Overview

Charley Janssen's legal practice covers the entire spectrum of estate planning: wills, trusts, family business and succession planning from the basic to very complex business structures, charitable gift planning, creating and advising private and public foundations as well as estate and trust administration. Charley’s goal is to make estate planning concepts and documents understandable to his clients to allow them to make sound decisions and fully understand the implications of those decisions.

He is always willing to speak on estate planning, charitable gifting and business planning issues to interested groups and businesses. He has authored numerous articles on estate planning, business and succession planning and charitable giving topics.  He is a contributing editor to a number of Institute for Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) books and publications including Revocable Living Trusts in Michigan.

Charley's peers have repeatedly recognized his leadership and scholarship in the Trusts and Estates Practice area. Top estate planning attorneys from around the country nominated and elected him to the prestigious American College of Trust and Estate Attorneys in 1995 where he has been a member in good standing for more than 20 years.  Fellow attorneys have also ranked him as a top Estate Planning and Elder Law attorney in Best Lawyers® in America since 1993 and he was recognized as a Michigan Super Lawyer  since the survey's inception in 2005.

In addition to his practice, Charley has held numerous leadership roles at Foster Swift, including chairing the Business and Tax Department, and  the attorney recruitment and marketing committees. He has served several stints on the firm’s Executive Committee and was President of the Law Firm from 2003-2005. He also chaired the Ingham County Bar Probate and Estate Planning Section and the Greater Lansing Estate Planning Council.

He graduated from Michigan State University Honors College, Phi Beta Kappa in 1976 and the University of Michigan Law School in 1979. Charley is a loyal Michigan State Spartan and supports many causes and philanthropic initiatives at the university. Currently, he is an active member of the Board of Trustees for Michigan State University College of Law where he has served on numerous committees.

Community Service

Charley is also a devoted booster for the Greater Lansing Community and is happy to volunteer time for numerous causes and initiatives. For more than a decade he has served as a commissioner  of the Lansing Entertainment and Public Facilities Authority, which operates the Lansing Center, Lansing’s Baseball Stadium, Lansing City Market and Common Ground Music Festival.  He previously served as chairperson or board member of the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce, Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee, Lansing Public Schools Foundation, Lansing Riverfront Development Board and Lansing Entertainment and Public Facilities Authority. Charley also co-chaired the City of Lansing’s Project Play, which helped raise $2 million for new playground equipment for city parks and school playgrounds.

He also served as a past board chair and member of the board of directors of the Capital Region Community Foundation and continues to support the Community Foundation’s programs and initiatives.  He is active in promotion and fundraising for Volunteers of America and serves on the VOA “Homeless No More” fundraising committee.

Charley has received numerous volunteer leadership awards, including the Ingham County Bar Association’s Camille Abood Distinguished Volunteer Award in 2006 and the Chief Okemos Council Boy Scout of America Distinguished Service Award in 2009.  

Honors & Recognitions

Affiliations

Memberships & Affiliations

Legal Affiliations:

• State Bar of Michigan
• American Bar Association
• Ingham County Bar Association, Estate Planning Section, Past Chair
• Michigan State Bar Foundation, Fellow

Industry & Professional Associations:

• Michigan State University College of Law, Board of Trustees
• Greater Lansing Estate Planning Council, Past President

Community Involvement:

• Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce, Former Chairperson and Officer
• Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce PAC, Former Chairperson
• Lansing Public Schools Foundation, Former Chairperson
• Lansing Entertainment and Public Facilities Authority
• Former Chairperson
• Commissioner
• Long Range Planning Commission, Chair
• Hospice of Lansing, Former Board Member
• City of Lansing-Project Play, Co-chairperson
• Capital Region Community Foundation, Former Chairperson
• Lansing Christian School Foundation, President, Past Treasurer, Board of Directors
• Sparrow Foundation, Major Gifts Committee
• Sparrow Foundation, Dapper Dads Fundraisers, 2010-Present
• Volunteers of America, Homeless No More Committee

Experience

Representative Matters

• Develop and implement a diverse range of estate plans that accomplish clients' goals.
• Represent and advise fiduciaries in administering estates and trusts from small or midsize to those of several hundred million dollars
• Represent numerous multi-million-dollar lottery winners.
• Establish and advise family and private foundations.
• Provide legal counsel to public charities.
• Design sophisticated generational family gifting plans that minimize tax liability and promote family harmony
• Develop and implement legal and tax aspects of business succession plans for family owned manufacturing, real estate, and agricultural businesses

Communications

Publications

• Common Estate Planning Pitfalls, Foster Swift Estate Planning Insights, Fall 2010
• Planning for Incapacity, ICLE Michigan Revocable Grantor Trusts (Chapter 4), Third Edition, 2010
• Tax Aspects of Trust Administration, ICLE Revocable Living Trusts in Michigan (Chapter 3), Third Edition, 2010

News & Events

News

• Foster Swift Attorneys Named 2025 Best Lawyers in America, Best Lawyers in America, August 15, 2024
• 17 Attorneys Selected to 2024 Michigan Super Lawyers and “Rising Stars”, Michigan Super Lawyers, August 12, 2024
• Foster Swift Attorneys Named 2024 Best Lawyers in America, Best Lawyers in America, August 17, 2023
• Four Lansing Attorneys Named Best Lawyers® 2024 "Lawyer of the Year", Best Lawyers in America, August 17, 2023
• 17 Attorneys Selected to 2023 Michigan Super Lawyers and “Rising Stars”, Michigan Super Lawyers, August 11, 2023
• Foster Swift Attorneys Named 2023 Best Lawyers in America©, Best Lawyers in America, August 18, 2022
• 21 Attorneys Selected to 2022 Michigan Super Lawyers and “Rising Stars”, Michigan Super Lawyers, August 12, 2022