Our Team

Yiyan Cao

Principal

Yiyan Cao, Esq. has over fifteen years of experience as a U.S. tax and Trust and Estate attorney, advising corporations and family offices with cross-border operations, founders, highly-compensated executives, and ultra-high-net-worth individuals on complex tax matters spanning Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and Central America.

Her practice encompasses tax controversy and dispute resolution before the IRS and U.S. Tax Court, resolving tax penalties concerning international information reporting issues (e.g., FBAR, FATCA, 5471, 3520, etc.) and foreign withholding tax issues (e.g. IRC Sec. 1441, Sec. 1445 (FIRPTA) and 1446). Her practice emphasizes tax-driven, solution-oriented service, including treaty determination and MAP requests.

She advises founders and highly-compensated executives on pre-immigration tax planning, inbound U.S. structuring, and cross-border business structures—including planning on CFC, GILTI, and Subpart F—to improve tax efficiency during operations and upon exit. She also counsels founders on exit-focused planning, including pre-IPO trust strategies, QSBS-oriented trust strategies, and state tax residency planning. For non-U.S. founders transitioning into U.S. tax residency, she advises on pre-immigration structuring and capital gain planning.

She also advises ultra-high-net-worth families on global tax compliance issues, including U.S. tax expatriation planning, as well as tax-efficient solutions incorporating trust, insurance, and other structures, alleviating tax compliance burden and tax cost on generational wealth transfer. She further advises on charitable giving strategies, including private foundations, donor-advised funds (DAFs), and charitable trusts, to support clients' philanthropic and legacy goals.

She resolves complex probate issues involving foreign non-domiciliaries and complex US tax issues.

Qualifications - Licensed in New York and California; Admitted to practice before the United States Tax Court and the United States Court of Federal Claims.

Education - Ms. Cao obtained her Bachelor of Laws from Tsinghua University School of Law in Beijing, China. She received her U.S. law degree from UCLA School of Law.

PRC Law Experience - Before U.S. law practice, Ms. Cao practiced law in Shanghai, China, as an associate for top-ranked law firms, counseling China-based large corporations and foreign companies investing or operating in China.

Sector Expertise - Ms. Cao is well-versed in the tax and compliance needs of AI and biotech companies, private credit/equity funds, and token-issuing or crypto-related funds and their investors.

For Pro Bono work, Ms. Cao counsels Tsinghua Alumni Association of Southern California. She also counsels other non-profit organizations and young first-time entrepreneurs in her spare time.