Just because you recently signed your will or trust, doesn't mean we want it used anytime soon. Be safe, even if your estate plan is up to date. Enjoy the following clip: Why Seniors Break Their Hips! ...
Continue readingLEE: IRS Scandal More Than Just Partisan Fighting “The real lesson is that our massive federal government bureaucracy is inherently dysfunctional, corrupt, and intolerant regardless of who is in charge.” WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Mike Lee released the following statement on the IRS scandal involving the targeting of certain conservative organizations: “It would be a mistake for Republicans to view the latest IRS scandal as a typical partisan squabble between political parties. The real lesson is that our massive federal government bureaucracy is inherently dysfunctional, corrupt, and intolerant regardless of who is in charge. “The IRS is a powerful agency that can influence nearly...
Continue readingIt was reported yesterday by the Guardian news service located in the United Kingdom that "more than 100 of Britain's richest people have been caught hiding billions of pounds in secretive offshore havens, sparking an unprecedented global tax evasion investigation." The Guardian article included Chancellor George Osborne's warning to alleged tax evaders, and their accountants and advisers: "The message is simple: if you evade tax, we're coming after you." This is yet another example of a government cracking down on foreign ownership and investment. Anyone moving assets to foreign locations must do so with great care to ensure laws are followed and taxes are fully...
Continue readingFrom an estate planning perspective, there are a variety of ways to structure the ownership of a captive insurance company to enhance the overall tax and asset protection benefits available through §831(b) captive planning. But first, a few words on Captive Insurance Companies and Internal Revenue Code section 831(b): What is a captive insurance company? Simply put, a captive insurance company is an insurance company that is owned by one or more business owners to provide insurance for the business. Let us be clear, a captive is an insurance company, not an insurance contract or insurance product. A captive enters into insurance...
Continue readingBy now, most of us know that U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts upheld “Obamacare” by ruling that the penalty imposed upon a person for failure to purchase health insurance is not a penalty, but is actually a tax. For those individuals who are self-employed or retired and do not have W-2 wages withheld, it may be possible to avoid buying insurance and also avoid paying the tax/penalty. Here’s why: The government can only collect the tax/penalty for failure to purchase health insurance from any tax refund which you have coming. So for those of us who do not have W-2...
Continue readingUnitrust Conversion. A unitrust, or total return trust, is a trust that pays beneficiaries a fixed percentage of trust assets as opposed to paying them the income from the trust assets. Under Nevada law, the term “income” means an annual distribution from the trust equal to not less than 3 percent and not more than 5 percent of the net fair market value of the trust’s assets as determined at the end of the calendar year by averaging, over the preceding 3 years, both the income and principal assets of the trust (trustee or beneficiary can petition the court to...
Continue readingTrustees are to administer a trust or estate in accordance with the terms of the trust or will in spite of the provisions of UPIA.[i] Otherwise, trustees are obligated to comply with the prudent investor rule.[ii] The prudent investor rule consists of the trustee considering the terms, purposes, requirements for distribution and other circumstances of the trust when investing and managing trust property. The trustee is to satisfy this standard by exercising reasonable care, skill and caution.[iii] This standard dates back to Harvard College v. Amory, 26 Mass. (9 Pick) 446 (1830). Trustees should “observe how men of prudence, discretion...
Continue reading[caption id="attachment_1566" align="alignright" width="300"] The Offices of Grant Morris Dodds[/caption] The first duty of the Trustee is to honor and Carry out the intentions of the settlor or the trust as provided for the in the trust agreement. Almost all rules of the rules of trust law are default rules that the settlor can “alter or abrogate.”[i] Beneficiaries of a trust can also excuse the performance of a trust when all are “capable and not misinformed” under traditional trust law.[ii]Trustee Duties. Other duties of the Trustee are as follows: Duty of Loyalty. Under a Duty of Loyalty, a trustee who invests and manages trust...
Continue readingThis article explains some of the powers that Trust Protectors, Trust Advisers, and Special Fiduciaries might be given. Trust Protector: a trust protector is a third party who is given contractual powers to protect the terms of a trust. The position of trust protector has been common in offshore asset protection planning but is a newer concept in onshore asset protection planning. A trust protector’s powers and authority are spelled out in the trust instrument. The most common power of a trust protector is the ability to remove and replace a trustee who is not administering the trust according to its...
Continue readingThe following article was written by David M. Grant and Jeremy K. Cooper and was originally published in COMMUNIQUÉ (May 2009, Vol. 30, No. 5), the official journal of the Clark County Bar Association. “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.” This timeless cliché accurately portrays the logic behind Nevada’s recent ground-breaking decision to extend charging order protection beyond the realm of partnerships and limited-liability companies (LLCs) to corporations operating as small businesses. Closely-held corporations, until now, have never received the same charging order protection their partnership and LLC cousins have enjoyed, but because these entities share many commonalities,...
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