
Alison Arden Besunder
Equity Partner
Chair, Trusts & Estates Planning, Administration, Guardianship and Fiduciary Litigation Group
Education
J.D., Brooklyn Law School
B.A., University at Buffalo
Admissions
New York
Massachusetts (ret.)
Second Circuit Court of Appeals
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
Supreme Court of the United States
Get to Know Alison
Experience
Alison Arden Besunder is an Equity Partner and Chair of the Trusts & Estates Planning, Administration, and Guardianship and Fiduciary Litigation Groups at Goetz Platzer. She has extensive experience and focuses her practice in the areas of Trusts & Estate Planning and Administration and related litigation, including contested Guardianships, Estate and fiduciary Litigation, and Commercial Litigation. Alison’s niche experience includes assisting artistic clients with their Intellectual Property, Media & Technology in the areas of trademarks, copyrights, and brand protection, as well as estate planning tailored to the needs of owners of intellectual property such as writers, musicians, composers, artists, art collectors, and technology developers. Alison counsels clients on matters ranging from the simple to complex, helping them understand their documents and estate plan, minimize future disputes through proactive planning, and resolve disputes that proceed to litigation through negotiation, mediation, or trial.
Prior to joining Goetz Platzer, Alison founded Arden Besunder P.C. in 2009, which she managed for over a decade. Before founding Arden Besunder P.C., Alison was a commercial litigation partner at a national law firm, where she litigated complex commercial matters in a wide variety of areas including intellectual property, construction, real estate, finance, insurance, and healthcare in federal and state courts. She also helped luxury fashion brands protect their intellectual property through trademark prosecution and anti-counterfeiting litigation.
While working toward her J.D., Alison worked for the Grievance Committee of the Second and Eleventh Judicial Districts, and a prominent First Amendment lawyer, representing small entertainment businesses affected by the change in New York City’s zoning laws during the Giuliani administration and advancing their First Amendment and business rights. She also interned for the Hon. Frederic R. Block of the Eastern District of New York and the Hon. John Leventhal of the Supreme Court of the State of New York in the domestic violence Part.
Alison has remained active in bar association activities through her career. From 2017 – 2021, Alison served on the NYSBA Technology Committee, focusing her efforts on Artificial Intelligence and the impact of current and anticipated technological developments on the legal profession. In 2009, Alison served as co-chair of NYSBA’s Privacy Task Force, which produced a cutting edge 233-page report on the existing privacy laws affecting labor and employment, criminal law, litigation, intellectual property, and business law.
Alison was appointed as a Special Master as part of the New York County Lawyers’ Association program in the 2023-2024 term and continues to serve in that capacity. Alison has been selected to the New York Metro Super Lawyers® list every year since 2019. She is a former adjunct professor of the Trusts, Wills & Estate Planning Externship at Columbia Law School. Her community service includes service on the board of the American Camping Association, Tri-State since 2019.


Affiliations
Bar Associations
Member, New York State Bar Association (NYSBA), Trusts and Estates, Elder Law, Commercial Litigation Sections
Member, New York City Bar Association
Member, Brooklyn Bar Association
Member, Suffolk County Bar Association
Committees
- Current Member, NYCBA Trusts and Estates Surrogate Court Committee
- Current Member, NYSBA Trusts and Estates Section, Trusts and Estate Administration Committee
- Current Member, NYSBA Elder Law Section, Guardianship Committee
- Former Member, NYSBA Technology Committee (2017-2022)
- Co-Chair, New York State Bar Association, Special Task Force on Privacy Law (2009-2011)
- Member, NYSBA Committee on the Unauthorized Practice of Law (2007-2009)
- Member, New York State Bar Association Committee on Animals (2009-2013)
- Member, New York City Bar Association, Committee on Professional Discipline (2016)
- Member, New York City Bar Association, Committee to Encourage Judicial Service
- Member, American Camping Association, Tri-State (2018-present)
- Adjunct Professor of Trusts & Estate Planning Externship, Columbia Law School (2020-2021)
Insights
Podcasts

Has Covid-19 changed court proceedings forever?
Hear what Alison Besunder of Arden Besunder PC has to say.

A Better Divorce Podcast with Andrea Vacca: Episode # 10
How Prenuptial Agreements Can Help You Have A Better Divorce with Alison Arden Besunder

Featured on Financially Ever After: Widowhood Podcast- Empowering Families in End-of-Life Decision Making
On the Financially Ever After: Widowhood Podcast where we take a deep dive into end-of-life decision making. Here is the link to the episode and some of the highlights from our conversation.
- Why it is crucial to ensure you have a healthcare proxy and living will in place.
- Openly discuss end-of-life decisions with loved ones to handle high-stress situations effectively.
- Set boundaries as a caregiver to avoid burnout and seek support from therapists.
- Utilize resources like personal needs guardians or geriatric care managers to find the right caregivers for your loved one.
Publications
New York Law Journal
- SLATs: The Hot New Planning Technique for 2021, January 22, 2021
- Mediation in Adult Guardianship Matters, November 20, 2020
- Litigation in the Time of COVID: Best Practices for Virtual Advocacy, November 6, 2020
- Quagmires Lurk in Non-Probate Assets and Joint Accounts, January 28, 2013
- Closing the Gap: Same-Sex Estate Planning Following the Marriage Equality Act, September 19, 2011
- For Love or Money: Inequalities Remain Despite Same-Sex Marriage, July 1, 2011
- Circuit to Decide Who Should Monitor Online Counterfeiters, March 17, 2009
Other Publications
- Righting the Wrong: Damages Available in Lanham Act Cases, Advanced Seminar on Trademark Law, Practising Law Institute, 2009
- Building an Anti-counterfeiting Program, Association of Corporate Counsel Newsletter, October 2008
- Online Auctions in the U.S. after Tiffany v. eBay, PLI’s In Brief, October 2, 2008
- The Interplay Between the T.T.A.B. and Federal Court Decisions, Advanced Seminar on Trademark Law, 940 PLI/PAT 69, July 16, 2008
- Fighting Fakes, an interview with Shopping Centers Today, March 2008
- Opening a New Front in the War on Fakes: Landlord and Third-Party Liability in the U.S., Managing Intellectual Property, December 2007
Quoted In
- Wall Street Journal, Joanna Stern, ‘I Died That Day’ — AI Brings Back Voices of Children Killed in Shootings, February 14, 2024, link to article (subscription required)
- What to Do Before You Die: A Tech Checklist, Joanna Stern, December 18, 2020, link to article (subscription required)
- Steven Sondheim Leaves Rights to His Works to a Trust, Michael Paulson, January 24, 2022, link to article (subscription required)