Nancy Assaf McLaughlin
Robert W. Swenson Professor of Law
Professor McLaughlin received her J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1990 and a B.S. honors degree in psychology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, in 1987, where she was a Commonwealth Scholar and elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Her scholarship focuses on conservation easements and nonprofit governance issues, and she writes and lectures extensively on these issues. She is a member of the American Law Institute, a fellow of The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, and an Observer to the Uniform Law Commission’s Regulation of Charities project. Among other professional activities, she served as a member of the Land Trust Alliance's Conservation Easement Amendment Policy Group, which assisted the Alliance in drafting its report on amending conservation easements; she serves on the Alliance's Conservation Defense Advisory Council; she serves on the advisory board of Utah Open Lands and Vital Ground; she serves as a member of the Habitat Protection Advisory Committee of the Wildlife Land Trust; she serves on the Publications Committee of the American Bar Association’s Real Property, Probate & Trust Law section and, since 2000, she has served as a professional editor of the section's Real Property, Trust & Estate Law Journal.
Professor McLaughlin teaches Federal Income Tax, Trusts & Estates, Estate Planning, Gift & Estate Tax, Private Land Conservation, and a course on Conservation Easements.
Scholarship Highlights
Law Review Articles
Kaufman v. Comm'r: Tax Court Protects Public Investments in Conservation Easements, 2011 Emerging Issues 6074 (Lexis)
Conservation Easements and The Doctrine of Merger, 74 Duke J.L. & Contemp. Probs _ (2011)
Internal Revenue Code Section 170(h): National Perpetuity Standards for Federally Subsidized Conservation Easements, Part 2: Comparison to State Law, 46 Real Prop., Tr. & Est. L.J. 1 (2011)
Internal Revenue Code Section 170(h): National Perpetuity Standards for Federally Subsidized Conservation Easements, Part 1: The Standards, 45 Real Prop., Tr. & Est. L.J. 473 (2010)
Hicks v. Dowd, Conservation Easements, and the Charitable Trust Doctrine: Setting the Record Straight, co-authored with W. William Weeks, 10 Wyo. L. Rev. 73 (2010)
In Defense of Conservation Easements: A Response to The End of Perpetuity, co-authored with W. William Weeks, 9 Wyo. L. Rev. 1 (2009)
Protecting the Public Interest and Investment in Conservation: A Response to Professor Korngold's Critique of Conservation Easements, co-authored with Mark Benjamin Machlis, 4 Utah L. Rev. 1561 (2008)
Condemning Conservation Easements: Protecting the Public Interest and Investment in Conservation, 41 U.C. Davis L. Rev. 1897 (2008)
Condemning Open Space: Making Way for National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors (or Not) , 26 Va. Envtl. L.J. 399 (2008)
Conservation Easements: Perpetuity and Beyond, 34 Ecology L.Q. 101 (2007)
Amending Perpetual Conservation Easements: A Case Study of the Myrtle Grove Controversy, 40 U. Rich. L. Rev. 1031 (2006) (symposium)
Conservation Easements - A Troubled Adolescence, 26 J. Land, Resources & Envtl. L. 47 (2006) (symposium)
Rethinking the Perpetual Nature of Conservation Easements, 29 Harv. Envtl. L. Rev. 421 (2005)
Increasing the Tax Incentives for Conservation Easement Donations - A Responsible Approach, 31 Ecology L.Q. 1 (2004)
The Role of Land Trusts in Biodiversity Conservation on Private Lands, 38 Idaho L. Rev. 453 (2002) (symposium)
Other Publications
Kaufman v. Comm'r: Tax Court Protects Public Investment in Conservation Easements, 2011 Emerging Issues 6074 (Lexis)
Salzburg v. Dowd: Another Look, co-authored with W. William Weeks, 33 Wyo. Law. 50 (2010)
Amending and Terminating Perpetual Conservation Easements, co-authored with Mark Benjamin Machlis, 23 Prob. & Prop. 52 (2009)
Commentary on Professor Korngold’s article, Private Conservation Easements: Balancing Private Initiative and the Public Interest (Lincoln Institute for Land Policy Research Report 2009)
Could Coalbed Methane be the Death of Conservation Easements? 29 Wyo. Law. 18 (2006)
Conservation Easements in the West, Rocky Mtn. Min. L. Inst., Chapter 22 (2005)
A Constructive Reformist's Perspective on Voluntary Conservation Easements, Ecosystem Marketplace (2005)
Why Environmental Lawyers Should Know (and Care) About Land Trusts and Their Private Land Conservation Transactions, co-authored with Professor Federico Cheever, 34 Envtl. L. Rep. 10223 (2004)
Questionable Conservation Easement Donations, 18 Prob. & Prop. 40 (2004)
Tax Benefits of Conservation Easements, 23 Tax Mgm't Est. Gifts & Tr. J. 253 (1998)
Works in Progress
In Perpetuity: The Future of Conservation Easements, forthcoming Oxford University Press
The Meaning of Perpetuity in Internal Revenue Code § 170(h) (law review article)
Enforcing Charitable Gifts Made for Specific Purposes—The Tension Between Donor Intent and Charitable Efficiency (law review article)
Private Benefit in the Conservation Easement Amendment Context (law review article)
Selected Talks and Presentations
Land Trust Alliance National Conference, Hartford, Connecticut, October 2010
Avoiding Difficult Conversations with State Attorneys General: The Fundamentals of
Charitable Gift Administration
Doing the Right Thing: Compliance and Abuse
Rocky Mountain Junior Scholars Forum, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law, Salt Lake City, Utah, September 2010
Organizer and Moderator
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Rocky Mountain Regional Meeting, Park City, Utah, September 2010
Conservation Easement Case Law & Other Developments
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Summer Meeting, St. Louis, Missouri, June 2010
Charitable Planning Committee, Mortgage Subordination in the Conservation Easement
Context
Chicago-Kent College of Law, Symposium on Philanthropy in the 21st Century, October 2009
Commentator on Donor Intent Panel
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Fall Meeting, Williamsburg, Virginia, October 2009
Charitable Planning Committee, Legal Developments in the Conservation Easement Context
Land Trust Alliance National Conference, Portland, Oregon, October 2009
Advanced Legal Issues: Condemnation of Conservation Easements
ALI-ABA Conference on Sophisticated Estate Planning Techniques, Boston, Massachusetts, September 2009
Conservation Easements: Federal Tax Incentives & The Meaning of Perpetuity
2009 Berkeley Workshop, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, Pocantico Conference Center of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Pocantico Hills, New York, July 2009
Land Conservation and Energy Infrastructure: Threats and Opportunities
International Right of Way Association Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana, June 2009
Conservation Easements: Condemnation & Valuation
National Conference on Conservation Easements: Advanced Legal Issues, Land Trust Alliance and CLE International, Denver, Colorado, June 2009
Conservation Easements and Eminent Domain
Douglas W. Conner 30th Annual Advanced Estate Planning and Administration Seminar, Hot Springs, Virginia, April 2009
Conservation Easements—Interpretation, Enforcement, and Legislating Against Perpetuity
(invited back as highest ranked speaker in 2007)
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, Annual Meeting, Rancho Mirage, California, March 2009
Emerging Legal Issues in the Conservation Easement Context
Stanford Law School, Woods Institute for the Environment, February 2009
Roundtable on Private Conservation Instruments and Policy in a Changing Climate
Florida State University College of Law, October 2008
Legislating Against Perpetuity in the Conservation Easement Context
Land Trust Alliance National Conference, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, September 2008
Condemnation of Conservation Easements
Idaho State Bar, Annual Meeting, Sun Valley, Idaho, September 2008
Conservation Easements—Estate Planning and Emerging Issues
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Conference on Land Policies and Property Rights, June 2008
Commentator on Professor Gerald Korngold’s critique of conservation easements
Land Trust Alliance Southwest Conference, Park City, Utah, May 2008
Condemnation of Conservation Easements
Georgetown University Law Center, Georgetown Environmental Law & Policy Institute, Land Use Roundtable, April 2008
Balancing Private Initiatives and Regulatory Measures
American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Annual Meeting, Boca Raton, Florida, March 2008
Charitable Planning Committee, Modifying and Terminating Perpetual Conservation Easement
and Fiduciary Obligations of Nonprofit Conservation Organizations
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Symposium on Modifying and Terminating Perpetual Conservation Easements, Feb. 2008
Conservation easement case study analysis
Indiana University School of Law, Bloomington, Faculty Colloquium, Jan. 2008
Conservation Easements: An Experiment in Land Preservation
University of Virginia School of Law, Virginia Environmental Law Journal Symposium on Condemning Open Space, Nov. 2007
Condemning Open Space: Making Way for National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors
(or Not)
Land Trust Alliance National Conference, Denver, Colorado, Oct. 2007
Just Compensation for the Condemnation of a Conservation Easement
Panel Presentation on Amending Conservation Easements: Evolving Practices and Legal
Principles (Land Trust Alliance 2007)
Harvard Law School and the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Seminar on the Nonprofit Sector & Philanthropy, April 2007
Nonprofit Land Conservation Organizations—Rights, Responsibilities, and Emerging Issues
University of Florida Levin College of Law, 6th Annual Nelson Symposium, Feb. 2007
Legal Implications of Golf Course Conversions: Is Perpetual Protection Warranted?
Brigham Young University, J. Reuben Clark Law School Faculty Colloquium, Nov. 2006
Perpetual, Term, and Tradable Conservation Easements: Perpetuity as a Matter of Degree
University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, 9th Annual Georgetown Regulatory Takings Conference, Oct. 2006
Voluntary Incentive-Based Land Protection versus Regulation
Georgetown University Law Center, Environmental and Land Use Workshop, Oct. 2006
Modifying and Terminating Perpetual Conservation Easements
Georgetown University Law Center, Georgetown Environmental Law & Policy Institute Roundtable, Sept. 2006
Coordinating Incentive-Based and Regulatory Land Protection Measures
University of California, Berkeley, Land Conservation Lunch Series, April 2006
Amending Perpetual Conservation Easements: A Case Study of the Myrtle Grove Controversy
Stanford Law School Environmental Workshop Seminar, April 2006
Perpetual Conservation Easements in a Changing Landscape
Utah Annual Appellate Court Conference, Moab, Utah, April 2006
Conservation Easements: Emerging Legal Issues
University of Oregon School of Law, Public Interest Environmental Law Conference, March 2006
Conservation Easement Reform
University of Denver College of Law, Law Review Symposium on Borrowing the Land: Cultures of Ownership in the Western Landscape, Feb. 2006
Acquiring Land for Conservation, Culture, and Sovereignty–Use of Conservation Easements to
Protect Tribal Lands
Conference of State Planning Directors in the West, University of Montana Public Policy Research Institute & Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Oct. 2005
Approaches to Private Land Conservation
Yosemite Environmental Law Conference, Yosemite, California, Oct. 2005
Conservation Easements or Regulatory Reform?
Land Trust Alliance National Conference, Madison, Wisconsin, Oct. 2005
Advanced Legal Roundtable on Extinguishment of Conservation Easements Interpreting and
Amending Conservation Easements
Panel on Conservation Easement Compliance and Abuse
Florida State University College of Law, Oct. 2005
Faculty Workshop on Responding to Changed Conditions in the Conservation Easement
Context Lecture for Certificate Program in Environmental and Land Use Law
51st Annual Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute, Portland, Oregon, July 2005
Conservation Easements in the West
13th Biennial Natural Resources Law Teachers Institute, Santa Fe, New Mexico, June 2005
Rethinking the Perpetual Nature of Conservation Easements
Honors & Awards
Spring 2007 Virgil C. Aldrich In-Residence Research Fellowship in the Humanities, Obert C. & Grace Tanner Humanities Center, University of Utah
2007 Early Career Teaching Award, University of Utah
Fall 2006 Faculty Fellow Award, University Research Committee, University of Utah
2006 Peter W. Billings Excellence in Teaching Award, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law
2005 American Agricultural Law Association's Professional Scholarship Award for Rethinking the Perpetual Nature of Conservation Easements, 29 Harv. Envtl. L. Rev. 421 (2005)
2004 Probate & Property Editors' Excellence in Writing Award for Questionable Conservation Easement Donations, 18 Prob. & Prop. 40 (2004)
Special Projects
Amending or Terminating Conservation Easements: Conforming to State Charitable Trust Requirements, Guidelines for New Hampshire Easement Holders, prepared through the collaborative efforts of:
* Terry M. Knowles, Assistant Director, Division of Charitable Trusts, New Hampshire
Attorney General's Office,
* Paul Doscher, Vice President for Land Conservation Society for the Protection of
New Hampshire Forests, and
* Nancy A. McLaughlin, Robert W. Swenson Professor of Law, University of Utah
S.J. Quinney College of Law
Professional Affiliations
Member, American Law Institute, elected Fall 2007
Fellow, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, elected Fall 2007
Observer to Drafting Committee, National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws Regulation of Charities project, appointed Fall 2008
Land Trust Alliance Conservation Defense Advisory Board, appointed 2008
Land Trust Alliance Conservation Easement Amendment Policy Group, 2005–2007
Publications Committee, American Bar Association Real Property, Probate & Trust Law Section, 2007–present
Associate Editor, Probate and Trust, American Bar Association Real Property, Trust & Estate Law Journal, 2000–present
Advisor to Board of Trustees, Utah Open Lands, 2006–present (Member, Board of Trustees, 2001–2006)
Advisor to Board of Trustees, Vital Ground, 2005–present
Habitat Protection Advisory Committee, Wildlife Land Trust, Humane Society of the United States, 2006–present