Conservation Easements and the IRS’: Vermont Law School Panelists Look at ‘In Perpetuity’

The federal tax code plays a significant role in protecting open space. Landowners who donate conservation easements that protect land in perpetuity may be eligible for a federal income tax deduction. Panelists will explore the meaning of "in perpetuity"—and the extent to which conservation easements can be amended or terminated when they have been granted in perpetuity.

"The federal tax code lends tremendous support to the land trust movement by allowing landowners who donate conservation easements to claim income tax deductions for their gifts," said Professor Janet E. Milne, director of the Environmental Tax Policy Institute. "But it requires that easements must be granted in perpetuity. Understanding how the IRS views perpetuity and why it’s important is critical, since the IRS enforces the tax rules."

Featured speaker Karin Gross, supervisory attorney in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, will address the IRS rules on perpetuity and their implications. Professor Nancy A. McLaughlin of the University of Utah College of Law, a national expert on conservation easements, will provide an overview of the federal requirements for donated conservation easements. Milne will moderate the sessions.

Organizers expect the topic to be of interest to anyone concerned with conserving open space—landowners, attorneys, legislators, members of land trusts and conservation commissions, government agencies, planners, appraisers, and philanthropic advisors. The two sessions will be similar in content.

"Conservation Easements and the IRS: What Does ‘In Perpetuity’ Mean?" will be held at 3:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 17, in Chase Community Center at Vermont Law School in South Royalton; and at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 18, at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Montpelier. Continuing legal education (CLE) credit is available. For more information about the panels, call Professor Janet Milne at 802-831-1266 or email jmilne@vermontlaw.edu. For more information about the Environmental Tax Policy Institute at Vermont Law School, visit www.vermontlaw.edu/academics/centers-and-programs/environmental-tax-policy-institute.