Hemenway & Barnes LLP

There is no “one size fits all” when it comes to the needs of our clients. In our experience, families turn to Hemenway & Barnes for assistance for a wide range of needs including: 

• Estate and tax planning 
• Family governance 
• Family philanthropy 
• Fiduciary services 
• Investment oversight 
• Wealth education of children 

Additional services might include assistance with aspects of daily living, such as financial planning, budgeting, bill paying, hiring and managing contractors and staff, and assistance in organizing care of elderly family members. 

Hemenway Trust Company can also: 

• custody and manage IRAs. 
• serve as a corporate trustee managing, advising on and investing trust assets as part of a total portfolio. 
• provide comprehensive trust administration and tax planning and reporting. 
• consolidate the oversight, management and reporting of all your assets so you have a 360-degree view of your net worth and financial position.

The mission of Hemenway & Barnes is to provide the highest quality of wealth management and legal services to individuals, families, business owners, and nonprofit organizations. Collectively we strive to focus on each client situation, providing services that are tailored and result-oriented. Hemenway & Barnes aims to deliver these services via an integrated practice; seamlessly combining investment acumen, legal counsel, business and tax planning, philanthropic advice, family office management and sound practical advice.

When working with family groups, we assemble a team that is experienced, nimble and attentive. This approach insures that our clients have the benefit of continuity, a personalized and integrated approach and availability, even when a member of the team is out of the office. Client teams are led by an experienced partner, who is the main point of contact. Additional team members include other legal and fiduciary professionals and support staff depending on the family’s individual needs. Members of the team divide responsibility with some focusing on wealth and trust management and others managing additional aspects of the family office, including meetings, communications, philanthropy, tax planning and reporting, financial reporting, and estate and financial planning.

For more than 150 years, Hemenway & Barnes has advised generations of prominent families, individuals, nonprofit organizations and businesses throughout New England and beyond. Clients who seek personal service tailored to their situations find our approach suits their needs. Our clients are a diverse group; some have inherited wealth and others have acquired it by virtue of professional pursuits. Some are the first generation in their family to have resources and others are the second, third, sixth or more generation of means. They turn to us for advice and judgment. For many clients, we are the “first call” for questions big or small. We act in a fiduciary capacity for individuals and families whose invested assets range from $1 million to $250 million.

Continuity – For generations, in fact, affluent clients and their families have turned to Hemenway & Barnes to serve as trustees and provide other family office services. We have chosen to remain rooted in New England and with the type and number of professionals that works best for our clients. Clients find this reassuring, knowing that we are partners for the long haul. 

Personal Attention – Clients stay with us. Once clients experience the Hemenway & Barnes "personal touch" they rarely leave. This personal attention is an integral part of who we are. It is something you can't learn through our marketing materials or web site but will quickly come to know when you become our valued client. 

Real World, Personal Advice – Clients appreciate our sound, practical advice and perspective. They've come to value our integrated 360-degree view of their needs and goals, whether personal, business or charitable. As financial stewards and personal advisors, we help clients understand how change in one area can impact another and weigh their options to achieve their goals.

Each client has specific communication preferences which we accommodate. We are accustomed to working with family members who reside in different locations including inside and outside the United States. Our strategies for reaching out to family members in such situations include: 

Meetings: We travel to meet with individual clients to review their individual tax, estate and other planning needs. For family members who are unable to attend group meetings in person, we provide teleconference access. If appropriate, we move the location of a group meeting to accommodate family members. 

Online: through our client portal, HemenwayAccess, we can provide online access to family information. Individual family members can view their own financial information, as well as information of general interest (e.g. contact information, calendars, memos or summaries on topics of interest). We have also arranged webinars for clients on topics such as: themes in investment of family accounts, estate planning, the impact of new tax legislation on family members and the like. We have produced family e-newsletters to keep far flung family members in touch with one another. 

Print: We are able to provide hard copies of account information and other information of general interest and can send these by mail or fax to individual clients. 

Telephone: We maintain phone contact with all individual clients and also arrange conference calls with client groups from time to time where necessary or desirable.

Hemenway & Barnes provides a wide range of educational opportunities in a variety of formats.

Client-Specific Programs: we can customize family programs on a range of topics including children and wealth, family philanthropy, family governance, and family business. We can deliver the material through a variety of means including but not limited to, multigenerational family meetings, small group meetings, conference calls, retreats, newsletters, and webinars.

Advisories, Webinars, and Blog: we issue numerous publications on timely issues throughout the year. Publications are posted on our website, emailed to clients and shared on social media. 

Topics including charitable giving, estate planning, the use of social media, legal implications for college-bound children, the implications of tax levies for employers etc. To see a list of our most recent advisories please go to: https://www.hembar.com/news_resources 

We also publish reports to educate readers about different strategies they might consider for their own family situation. Recent white papers include, “Charitable Giving: Asset Allocation Reporting and Effective Philanthropy” and "Tandem Use of Private Foundations and Donor Advised Funds."

Since our early days, we have valued the skill, integrity, trust, hard work and vision of our professionals and staff. With this in mind, we have assembled a mix of attorneys, CPAs, MBAs and other professionals, with specialized backgrounds in law, finance, tax, philanthropy, real estate, business planning and family services. This allows us to expand or realign teams to match your changing needs. 

We support and believe in continued education through attendance at conferences, coursework and industry-related events. Our trustees, attorneys and staff have a long history of service to our firm and clients, in fact most of our partners and senior professionals have more than twenty-five years of experience at the firm. With this continuity, comes a commitment to doing what is best for our clients and our firm. Please see our website at https://www.hembar.com/about to learn more about us.