For an eighth consecutive year, Gawthrop Greenwood is ranked nationally in Best Law Firms®. The firm achieved national recognition once again for Land Use and Zoning Law as well as Trusts and Estates, while the majority of our 11 metropolitan recognitions were elevated to a higher tier for 2026.
The Case of the $410,000 License Plate
When Gawthrop Greenwood trusts and estates attorney P. Kristen Bennett learned that her client’s Delaware license plate sold for $410,000 at auction, even she was shocked.
“This is an asset that is unique to Delaware and the intricacies of its trust and estate law. We knew it was valuable, but the auction price exceeded comparable sales,” Bennett told local media, including The News Journal as well as WHYY-FM in the radio story below.
Bennett manages the estate where Delaware license plate #20 originated and arranged for the fate of the license plate from Gawthrop Greenwood’s offices in Greenville, Delaware.
The sale was so astounding that it made national news, including NPR, CNN, Fox News and MSN. Bennett interviewed locally on why the license plate is so valuable, the Delaware laws that led to such a sale, as well as what families can do to protect their own assets while avoiding potentially hefty estate and probate taxes.