February 12th
Common Conflicts Between Trustees & Beneficiaries And How To Avoid Them
Trustees and beneficiaries can find themselves on different sides of the table on multiple issues and these conflicts are becoming more common every year. These conflicts can create very real tension in a trustee-beneficiary relationship and often lead to litigation. Planning professionals must be imaginative and sensitive to these tensions when drafting documents. The courts have made it clear that the processes to be followed by beneficiaries and trustees to resolve differences are as important as the results. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- How fiduciaries can avoid conflicts with beneficiaries.
- Why legal and ethical issues must be addressed in dispute resolution whether it involves negotiation, mediation or litigation.
- How creative drafting can minimize tension between trustees and beneficiaries.
- LThe essential provisions which must be included in trusts to protect fiduciaries.
- The most common issues raised by attorneys representing beneficiaries with trustees.
March 11th
Recent Developments In Estate Planning
It has been said, "Death and taxes are both certain, but death does not occur annually." Change is certain in estate planning and changes in the law can occur at any time. There is also the frequent question of what changes will occur in the next few years with the scheduled repeal of the estate tax. As an estate planning professional, you must stay on top of all of these changes. Your clients depend on it. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- The most current thinking on what will happen to the repeal of the estate tax.
- THow Congress, the IRS, state legislatures and the courts just cannot keep their hands out of the cookie-jar.
- Why the hangover of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 remains with us.
- Why changes on tax and non-tax issues must be recognized and addressed.
April 22nd
Life Insurance And Estate Plans - What Has Changed?
Life insurance has always had a part in the estate plan. However, the entire life insurance field has changed from where it was just 10 years ago. The appearance of the new split-dollar regulations, the development of premium financing and the emergence of the senior settlement market for unwanted or unneeded policies, to name just a few, have changed the insurance landscape in the estate planning area. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- How the most common mistakes made with irrevocable life insurance trusts can cause significant practical and legal problems.
- Understanding senior settlements and the malpractice risks associated with not addressing them with clients.
- The options and risks associated with the financing of life insurance premiums.
- How insurance can provide much needed liquidity for an estate.
- Why the use of insurance in a "SNAG" trust (Spousal Non-marital Annual Gift Trust) is an old idea with exciting new variations.
May 20th
Credit Shelter Trusts - Are Your Clients Getting The Most Bang For Theitr Bucks?
Whether it reflects a Federal or state tax exemption, credit shelter trusts, aka “exemption trusts”, are a fundamental part of estate planning to minimize transfer taxes. They are often used in small and medium sized estates, but they should not to be ignored when it comes to large estates. If properly drafted, these commonly used trusts can avoid Federal transfer taxation at its inception and at its termination. Many estates are not getting the most out of credit shelter trusts and their use can be expanded in a number of ways to benefit the estate. These trusts can purchase insurance on beneficiaries and others, they can loan money to beneficiaries or other trusts, they can purchase assets from other trusts, and they can offer protection from creditors. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- Innovative ways to draft the credit shelter trust.
- Some unique and effective uses of credit shelter trusts.
- How and when to add generation-skipping features to a credit shelter trust.
- Why it is crucial to name the proper trustee.
- How to use credit shelter trusts to minimize income taxes.
June 17th
The Marital Deduction: It Is Not Quite As Simple Ad Some Think
The marital deduction is commonly used to save an estate from death taxes. It is so commonly used that some planners do not give it the close attention that it deserves, but case after case, and ruling after ruling, tell us that we must focus upon marital planning with great care. It is becoming more common to read cases where marital gifts, some made during life and others made at death, do not qualify for the marital deduction under the strict, and sometimes unfriendly, marital deduction rules. It is essential in this day and time that planning professionals carefully review the marital provisions in a will or trust, and that they use prudent judgment when using marital savings clauses. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- How to draft a spouse's income rights in a marital trust to avoid futuWhy recent private letter rulings can help with effective lifetime martial giving to save a client from death taxes.
- How a client can give a spouse the right to the marital principal in a trust and then take that right away without losing the marital deduction.
- When it is permissible to place restrictions on a marital gift and when it is not.
- How to create and administer a marital trust which allows for the cessation of principal rights in the event of the remarriage or the cohabitation of a surviving spouse.
July 22nd
Leverage - The Use Of Debt And Growth In Estate Planning
Leverage is not a new concept to many estate planners, but its modern applications can be complex and effective. When working with medium-sized estates and larger-sized estates, planning professionals inevitably turn to the principles of debt and growth for the minimization of transfer taxes. In some cases, leverage can even be used to minimize income taxes. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- How Negotiated Securities Accounts, GRATs, QPRTs, Defective Grantor Trusts, and CRATs lean heavily on the principle of leverage.
- When planning strategies involving leverage are the most effective.
- How planning strategies involving leverage remain applicable when interest rates are either high or low.
- Why state death tax avoidance strategies effectively use the principle of leverage to minimize Federal taxes.
August 26th
The Important Tax Issues Which Affect Trustee Selections
All estate planners have been asked this question by a client - “Who do I name as trustee?” There are a number of factors that affect the answer to that question. Some factors are tax related and some are not. It is critical that the tax related factors be considered into the equation when answering the question of who should serve as trustee. Selecting a trustee can be a tax nightmare but it does not have to be. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- The most common tax related issues related to trustee selection.
- Guidance on the use of independent and non-independent trustees.
- How conflicts between a non-independent trustee and a co-trustee can cause tax concerns.
- The potential tax consequences that arise when a trustee acts as a trust protector.
- The tax implications that can arise with the removal of a trustee.
- How spendthrift or discretionary distributions can raise tax concerns for the trustee.
September 23rd
Ethics And Compliance - The Flipsides Of A Single Coin
Thanks to some recent changes in the law, compliance has made its debut as the new kid on the ethical block. Estate planning professionals can no longer ignore the legal obligations that the new compliance rules have added to the ethical considerations that have always existed when giving estate planning advice. Due to the creation or expansion of these compliance oriented rules, there is now serious governmental intrusion into our client relationships, and we must be very careful not to run afoul of them. Not only can it mean the breach of professional duties, but in some instances it can mean malpractice. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Clary Redd will cover these and other topics:
- Why Circular 230, as amended, gives the IRS a seat at our conference room table with clients.
- How new rules, such as Circular 230, now reach beyond attorneys and accountants and impact other professionals in the field.
- The new rules regarding legal action against planning professionals over ethical and compliance issues.
- How courts are struggling with ethical rules that have become broader and more severe.
- The impact of the Uniform Trust Code on the ethical standards applicable to estate planning professionals.
October 28th
Recent Developments Affection Charitable Giving
Many of our clients know that there are tax related and non-tax related reasons for philanthropy. Unfortunately, recent congressional legislation has sought to eliminate some of the tax advantages gained from charitable giving. The use of old favorites, such as donor-advised funds, private foundations and direct gifts of tangible personal property are, in many cases, under attack and are treated as unwelcomed guests at the planning table. As a result of these changes, doing what was once considered the "right" thing can unfortunately lead to the "wrong" result bringing unwanted problems and penalties for clients who have the best of intentions. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Clary Redd will cover these and other topics:
- Innovative ways to comply with the new rules that still allow clients to achieve their charitable objectives.
- How charities can lose the donor’s charitable deduction through the improper administration of certain gifts.
- Why commonly used techniques, like CRATs, CRUTs, CLATs and CLUTs, remain viable options despite changes brought on by the Federal regulations and cases like Atkinson and Winakur.
- How the choice of a charitable donee can impact the deduction available and the process to be followed in making the donation.
November 18th
Retirement Benefit Planning - More Complex Than Ever!
Retirement assets are a large part of many estates and it is imperative that we effectively plan for the distribution of these assets during life and at death. The IRS has recently blessed us with more insights into how to obtain a martial deduction when retirement benefits are paid to a trust. That guidance, although helpful, still requires considerable thought and study before a plan is put into action. The ongoing issues related to retirement benefits, such as the realization of income and the application of the transfer tax, push us all to the breaking point. In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Clary Redd will cover these and other topics:
- Understanding the new IRS guidelines related to retirement planning.
- The opportunities that exist for the rollover of IRAs to spouses and others.
- Guidance on which beneficiaries to use for measuring lives and the rules that now apply.
- How the use of trusts as beneficiaries differs from the use of family members as beneficiaries.
- Why the tax-deferred realization of income is a subtle but necessary part of the process of thinking through beneficiary designations.
December 9th
Difficulties In Trust Administration - Compelling Developments & Discretioary Concerns For Trustees & Beneficiaries
Today, it is as difficult as it has ever been to draft effective trust documents. The interplay between state and Federal law with respect to a trustee’s duties has produced some strange results that are often difficult to follow. Failing to follow a trustee’s duties is a sure way to end up in court and in our litigious society that is the last place any trustee wants to be. Also, giving a trustee too much discretion can lead to trouble. For this reason, it is essential that a potential trustee closely review all trust documents before accepting the role of trustee. It has often been said “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” In this program, Roy Adams and his special guest Ann Burns will cover these and other topics:
- Why following instructions to retain particular assets held in trust has become much harder, if not impossible, to achieve.
- Effective procedures and policies for the exercise of discretion by fiduciaries that are sure to minimize risks.
- How tax clauses, if not properly drawn, can devastate the entire estate plan of the settlor.
- How the ability of beneficiaries and other third parties to rewrite an irrevocable document threaten the stability of any estate plan.
- Why protective planning measures, such as seeking instructions from the court or the consent of beneficiaries, can have serious limitations.
- The most common concerns facing trustees regarding incentive provisions and other supplemental trust language.
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