Leaders List interview: 60 seconds with Severiano E. Ortiz, MNF Legal

Date: 04 Dec 2024

Karen Jones

This week’s 60-second piece is dedicated to Severiano E. Ortiz, Managing Member at MNF Legal.

Tell Citywealth readers a bit about your role.

I’m an international private client attorney. This generally means that I represent multinational families and businesses with some sort of U.S. connection. I provide tax and estate planning for U.S. persons or businesses looking to move or expand overseas, as well as the reverse with foreign persons or businesses looking to move or expand inside the U.S. Typical engagements include cross-border gift and estate planning, preimmigration planning, expatriation planning, and cross-border income tax planning.

What does a typical day look like for you?

A typical day involves me opening my computer to check my email. While we work on many ongoing matters and projects for our clients, I also receive new emails every day from both existing clients asking new or additional questions and prospective clients requesting an introductory meeting to learn about our service offerings. So much of my day is contingent on what I find in my inbox. Private client work is inherently difficult to predict.

Tell us about some recent, interesting client instructions/requests you have received.

This is a tough question because each of my clients presents me with unique and interesting scenarios. It’s one of the reasons that I like working with multinational clients.  A recent request involved helping a client and their family (each with multiple nationalities) relocate from the U.S. to Europe. It involved a lot of complex planning ranging from structuring various trusts and estate planning to reorganizing their global business structure.

What challenges do your clients face and how are you helping your clients to overcome them?

One of the challenges of cross-border planning is navigating through complex laws and treaties, which can be overwhelming for many clients. Multinational families and businesses must take into considerations aspects of income, gift, and estate planning for both themselves, their family members, their beneficiaries, and their businesses in each jurisdiction in which they have nationality, residency, or assets. It’s a lot to consider and not easy to understand.

I often act as a type of general counsel for my clients by directly engaging and managing experts and specialists inside and outside the U.S. to simplify the process. To better serve those seeking assistance, I have established relationships with practitioners worldwide. These relationships allow me to tap into a global network of experts and resources to help clients navigate the intricacies of cross-border planning. Additionally, I participate in international conferences and organizations, often presenting and publishing on relevant topics, which helps to stay current with the latest trends and developments in the field.

What is your proudest professional achievement?

My proudest professional achievement was launching my own D.C. based law practice. Oftentimes, as attorneys, we are trained to be a bit risk averse, and setting up one’s own practice can be a daunting task.

What do you consider to be the most important attributes for a leader?

In today’s environment, especially, I think the most important attribute for a leader is the willingness and courage to take responsibility for one’s decisions, whatever those decisions may be.

Who do you most admire and why?

There are many people I admire, but generally speaking I admire people who have done something out of the ordinary. I find that too many people fall into simple routines where they spend their lives doing the same thing over and over. I’ve always looked up to people who broke the mold, whatever that mold may have been for them, to pursue something different. Often times, I speak with friends or colleagues to whom I haven’t spoken in years, and I always find it a bit depressing to learn that nothing has really changed in their lives. They are still doing the same thing in the same place with the same people. I think life has a lot to offer and it’s important to try new things, travel, meet new people, etc. Not to say that stability isn’t important, but there is more to a person than their profession or their job.

Where was the last place you travelled to for work or pleasure?

I am constantly traveling domestically and international for work, but my most recent trip was to Los Angeles.

If you weren’t in this industry, what else might you be doing?

I would probably be translating ancient texts. I had contemplated pursuing studies in near eastern languages and civilizations prior to enrolling in law school. I have always been interested in ancient history.

How do you relax after a long day?

I usually try to relax by going to the gym or taking a long walk outside with my dog, Chloe.