By Philip J. Kavesh, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CFP®, ChFC, California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law We often espouse the importance of building your firm infrastructure with competent staff, adding first an executive assistant and/or paralegal, then an associate attorney, and then more staff. Having effective staff is the primary way to leverage your own time and output and increase your profit margin. But most attorneys overlook one particular key staff person when building their practice – – a dedicated full-time person to handle their marketing. Everything from making and confirming appointments to managing the…
7 Reasons Marketing Automation Software Is the Ultimate Gift to Yourself
By Foster Web Marketing You spend all year working with clients and crafting plans to secure their legacies. Now that it’s December, why not give a little something back to yourself that will make your life easier, save you time, and boost your business in 2024? If it’s not already part of your strategy, marketing automation software is a real game-changer because it takes so much “busy work” off your plate—but that’s not all it can do. Below, let’s unwrap seven reasons why marketing automation software might be the ultimate gift for your estate planning practice this year. 1. Increase…
Domestic Asset Protection Trusts: Why the Huber Case is a Million Percent Wrong
By Steven J. Oshins, Esq., AEP (Distinguished) In Waldron v. Huber (In re Huber), Waldron v. Huber (In re Huber), Case No. 11-41013 (Bankr. W.D. Wash. Nov. 25, 2013), the court (in dicta) ruled that the law of the residency of the settlor of a Domestic Asset Protection Trust (“DAPT”) applies rather than the law chosen in the trust agreement for purposes of determining whether a DAPT is protected from the creditors of the settlor. [Dicta is a portion of the judge’s opinion that is not essential to the resolution of the case. Huber was a bankruptcy and fraudulent transfer…
It’s You! Hi! You Might Be the Problem! It’s You!
By Kristina Schneider, Practice Success Coach I am not going to sugarcoat this article and it may rub some people the wrong way. This is a topic that has the power to be life-changing and transformative to your life and your practice, but it depends on what you do with this information. I recently had the pleasure of sharing the success story of estate planning attorney, Leigh Cowden, who finished up her first year of practice with close to $400,000 of revenue in her first year! While I was like a proud mama bear to share how much she had…
Everyone is in Sales
By Tom Hopkins As a public speaker and sales trainer, I have taught millions of career sales professionals how to effectively sell their products and services. But, more importantly, I have helped them understand that they must sell themselves first. And that’s a lesson I would like to share with everyone on the planet. Everyone is in Sales You may not want to believe me because you think “selling” is a nasty word or dishonorable profession. Perhaps you’ve had a bad past experience with a salesperson who matches Hollywood’s description of the stereotype—pushy, manipulative and slick. All I can say…
Not a Big Fan of the Federal Estate and Gift Tax Exemption Rules
By Steven J. Oshins, Esq., AEP (Distinguished) I’ll be the one to come out and say what many of us are thinking… I’m not a big fan of the federal estate and gift tax exemption rules! The exemption is currently $12.92 million per person, adjusting for inflation each year, and then dropping in half when the clock hits midnight the night of December 31, 2025. Cinderella! Cinderella! Ability to Plan How can we possibly plan for our clients when we don’t know whether each unmarried client will have roughly $15 million of exemption versus roughly $7.5 million of exemption, or…
Do Client Maintenance Plans Really Work?
By Philip J. Kavesh, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CFP®, ChFC, California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law Two of the major issues confronting estate planning attorneys are the commoditization of our “products” and increasing low price competition thanks to the do-it-yourself kits and internet trusts. One way to combat these issues is to emphasize and show your prospects how your “product” is superior to what your competitors have to offer, such as by differentiating the services available to the client after the sale. Think about it, when you purchase or lease a car, don’t you usually…
New Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) Provisions in SECURE Act 2.0 – Some Welcome, Some Dubious
By Edwin P. Morrow, III, J.D., LL.M., MBA, CFP®, CM&AA® and Nancy H. Welber, J.D., ACTEC Thanks to the generosity of Leimberg Information Services, we are pleased to provide you this recently published article on LISI. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Section 307 of the SECURE 2.0 Act, effective beginning in 2023, provides an expansion of the qualified charitable distribution (QCD) provisions to adjust for inflation and include limited distributions to fund charitable gift annuities and charitable remainder trusts. There are several limitations that severely restrict the usefulness of this new provision, however, particularly for QCDs to charitable remainder trusts. FACTS Congress recently…
Don’t Let an Outdated Website Drag Down Your Estate Planning Practice
By Foster Web Marketing The problem with websites is that they aren’t a one-and-done-thing. You have to add content. You have to keep up on the maintenance. And, over time, you have to be able to recognize when it’s time for an upgrade. Technical standards for websites change every few years. People’s expectations for websites change, as well. The website that looked and worked great three years ago probably doesn’t look or work so well today. And that’s why, every few years or so, you need to redesign your website and bring it up to speed with today’s standards. If…
The Outstanding Success of an Estate Planning Attorney’s First Year in Practice
Interview of Attorney Leigh Cowden by Kristina Schneider, Practice Success Coach I had the opportunity to meet Leigh Cowden virtually through a Facebook group she formed called Lawyers Doing Seminars. I followed a lot of her success and she gave me the opportunity to share some of our own seminar marketing tips with the group on one of their monthly Zoom sessions. From there, she began to inquire with me about what we do and attended our Ultimate Level event in Dallas in May. I have followed her progress over the past few months and she then shared with the…