Duncan E. Osborne
Duncan E. Osborne

Duncan E. Osborne

Partner

email

deosborne@ohsks.com

email

(512) 542-2010

Profile

Mr. Osborne is a partner of Osborne, Helman, Scott, Knisely & Stanton, LLP. His core practice is domestic and international estate planning with an emphasis on asset protection planning. A former adjunct professor of law at The University of Texas School of Law, Mr. Osborne devotes significant energy to lecturing and writing in his practice areas as well as helping clients with regard to all aspects of their estate planning. He is a frequent author and lecturer on estate planning topics and has made presentations and published articles both domestically and internationally on the subjects of offshore trusts and asset protection planning. One of the pioneers in the field of asset protection, Mr. Osborne conceived and was the original editor and a contributing author of the four-volume treatise, Asset Protection: Domestic and International Law and Tactics, published by West Group in 1995 (a loose leaf service updated quarterly). He was also the founding chair of the American Bar Association’s Asset Protection Committee. Mr. Osborne is retained by foreign governments and financial institutions to advise them on trust and tax issues. He has also been called upon to serve as an expert witness on both sides of the docket in cases involving asset protection planning.

Education

  • University of Texas Law School (J.D., with honors, 1971) Order of the Coif; Associate Editor, Texas Law Review
  • University of Texas (M.A., Latin American Studies, 1968)
  • Stanford University (B.A., English, 1966)

Professional Memberships and Honors

  • Member, Dean's Board of Advisors, The University of Texas School of Law (2018)
  • Fellow, The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (Past President, Member, Board of Regents; Former Chair, International Estate Planning Committee; Former Chair, FATF Task Force)
  • Estate Planning Hall of Fame (2013); National Association of Estate Planners and Councils
  • Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation
  • Academician, The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law (Member, Executive Committee, Vice President)
  • Technical Editor, Steve Leimberg’s Asset Protection Newsletter (2006 – present)
  • Named Best Lawyers® 2011 Trusts and Estates "Lawyer of the Year" in Austin
  • Named Best Lawyers® 2014 Trusts and Estates Litigation "Lawyer of the Year" in Austin
  • Recognized by Best Lawyers® for Trusts and Estates & Trusts and Estates Litigation (1989 – present)
  • Listed, Texas Super Lawyer, sponsored by Thomson Reuters and published in Texas Monthly (2003 – present)
  • Member, American Bar Association
  • Member, State Bar of Texas
  • Member, The College of the State Bar of Texas
  • Member, The International Bar Association
  • Member, Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners
  • Member and Founding Chair, Asset Protection Planning  Committee, American Bar Association (Section of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law)
  • Member, Foreign Activities of U. S. Taxpayers Committee, American Bar Association (Section of Taxation)
  • Member, Task Force on Gatekeeper Regulations, American Bar Association (2012-2013)
  • Former Member, Advisory Board, Asset Protection Journal
  • Director, Susan Vaughan Foundation, Houston, Texas
  • Director, Still Water Foundation, Austin, Texas
  • Former Director, Aurora Foundation, Austin, Texas
  • Former Board Chair, St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, Austin, Texas
ACTEC
Board Certified - Texas Board of Legal Specialization
Super Lawyers - Duncan E. Osborne
The College of the State Bar of Texas
The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law
STEP
International Bar Association
Super Lawyers, 20 Years, Duncan E. Osborne, 2024
Super Lawyers, Top 50 Central/West Texas, Duncan E. Osborne, 2024
Best Lawyers, 2024, Duncan E. Osborne
Best Lawyers, 2025, Duncan E. Osborne

Select Publications and Presentations

Asset Protection: Domestic and International Law and Tactics (four volumes; updated quarterly)

West Group
Publication
Contributing Author/Co-Editor
1995

A Brief History of Asset Protection Trusts

ALI CLE Estate Planning Course Materials Journal, January 2022
Publication
Author
2022

Truth, Transparence, and The Right of Privacy

The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Law Journal, Volume 46, Number 3, Summer 2021
Publication
Author
2021

The Financial Action Task Force and the Legal Profession

New York Law School Law Review, 2014/15, Volume 59, Number 3
Publication
Author
2015

Asset Protection Trusts Under Attack – Views from the Bench and Bar

49th Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Orlando, Florida
Presentation/Publication
Co-Author/Presenter
2015

Asset Protection Trust Planning Using Traditional Estate Planning Techniques

Community Foundation of Southern New Mexico, 32nd Annual Estate Planning Institute, Las Cruses, New Mexico
Presentation/Publication
Co-Author/Presenter
2015

The Financial Action Task Force and The Good Practices Guidance

New Mexico State Bar 2012 Bridge the Gap, Albuquerque, New Mexico; The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Southeast Regional Meeting, Savannah, Georgia; The National College of Probate Judges, Jekyll Island, Georgia; Connecticut Bar Association Probate Section Meeting, New Haven Connecticut; The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel New England Regional Meeting, Mashantucket, Connecticut
Presentation/Publication
Author/Presenter
2011

The Financial Action Task Force and Its Impact on The Practice of Law

33rd Annual Advanced Estate Planning and Probate Course, Houston, Texas (2009); 44th Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Orlando, Florida
Presentation/Publication
Author/Presenter
2009

Asset Protection: Trust Planning

American Law Institute – American Bar Association Course of Study, Planning Techniques for Large Estates, New York, New York (April, 2009)
Presentation
Co-Author/Presenter
2009

Converting an Asset Protection Trust into a Tax-Efficient Wealth Reserve

U.S. Taxation of International Operations
Publication
Co-Author
2003

The Influence of Spanish and Mexican Laws on the Property and Probate Laws of Texas

The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law, Santiago, Chile
Presentation/Publication
Co-Author/Presenter
2003

Publications and Presentations

All Publications and Presentations

Asset Protection Planning

Asset Protection Planning

Tenth Annual Great Lakes Asset Protection Institute, Ohio State Bar Association, Columbus, Ohio
Presentation/Publication
2022

A Brief History of Asset Protection Trusts

A Brief History of Asset Protection Trusts

ALI CLE Estate Planning Course Materials Journal, January 2022
Publication
2022

Truth, Transparence, and The Right of Privacy

Truth, Transparence, and The Right of Privacy

The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Law Journal, Volume 46, Number 3, Summer 2021
Publication
2021

Truth, Transparence, and The Right of Privacy

Truth, Transparence, and The Right of Privacy

The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Trachtman Lecture, Anuual Meeting, Boca Raton, Florida
Presentation/Publication
2020

A Brief History of Asset Protection Trusts

A Brief History of Asset Protection Trusts

The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Domestic Asset Protection Trust: 20th Anniversary, 2017 Fall Meeting, Nashville, Tennessee
Presentation/Publication
2017

Enforcement of Criminal Orders Against Trusts

Enforcement of Criminal Orders Against Trusts

Annual Conference of the Internatioanl Bar Association, Sydney, Austrialia
Presentation/Publication
2017

Asset Protection Trust Planning

Asset Protection Trust Planning

American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education, Planning Techniques for Large Estates, Scottsdale, Arizona
Presentation/Publication
2017

Asset Protection Trusts

Asset Protection Trusts

University of Kentucky 43rd Annual Midwest-Midsouth Estate Planning Institute, Lexington, Kentucky
Presentation/Publication
2016

Update: Asset Protection

Update: Asset Protection

New York Bar Association 13th Annual Sophisticated Trusts and Estate Law Institute, New York, New York
Presentation/Publication
2015

The Financial Action Task Force and the Legal Profession

The Financial Action Task Force and the Legal Profession

New York Law School Law Review, 2014/15, Volume 59, Number 3
Publication
2015

Asset Protection Trusts Under Attack – Views from the Bench and Bar

Asset Protection Trusts Under Attack – Views from the Bench and Bar

49th Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, Orlando, Florida
Presentation/Publication
2015