About Joshua S. Rubenstein

In his widely respected practice, Joshua Rubenstein, national chair of the firm's Private Wealth practice, brings a variety of important services under one roof for high-net-worth individuals. He offers integrated planning, administration and litigation counseling for individuals, their estates and their businesses, all of it designed to preserve wealth over generations. His advice stretches as far as his clients' financial interests – locally, nationally and globally.

All-encompassing counsel for private clients

Josh is the rare trusts and estates attorney that does not focus exclusively on either planning, estate administration, or litigation. Instead, he integrates all three. The result, for clients, is deeper insight in each area that may affect them. Josh performs his planning and administration with a view to minimizing litigation risk; meanwhile, he litigates cases with a view towards discovering planning opportunities. Appreciating his insights and the strong qualities he has as an attorney, clients praise his work: "Josh is amazing. He is very, very responsive, it doesn't matter what hour of the day I call." "What's super impressive about him is that he is able to think outside of the box and he is very open to new ideas" (Chambers HNW 2022).

In any craft, making it "look easy" only happens with considerable experience and talent. Josh, who has been practicing in the field for more than 35 years, has a unique ability to create sophisticated solutions that are also elegant and uncomplicated. Clients praise his intelligence and experience, describing him as "a consummate professional," who "has a global view of things. He does not just try to solve the immediate problem but looks instead at the whole picture. His breadth of knowledge is second to none" (Chambers HNW 2022). In the area of estate administration, which can bring intense feelings to the surface for family members, Josh and his clients also benefit from his emotional intelligence. Representing the executor of a multibillion-dollar estate who was being sued by siblings over their treatment in their parents' will, Josh crafted a solution that satisfied all parties and restored family harmony. In that instance, and others, Josh has kept what would have been a high-profile dispute out of the news. Instead, it remained a private affair.

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"Josh Rubenstein is a titan in the field of international trusts and estates law and litigation who well deserves his formidable reputation in this arena."

Best Lawyers in America® 2022
(Trusts & Estates Law) survey response

Practice Focus

  • Estate, personal and tax planning
  • Estate, trust and entity administration
  • Resolving estate, trust, family and tax disputes in state, federal and foreign courts
  • Cross-border trust and estate issues

News

Publications

Quick Reads

Presentations and Events

Practices
Industries
Education
  • Columbia Law School, JD, Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar
  • Columbia University, BA, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Bar Admissions
  • New Jersey
  • New York
Court Admissions
  • US District Court, District of New Jersey
  • US District Court, Eastern District of New York
  • US District Court, Southern District of New York
  • US Tax Court
Community Involvements
  • American Law Institute, Estate Planning Advisory Board
  • Central Park Conservancy, Advisory Council
  • Chess in Schools
  • Citywealth, Editorial Board
  • City of Hope
  • American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, International Estate Planning Committee Chair, International Membership Committee Chair, State Laws Committee Past Regent and Past Chair
  • American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Foundation, Director
  • Columbia Law School, Trusts, Wills and Estate Planning Advisory Council
  • Columbia University, Planned Giving Advisory Committee
  • Columbia University Health Sciences Center, Advisory Council
  • Fiduciary Accounting and Trust Administration Guide, Attorney Advisory Board
  • Fiduciary Trust International, Trust Advisory Board
  • Hadassah Estate Planning Seminar, Faculty and Advisory Board
  • International Bar Association, Vice Chair of the Family Law Committee
  • International Wealth Advisors Forum, Steering Committee
  • Irvington Institute for Immunological Research, Past President
  • Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services, Past Vice President
  • Legal Week, Conference Advisory Board
  • Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Professional Advisors Council
  • Matthew Bender, Editorial Board
  • Merrill Lynch, Attorney Advisory Board
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art, Professional Advisors Council
  • Museum of Art and Design, Professional Advisory Committee
  • Museum of Modern Art, Professional Advisors Council
  • New Jersey Bar Association
  • New York City Ballet, Professional Advisory Committee
  • Association of the Bar of the City of New York
  • New York Office of Court Administration Advisory, Committee on Surrogate's Courts
  • New York Philharmonic, Advisory Council
  • New York Public Library, Professional Advisory Committee
  • New York State Bar Association, Trusts and Estates Law Section Past Chair
  • No Name Discussion Group
  • Practising Law Institute, Estate Advisory Committee
  • Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), Panel of Experts for Private Client Awards
  • The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law (IAETL), President; Academician; Treasurer, Executive Council, Regional Committee for the United States
  • UJA Federation, Trust & Estates Division Past Chair
  • Warren's Heaton, Editorial Board
  • American Bar Association, Real Property, Trust and Estate Law and Taxation Sections, International Estate Planning Committee Past Chair
Languages
  • Spanish
Recognitions
Recognized or listed in the following:
  • ALM/Law.com
    Private Client Global Elite, 2017–2019, 2021, 2025
  • American College of Tax Counsel
    Fellow, 2020–present
  • American College of Trust and Estate Counsel
    Fellow
  • AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
  • Best Lawyers in America
    Trusts and Estates, 1993–2025
  • Chambers High Net Worth
    USA - Private Wealth Law: Eastern Region, 2012–2024
    New York: Private Wealth Law, 2016–2024
    New York: Private Wealth Disputes, 2021–2024
    USA - Family Offices & Funds Structuring, 2021–2024
  • Chambers Global
    International Private Client
    Global-wide, 2012–2020
  • Chambers USA
    Leading Individual, 2006–2016
  • Citywealth
    Lawyer of the Year, 2021
    Top 25 Wills & Estate Advisors, 2024
    Top 100 Global Tax Professionals, 2023
    Top 100 International Private Client Litigation Lawyers, 2022–2023
    Top 15 Leadership Dream Team USA, 2022
    Top 100 Trust Litigators and Polymaths, 2020
    Top 20 Men in Private Wealth Management, 2008, 2020
    Leaderslist, 2011, 2015–2016
    International Lawyer of the Year, 2012
    Top 20 Leading Lawyers, 2006–2010
    Editor's Choice Award, 2011
  • Citywealth Powerwomen Awards
    International Mentor of the Year, Silver Winner 2024
  • Crain's New York Business
    Most-Connected New Yorkers, 2014
  • Estate Planning Hall of Fame
    2017
  • JD Supra Reader's Choice - Top Read Article
    Wealth Management, 2025
  • Lawdragon
    500 Leading Family Lawyers, 2025
  • Lexology Index
    Global Elite Thought Leaders, 2020–2021
    Private Client, 2024
  • National Law Journal
    Divorce, Trusts & Estates Trailblazer, 2016
  • New York Bar Foundation
    Fellow
  • New York Law Journal
    Distinguished Leader, 2019
  • New York Magazine
    Legal Leaders, Top Rated Trusts & Estates Lawyers, 2020
  • STEP Private Client Awards
    Advocate of the Year
    Finalist, 2019
    Trusted Advisor of the Year, 2023/24
  • Super Lawyers
    New York, 2006–2024
  • The American Lawyer
    Transatlantic Lawyer of the Year
    Private Client, 2016
  • The International Who's Who of Private Client Lawyers
    Top Ten Most Highly Regarded Individual, 2013
Award Methodologies