About Tereina Stidd

Tereina Stidd joins the Academy after over fifteen years in private practice.  Ms. Stidd worked in some of the nation’s largest law firms, as well as boutiques.  Tereina’s broad range of experience coupled with her disarming personality will be a great resource for Academy Members.  She brings a practical, solution-based approach to problem-solving and her breadth of experience and depth of understanding will assist Members in their day-to-day activities.  Ms. Stidd will be an immediate resource providing timely and relevant support and education.

Professional Experience

Tereina Stidd has been responsible for numerous estate and trust administration proceedings and reviewed countless estate planning documents while working at boutique firms, for solo practitioners, mid-sized firms, an Am Law top 200 firm, and an Am Law top 100 firm. She has extensive experience providing recommendations for estate plans and advising on the implementation of those plans, including advanced planning techniques using Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts, Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts, Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts, Qualified Personal Residence Trusts, Charitable Trusts, and other specialized entities.  While in private practice, Ms. Stidd designed and delivered solutions on all aspects of estate and trust settlement and administration for beneficiaries and fiduciaries and identified and resolved legal and tax issues for clients during planning and administration.  Tereina regularly advised clients on the preparation of tax returns, including supplemental returns and audit work.  Tereina advised on homestead issues and truly “wrote the book” on the matter.  These diverse working environments give her a unique perspective in anticipating and resolving areas of concern before those issues ripen to litigation and her talent for disarming people fosters an immediate sense of trust.

Just prior to joining the Academy, Ms. Stidd was asked to open a satellite office for an AM Law Top 200 Firm and spent her last five years in private practice there.  It was during this time that Ms. Stidd focused on speaking and discovered that she enjoyed that more than private practice.  She taught professional seminars ranging in topic from “Florida Rules on Closing the Estate and Filing the Final Return” to “Tango in Trust Administration:  Relation between Trustees and Beneficiaries and Trustees and Third Parties” for groups as small as ten and as large as national audiences.

Ms. Stidd is the co-author of Chapter 6 “Homestead” in Basic Estate Planning in Florida, 6th through 10th ed., published by the Florida Bar.

Ms. Stidd is admitted to practice in Florida and North Carolina (inactive status).

Education

Tereina Stidd earned a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) from St. Bonaventure University, St. Bonaventure, New York.  She then earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from the Claude W. Petit College of Law at Ohio Northern University, Ada, OH.  Finally, Tereina Stidd earned a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Taxation from the University of Miami.

Personal

Ms. Stidd lives in Florida with her family and enjoys running, reading and tie-dye.