John Sare retired at the end of 2025 as a partner in the firm’s Tax-Exempt Organizations practice and the Trusts and Estates group. Mr. Sare has extensive experience in the representation of museums, colleges, private foundations, and other types of exempt organizations. He has advised charities on the issues and options they face with respect to their endowment funds and other types of restricted gifts. Mr. Sare has significant experience representing tax-exempt organizations in connection with matters before the New York State Attorney General’s Office. 

Mr. Sare also has advised individuals and fiduciaries on legal issues involving works of art, charitable giving, estate planning, and the administration of estates and trusts. He taught the Seminar in Law and the Visual Arts at the Columbia University School of Law from 2001 until 2011. Mr. Sare has lectured and has authored numerous articles and other publications on tax-exempt organization, charitable giving, and art law topics.

Mr. Sare’s community service has included: Trustee, Preservation League of New York State; Member, Nonprofit Coordinating Committee (Government Relations Committee); Member, New York City Bar Association (past member, Art Law Committee; past member and secretary, Non-Profit Organizations Committee); Member, Nonprofit Forum, National Center on Philanthropy and the Law; Member, American Law Institute.  

Bar Admissions

• New York

Education

• Columbia Law School (J.D., 1990)
  • Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar
  • Editor, Columbia/VLA Journal of Law and the Arts
• Southern Methodist University (B.A., summa cum laude, 1986)
  • Phi Beta Kappa

HONORS: Recognized in Chambers High Net Worth 2021 in the area of Art and Cultural Property Law; Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Trusts and Estates since 1999; Listed as a “Leading Lawyer” for United States: Finance – Not-for-profit by The Legal 500; Named in Super Lawyers in the area of Non-Profit; Recipient, Legal Aid Society's Pro Bono Publico Award (2012)

• Co-author, "Unpacking Nazi Era Art Restitution Cases Under HEAR Act," Law360 (October 2, 2024)
• Author or co-author, “New York Revitalizes: State Governance Reform for Nonprofits” (2014), “Cy Pres and Equitable Deviation: Changing Donor-Imposed Restrictions” (2013)
• “Investment Standards for Not-for-Profit Corporations under NYPMIFA” (2011)
• “The Pension Protection Act of 2006: Implications for Charitable Giving” (2007), all in Professional Notes, a publication of the New York Community Trust
• Co-author, "Estate Planning for Artists and Authors" (2^nd Edition), published by Tax Management, Inc. (2004)
• Co-author, "Splendid Legacy: The Guide to Creating Your Family Foundation," published by the National Center for Family Philanthropy (2002), (updated 2018)
• Author, "Transparency Means Greater Accountability for Non-Profits," Trusts & Estates (2000)
• Author, "Income-Producing Activities of U.S. Museums: Where Does Charity Stop and Commerce Begin?" Int'l Legal Practitioner (1996)
• Author, "Art for Whose Sake? An Analysis of Restricted Gifts to Art Museums," Columbia-VLA Journal of Law and the Arts (Spring 1989)