It happens to all of us. We go to a wonderful conference; we see a great webinar; we read an important article – and then we plan to change the conversation with referral sources and clients. So, when the inevitable challenges of our personal and professional reality comes in, we end up singing the same old songs of wealth, estate tax, financial, and asset protection planning – thinking months later, where did the change in conversation go? Successful practitioners explain to us that the way their practice found stability and growth was through finding planning that they could execute on,…
BREAKING NEWS: Important Updates from Robert Keebler
Thanks to the generosity of Stephan Leimberg and Leimberg Information Services, we are pleased to bring to you complimentary podcasts on the following important updates. IRS Approves Extension of Time to Recharacterize a Roth IRA The IRS has published Private Letter Ruling 201506015, in which they have granted the taxpayer an extension of time to recharacterize a Roth IRA. The taxpayer had learned that the account value had declined due to fraud by an investment manager after the deadline for recharacterizing had passed. To listen to these complimentary podcast, see below: The Administration’s 2016 Budget Proposals The Administration has released…
Dahl v. Dahl: Utah Supreme Court Rules Trust Not a Domestic Asset Protection Trust!
Reproduced with Permission by and Courtesy of Leimberg Information Services, Inc. (LISI). For information about how to subscribe to LISI, click here. “The Court specifically uses the terms ‘strong public policy’ and ‘repugnant’ in their analysis. Query how they might have ruled had this been a defendant in a negligence action, for example, rather than it being a divorce matter. Would the Court still have applied Utah law under its ‘strong public policy’ and ‘repugnant’ requirements? It appears that the answer would be ‘no’ given this requirement that it be a ‘strong public policy’ and ‘repugnant,’ but this is far…
2nd Annual Trust Decanting State Rankings Chart Released!
By Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished) The 2nd Annual Trust Decanting State Rankings Chart was released earlier this week. This year’s chart includes more variables than were included in last year’s chart. The additional attributes were added in order to provide the end user with as many details as possible so the best jurisdiction can be selected based on the desired decanting or, with respect to a newly-formed irrevocable trust, the best jurisdiction to maximize future decanting flexibility. What is Decanting? Trust decanting is the act of distributing assets from one trust to a new trust with different terms….
Download the 2nd Annual Trust Decanting State Rankings Chart
Decanting has become a very popular technique in the estate planning world. We are pleased to announce that nationally renowned estate planning and asset protection attorney, Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished), has just released his second annual Trust Decanting State Rankings Chart. To request a complimentary copy of his chart, complete the form below. REQUEST FREE CHART All 22 states with decanting statutes are ranked in this chart. In particular, this year’s chart has additional variables which were not included in last year’s chart. The Top 7 decanting jurisdictions are… South Dakota: Total Score = 99.5 Nevada: Total…
Beware of Standard Provisions in LP & LLC Documents
They can inadvertently divest your client’s family from controlling the business or cost millions in additional estate, gift or income taxes! By Edwin Morrow, J.D., LL.M., MBA, CFP®, RFC® Investors increasingly use limited liability companies, limited liability partnerships or limited partnerships (“LLCs”, “LLPs” and “LPs”) to operate a trade or business, to hold real estate or hold other investment assets, as opposed to state law corporations. When only immediate family are owners, these are often referred to as family limited partnerships or limited liability companies (“FLPs” and “FLLCs”). There are numerous business, asset protection and estate planning reasons for using…
Last Opportunity to Join Phil Kavesh’s Monthly Practice-Building Series
Whether you are just starting out or you have 20+ years of experience running your own estate planning practice, you have most likely found out pretty quickly that all of the things you learned in law school, school textbooks, and through continuing education courses simply do NOT properly prepare you for what is involved in running your own practice. These things will most certainly help you become a technically sound practitioner, well-versed in the law, and perhaps a brilliant estate planning lawyer. But, it simply does not but it doesn’t train and teach you about the day-in and day-out experiences…
Our Best Articles on Asset Protection & Advanced Estate Planning
As part of our December 2014 Newsletter, we are featuring a special “Best Of” issue. Below, you will find a list of our Best Articles . These articles are written by a variety of financial and estate planning professionals, as noted below. Top Ten Asset Protection Mistakes Attorneys Make by Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished) Another Private Letter Ruling Approves NING Trust by William D. Lipkind, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation) & Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished) Top Five Reasons to Situs Your Irrevocable Trust in a Different Jurisdiction by Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEL (Distinguished) New Tax Haven: Puerto…
Family Business Succcession Planning
By Brandon E. Crooks, Principal at Counsel Trust Company There are over 5.5 million family businesses in the US with an average life span of 24 years (familybusinesscenter.com, 2010). About 40% of family-owned businesses turn into second-generation businesses; approximately 13% are passed down successfully to a third generation, and 3% to a fourth generation or beyond (Businessweek.com, 2010). Business owners are attractive clients due to the amount of wealth that lies within family-owned businesses. The challenge for advisors working with this group is that the business succession risks are greater than ever because nearly a third of owners have no…
Top Five Reasons to Situs Your Irrevocable Trust in a Different Jurisdiction
Download Printable Article By Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished) Most estate planners automatically situs their clients’ irrevocable trusts in the jurisdiction in which the client resides without considering the possibility of using a different jurisdiction. This is often done for no reason other than the fact that it is customary to do so. However, in many situations this decision causes a loss of potential benefits that may have been obtained by exploring the use of a different trust situs. Following are some of the common reasons to situs an irrevocable trust in a different jurisdiction: Reason #1: State Income…