Neil D. Katz is the Managing Partner of Katz Chwat, PC and is responsible for the administration of the firm’s overall practice. He serves as lead attorney for the firm’s estate planning matters, corporate sales and acquisitions, and business planning and transactions and lends his experience to all of the firm’s tax planning an controversy matters.
Neil advises clients on strategic planning and drafting of estate plans and business agreements and uses his tax and business knowledge to guide clients through the purchase or sale of a business, from the negotiation and structuring through the closing of the transaction. Neil uses his educational and professional background in taxation to work through Federal and State income tax issues, as well as matters relating to corporate, partnership, estate and gift taxation.
Among the key strengths that Neil brings to his role at KC is an analytical approach to problem-solving. He enjoys breaking down very complex subjects and communicating them in terms that can be easily understood. His thorough technical knowledge of Internal Revenue and New York State tax laws is also valued by his clients and professional colleagues.
Neil is a primary lecturer and contributor to the development of the Katz Tax Seminars, LLC; a well- recognized, widely attended continuing education program registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy as a sponsor of continuing education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors.
He is a frequent contributor and speaker for numerous professional organizations, including the New York State Society of CPAs, National Conference of CPA Practitioners, Nassau and Suffolk County Bar Associations, Financial Planners Association and the Long Island Estate Planning Council, and provides continuing education seminars to many local and regional CPA firms. For over 25 years, Neil served as a professor of Taxation at the Frank G. Zarb School of Business at Hofstra University, teaching in both the undergraduate accounting program and the graduate tax program. Neil has also been a featured lecturer at the LIU Post Tax & Accounting Institute and the Hofstra University Entrepreneurial Assistance Program.
In May of 2012 Neil testified as an expert witness at a hearing before the United States House of Representatives, Committee on Small Business, Sub-Committee on Economic Growth and Capital Access. At a hearing titled “Planning for the Death Tax: Can Small Businesses Survive?”, he testified on the impact that the Estate Tax rules have on small business owners and their families. (See the video here).
Neil has been named a “Super Lawyer” by Super Lawyer Rating Service for over 10 years and was named as a “Top 100 Lawyer” within NY Metro Area in 2020. He was listed in the LIBN “Who’s Who in Corporate Law” in 2013; recognized as a “Top Ten Legal Eagle” for his work in Corporate, Contracts & Business Law by Long Island Pulse Magazine in 2014 and named as a “Leader in Law” by the Long Island Business News in both 2017 and 2024.
Neil has co-authored a number of articles appearing in professional publications including the CPA Journal, the New York State Bar Association Elder Law Attorney, the Nassau Lawyer, and the Suffolk Lawyer.
Neil resides in Dix Hills, New York with his wife, Marie.
- New York University, LL.M. Taxation, 1994
- University of Pennsylvania, J.D., 1991
- Hofstra University, B.B.A. Accounting, 1988
- American Bar Association, Member
- New York State Bar Association, Member
- Nassau County Bar Association, Member
- Chair, Attorney/Accountants Committee (2013-2014)
- Suffolk County Bar Association, Member
- Chair, Solo and Small firm Practice Committee (2008-2010)
- Long Island Estate Planning Council, Member
- President – Suffolk County EPC (2011-2013)
- Executive Board – Suffolk County EPC (2009-2015)
- New York State Society of CPAs Associate Industry Member
- The New York Community Trust
- Long Island Office, Advisory Board Member (2024-Present)
- State Bar of New York, 1991
- US Tax Court
- Top 100 Lawyers, New York Metro Area, Super Lawyers, 2020
- “In recognition as an Outstanding Discussion Leader,” Samuel Dyckman Excellence in Education Award, Educational Foundation of NCCPAP, to L.I. Professionals Symposium and the CPA Community, 2018
- “Leadership in Law,” Partner, Long Island Business News, 2017, 2024
- “New York Metro Area Super Lawyers,” Tax, 2016 – 2026
- “Top Ten Legal Eagle,” Corporate, Contracts & Business Law, Long Island Pulse Magazine, 2014
- “Who’s Who in Corporate Law,” Long Island Business News, 2013
- “Rising Star,” Long Island Business News 40 Rising Stars Under 40, 2001
- 1040 Update Part I & II, ATS 2025 Accounting & Tax Symposium
- Estate Planning for the Middle Wealthy, ATS 2025, Accounting & Tax Symposium
- Federal Tax Update 2025, Business Entities Conference
- Federal Tax Update 2024, 2024 Tri-State Tax Update, National Conference of CPA Practitioners Westchester/Rockland Division
- Top Estate Planning Issues for 2024 and Future Years, ATS 2024, Accounting & Tax Symposium
- Calculating Basis for Pass-Through Entity Owners, Chinese America Society of CPA’s 2024 Tax Symposium
- Federal Tax Update, 2024 NYSSCPA Nassau Suffolk Tax Conference
- A Lesson in Patience, NCCPAP Newsletter
- Utilizing Life Insurance to Improve Your Client’s Estate Plan, Nassau Lawyer
- State Taxation of Non-Grantor Trusts Following the Supreme Court’s Ruling in Kaestner, Nassau Lawyer
- Finance Matters, Newsday – 50 Plus
- The Tax Implications of Divorce Part II – Property Transfers, Home Sale, Dependency Exemption and Administrative Issues, The Journal of Taxation, with co-author Gina M. DiGaudio
- The Tax Implications of Divorce Part I– Alimony, The Journal of Taxation, with co-author Gina M. DiGaudio
- Does the Increased Estate Tax Exemption and Portability Mean the Death of Estate Planning?, Nassau Lawyer, with co-author Robert Katz
- iPad: Changing Computing for Lawyers, The Nassau Lawyer, with co-author Michael Glasser
- What Planners Needs to Know About Portability, CPA Journal, with co-author Robert Katz
- Tax Consequences of the Marriage Equality Act, The Suffolk Lawyer, with co-author Robert Katz
- Death in 2010: Federal Estate Tax Election, New York State Bar Association Elder Law Attorney, with co-author Robert Katz
- The Carry-Over Basis Dilemma, The Nassau Lawyer, with co-author Robert Katz
- New Preparer Penalties: ‘Let’s Be Careful Out There’, CPA Journal, with co-authors Robert Katz, Harold Finkelstein, and Anthony Basile
- The Role of the Tax Attorney in Diverse Business Transactions, The Hauppauge Reporter