Mike Bragg is a taxation, business, and estate planning attorney with more than 37 years of experience. His practice emphasizes federal and state taxation, closely held corporate transactions, executive compensation, business succession and family wealth planning, estate and gift tax and retirement planning.  Mike received his Bachelor of Science degree from Oregon State University, his Juris Doctorate from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law and his Master of Laws degree from Southern Methodist University.  Mike is admitted to the Oregon State Bar, the Washington State Bar, and the United States Tax Court.  He is also a member of the Multnomah Bar Association and belongs to the Taxation and Business and Corporate Law Sections of the Oregon State Bar.

In his estate planning practice, Mike has assisted numerous individuals with their estate and gift tax planning and retirement planning, including the preparation of revocable living trusts, irrevocable life insurance and defective grantor trusts, wills, and charitable remainder trusts.  Mike is actively involved in the area of estate administration, including the preparation of estate and inheritance tax returns, the use of disclaimers and other tax minimizing techniques.  In his business and corporate law practice, Mike provides tax counsel on such matters as executive compensation, deferred compensation and the use and benefits of profit sharing and money purchase pension plans, 401(k) plans and defined benefit pension plans.  Over the course of his career, Mike has acquired considerable expertise concerning the mature business client and the sensitive issues associated with transition and family wealth planning necessary to allow the business to be transferred to the next generation of owners.  Sophisticated tax planning, which considers the tax position of both the individual (buyer or seller) and the corporation, are an integral part of the transition and family wealth planning.

Mike is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Portland and the Western Pension Conference. Additionally, he is the author of the “Liability of Personal Representative” chapter and the “Non-Probate Property” chapter of the publication Administering Oregon Estates, 1983 and 1986.  Currently,  Mike serves as Secretary and board member for Tri-County Gun Club, Inc.  He is past Chairman of the Board of Directors of West Coast Trust, Portland, Oregon, and is a past member of the Board of Directors of West Coast Bank (NASDAQ: WCBO), Lake Oswego, Oregon. Mike is also a former member of the Board of Directors of the Guide Dogs for the Blind and Chairman of the Pacific Northwest Committee. He is the past President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Oregon Humane Society, and is past President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Portland Police Sunshine Division.  Mike is an AV Rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell.

In his free time, Mike enjoys oenology, reading, fishing and skeet and clay trap shooting.

Primary Areas of Practice:

Estate Planning:

• Estate and trust administration
• Charitable tax planning
• Estate & gift tax planning
• Estate & inheritance tax returns
• Irrevocable life insurance trusts and defective grantor trusts
• Revocable living trusts
• Wills

Business & Taxation Law:

• Business succession planning
• Retirement and family wealth planning
• Deferred compensation
• Executive compensation
• Representation of the individual and the business before the IRS; and IRS Appellate Tax Practice
• Tax planning & representation for the shareholder or family business