The Professional Side

Rick Baskett is an Attorney and CPA, with 42 years’ experience. A graduate of both the business school and the law school at the University of Montana, he has worked in the tax department of Price Waterhouse (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers) in New York City and Baltimore, Maryland., as general counsel for Washington Corporations (now The Washington Companies), and for tax law firms in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. He has been adjunct lecturer of Partnership Taxation at the University of Montana School of Law, and has spoken at various continuing education courses on tax. In 1994, he established Baskett Law Office, emphasizing estate planning, probate, tax and business. On January 1, 2020, he merged his practice with Christian & Samson to form Christian, Samson & Baskett, PLLC. Rick is a Fellow of the American College of Trust & Estate Counsel and is listed as a Super Lawyer for the Rocky Mountain Region.

The Personal Side

Rick is a Montana native, born and reared in Livingston, Montana, a town known for its surrounding natural beauty and high winds, as captured by the “Gusty Crosswinds” picture taken from his car just outside Livingston (you can see it below). He enjoys the many things Montana has to offer: skiing, fishing, and hunting, included. Hanging on his office wall is his grandfather’s hunting and fishing license from 1919, which back then cost $1.50 for everything: bird hunting, big game hunting and fishing.  He comes from a long line of doctors, so his father had to swallow hard when Rick went to law school. He feels fortunate to have grown up in Montana but have had the opportunity to live, study and work in New York City, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and St. Paul, and enjoy all that those metropolitan areas had to offer both personally and professionally, yet still be able to return to his native state.

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Download Rick Baskett’s VCard .

Martindale-Hubbell peer review rating of AV® (Preeminent), the highest rating given.

Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, one of only 14 ACTEC Fellows in the state of Montana. To learn more about ACTEC, click on the logo.

Member of the Christian Legal Society

Probate Lawyers near me

Rick’s past speaking engagements:

Speaking Engagements
Maryland Institute for Continuing Professional Education of Lawyers
Drafting Wills		 Baltimore, Maryland 11/5/85
C&P Telephone – Tax Reform Act of 1986
Provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 Affecting Income Tax and Estate Planning for the Parents of Minor Children		 Baltimore, Maryland 1/7/86
Tucker, Flyer, Sanger & Lewis
Estate Planning Considerations for Real Property		 Washington, DC 10/16/86
UM Employees Retirement Planning Seminar
Estate Planning		 Missoula, Montana 4/30/89
University of Montana School of Law
Partnership Tax (J.D. level course)		 Missoula, Montana 1/89-5/89
Michigan Association of CPA’s Federal Tax Workshops
Partnership Taxation: A Comprehensive Analysis		 Troy, Michigan 5/24/89
University of Montana School of Law
Partnership Tax (J.D. level course)		 Missoula, Montana 1/96-5/96
Montana Society of CPA’s
Practical Tax Planning Tips in Partnership Taxation		 Great Falls, Montana 11/13/89
Oregon Society of CPA’s 1989 OSCPA Tax Forum
Passive Losses Updated – 1989		 Eugene, Oregon 12/1-2/89
South Dakota Society of CPA’s
Partnership Taxation		 Rapid City, South Dakota 9/25/90
MSU Extension Service Women’s Financial Information Program Estate Planning Missoula, Montana 10/28/92 2/23/93 10/27/93 2/23/94 10/26/94 2/28/95 2/27/96 3/11/97
State Bar of Montana Tax for the General Practitioner
Montana Limited Liability Companies and Their Tax Considerations		 Missoula, Montana 11/4/93
Western Montana Underwriters Assoc. Education Day
1994 Limited Liability Companies		 Missoula, Montana 2/14/94
National Business Institute
Planning Opportunities with Living Trusts in Montana		 Missoula, Montana 5/24/94
State Bar of Montana CLE & Ski
Income & Estate Planning with Respect to Qualified Plan Accounts		 Big Sky, Montana 1/14/95
National Business Institute
Limited Liability Companies: The Entity of Choice in Montana		 Missoula, Montana 3/3/95
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Advice to the Surviving Spouse (Selected Topics in Post-Mortem Planning)		 Missoula, Montana 10/10/95
Mont. Assoc. of Management Accountants
Limited Liability Companies in Montana: An Overview		 Missoula, Montana 2/15/96
Five Valleys Burial Association
Options in Estate Planning		 Missoula, Montana 3/4/96
Institute of Management Accountants
Limited Liability Companies		 Missoula, Montana 3/14/96
U of Montana Employee Services and Retirement Fair
When I Die …Who Will I Trust?		 Missoula, Montana 4/16/96
Community Medical Center Foundation Panel Presentation
Estate Planning and Charitable Giving: How Insurance Makes a Difference		 Missoula, Montana 5/7/96
University of Montana, 44th Annual Tax Institute
Getting Up, Getting Going & Getting Out (Formation, Operation and Sales of Partnerships and LLC’s)		 Missoula, Montana 11/8/96
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Operating & Liquidating Distributions from Partnerships & LLC’s		 Missoula, Montana 11/12/96
State Bar of Montana
Estate Planning Marital Deduction Provisions in Wills & Trusts (Law Planning & Drafting)		 Polson, Montana 9/12/97
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Marital Deduction Planning		 Missoula, Montana 10/14/97
State Bar of Montana
Tax for the General Practitioner Retirement Plans		 Missoula, Montana 10/15/98
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Selected 1999 Revisions to the Montana LLC Act		 Missoula, Montana 12/14/99
State Bar of Montana CLE & Ski
1999 Revisions to the Montana Limited Liability Company Act		 Big Sky, Montana 1/14/00
State Bar of Montana Advance Tax Law Seminar
1999 Revisions to the Montana Limited Liability Company Act		 Billings, Montana 6/16/00
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Planning for the Disabled Child		 Missoula, Montana 10/10/00
State Bar of Montana CLE & Ski
Tax Law for the Litigator		 Big Sky, Montana 1/13/01
State Bar of Montana CLE & Ski
Asset Protection Planning in Montana Tax Law for the Litigator Part II		 Big Sky, Montana 1/19/02
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Asset Protection Planning Under Montana Law		 Missoula, Montana 2/12/02
State Bar of Montana
Advanced Tax Law Seminar Asset Protection Planning in Montana		 Bozeman, Montana 6/14/02
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Resources on the Internet for Estate Planners		 Missoula, Montana 9/10/02
State Bar of Montana Best of the West CLE
Asset Protection Planning in Montana		 Glasgow, Montana 10/11/02
Professional Instruction Network
Choosing a Business Entity in Montana B Non-Tax Factors		 Butte, Montana 6/26/03
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Recent Montana Cases Affecting Estate Planning		 Missoula, Montana 11/8/05
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Recent Montana Cases Affecting Estate Planning – Update		 Missoula, Montana 3/13/07
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
A New Approach to Basic Estate Planning		 Missoula, Montana 1/8/08
State Bar of Montana
How to Succeed in a Small Firm / Solo Practice Montana Wills and Related Topics		 Kalispell, Montana 3/14/08
State of Montana Employees Retirement Seminar
Estate Planning – The Jigsaw Puzzle		 Missoula, Montana 4/1/08
State of Montana Employees Retirement Seminar
Estate Planning Simplified		 Missoula, Montana 9/2/09
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Recent Montana Cases Affecting Estate Planning – 2009 Update		 Missoula, Montana 11/7/09
Western Montana Estate Planning Council
Recent Montana Cases Affecting Estate Planning – 2011 Update		 Missoula, Montana 1/13/12
National Business Institute
Trusts 101		 Kalispell, Montana 12/9/13
National Business Institute
Trusts 101		 Missoula, Montana 12/12/13
National Business Institute
Drafting Effective Wills & Trusts		 Bozeman, Montana 12/8/14
National Business Institute
Drafting Effective Wills & Trusts		 Missoula, Montana 12/10/14
National Business Institute
The Probate Process From Start to Finish		 Missoula, Montana 3/9/15
National Business Institute
The Probate Process From Start to Finish		 Bozeman, Montana 12/4/15
National Business Institute
Trusts 101		 Missoula, Montana 3/24/16
National Business Institute
The Probate Process From Start to Finish		 Bozeman, Montana 12/2/16
National Business Institute
The Probate Process From Start to Finish		 Missoula, Montana 3/21/17
National Business Institute
Trusts – Made Simple		 Missoula, Montana 3/27/18
Missoula Estate Planning Council
Selected Recent Montana Probate & Estate Planning Cases		 Missoula, Montana 11/13/18
National Business Institute
The Probate Process From Start to Finish		 Missoula, Montana 3/27/19
National Business Institute
The Probate Process from Start to Finish		 Missoula, Montana 3/13/20