emotionally intelligent advice, we can create the accounting professional of the future.”
“AI is transforming how CPAs work, and XcelLabs is focused on helping the profession evolve with it,” PICPA CEO Jennifer Cryder said in a statement. “At PICPA, we’re proud to support a mission that aligns so closely with ours: empowering firms to use AI not just for efficiency, but to drive growth, value and long-term relevance.”
The accountant the world urgently needs has evolved far beyond the traditional role we recognized just a few years ago.
The transformation of the accounting profession is not merely an anticipated change; it is a pressing reality that is currently shaping business decisions, academic programs and the expected contributions of professionals. Yet, in many areas, accounting education stubbornly clings to outdated, overly technical models that fail to connect with the actual demands of the market. We must confront a critical question: If we continue to train accountants solely to file tax reports, are we truly equipping them for the challenges of today’s world?
This shift in mindset extends beyond individual countries or educational systems; it is a global movement. The recent announcement of the
The CIMA/CGMA proposal for 2026 is not just a curriculum update; it is a powerful manifesto. This new program positions analytical thinking, strategic business partnering and technology application at the core of accounting education. It unequivocally highlights sustainability, aligning with IFRS S1 and S2, and expands the accountant’s responsibilities beyond mere numbers to encompass conscious leadership, environmental impact and corporate governance.
The current changes in the accounting profession underscore an urgent shift in expectations from both educators and employers. Today, companies of all sizes and industries demand accountants who can do far more than interpret balance sheets. They expect professionals who grasp the deeper context behind the numbers, identify inconsistencies, anticipate potential issues before they escalate into losses, and act decisively as a bridge between data and decision making.
To meet these expectations, a radical mindset shift is essential. There are firms still operating on autopilot, mindlessly repeating tasks with minimal critical analysis. Likewise, many academic programs continue to treat accounting as purely a technical discipline, disregarding the vital elements of reflection, strategy and behavioral insight. This outdated approach creates a significant mismatch. While the world forges ahead, parts of the accounting profession remain stuck in the past.
The consequences of this shift are already becoming evident. The demand for compliance, transparency and sustainability now applies not only to large corporations but also to small and mid-sized businesses. Many of these organizations rely on professionals ill-equipped to drive the necessary changes, putting both business performance and the reputation of the profession at risk.
The positive news is that accountants who are ready to thrive in this new era do not necessarily need additional degrees. What they truly need is a commitment to awareness, a dedication to continuous learning, and the courage to step beyond their comfort zones. The future of accounting is here, and it is firmly rooted in analytical, strategic and human-oriented perspectives. The 2026 curriculum is a clear indication of the changes underway. Those who fail to think critically and holistically will be left behind.
In contrast, accountants who see the big picture, understand the ripple effects of their decisions, and actively contribute to the financial and ethical health of organizations will undeniably remain indispensable, anywhere in the world.
Congressional Republicans are siding with Donald Trump in the messy divorce between the president and Elon Musk, an optimistic sign for eventual passage of a tax cut bill at the root of the two billionaires’ public feud.
Lawmakers are largely taking their cues from Trump and sticking by the $3 trillion bill at the center of the White House’s economic agenda. Musk, the biggest political donor of the 2024 cycle, has threatened to help primary anyone who votes for the legislation, but lawmakers are betting that staying in the president’s good graces is the safer path to political survival.
“The tax bill is not in jeopardy. We are going to deliver on that,” House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Friday.
“I’ll tell you what — do not doubt, don’t second guess and do not challenge the President of the United States Donald Trump,” he added. “He is the leader of the party. He’s the most consequential political figure of our time.”
A fight between Trump and Musk exploded into public view this week. The sparring started with the tech titan calling the president’s tax bill a “disgusting abomination,” but quickly escalated to more personal attacks and Trump threatening to cancel all federal contracts and subsidies to Musk’s companies, such as Tesla Inc. and SpaceX which have benefitted from government ties.
Republicans on Capitol Hill, who had — until recently — publicly embraced Musk, said they weren’t swayed by the billionaire’s criticism that the bill cost too much. Lawmakers have refuted official estimates of the package, saying that the tax cuts for households, small businesses and politically important groups — including hospitality and hourly workers — will generate enough economic growth to offset the price tag.
“I don’t tell my friend Elon, I don’t argue with him about how to build rockets, and I wish he wouldn’t argue with me about how to craft legislation and pass it,” Johnson told CNBC earlier Friday.
House Budget Committee Chair Jodey Arrington told reporters that House lawmakers are focused on working with the Senate as it revises the bill to make sure the legislation has the political support in both chambers to make it to Trump’s desk for his signature.
“We move past the drama and we get the substance of what is needed to make the modest improvements that can be made,” he said.
House fiscal hawks said that they hadn’t changed their prior positions on the legislation based on Musk’s statements. They also said they agree with GOP leaders that there will be other chances to make further spending cuts outside the tax bill.
Representative Tom McClintock, a fiscal conservative, said “the bill will pass because it has to pass,” adding that both Musk and Trump needed to calm down. “They both need to take a nap,” he said.
Even some of the House bill’s most vociferous critics appeared resigned to its passage. Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie, who voted against the House version, predicted that despite Musk’s objections, the Senate will make only small changes.
“The speaker is right about one thing. This barely passed the House. If they muck with it too much in the Senate, it may not pass the House again,” he said.
Trump is pressuring lawmakers to move at breakneck speed to pass the tax-cut bill, demanding they vote on the bill before the July 4 holiday. The president has been quick to blast critics of the bill — including calling Senator Rand Paul
As the legislation worked its way through the House last month, Trump took to social media to criticize holdouts and invited undecided members to the White House to compel them to support the package. It passed by one vote.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune — who is planning to unveil his chamber’s version of the bill as soon as next week — said his timeline is unmoved by Musk.
“We are already pretty far down the trail,” he said.
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