It is essential that an estate plan accomplish the client’s dispositive objectives: that the client’s property passes as the client wants it to pass, to the persons the client wants to receive it. A revocable trust can accomplish a client’s dispositive objectives. A revocable trust can also enable a client to avoid probate upon succession to the client’s property—but only if the client transfers his or her property to the trust during his lifetime. The client’s will can bequeath to the client’s trust property which the client owns at his or her death, but such post-death transfer require a probate proceeding.
We generally recommend one revocable trust for a married couple. But there are circumstances in which each spouse needs his or her own revocable trust. For example, if the marital estate includes a closely-held company, and the spouses wish to avail of valuation discounts for minority interest or lack of control, then they could each have a revocable trust, and divide ownership of the closely-held business between the two revocable trusts, so that neither trust owns a majority interest in the company.
We counsel clients to minimize federal income tax and federal estate and gift tax upon succession to their property. The step-up in the adjusted basis of property for income tax purposes upon the death of the property’s owner is an important advantage that is oft-missed. We endeavor to fully utilize the client’s applicable exclusion amount (often called “unified credit”) and, in the case of a couple, each spouse’s applicable exclusion amount. If a client’s spouse died leaving unused applicable exclusion amount, we counsel the surviving spouse concerning use of the deceased spouse’s unused applicable exclusion amount.
When appropriate I draft special-purpose trusts for clients, such as irrevocable life insurance trusts (ILITs), grantor retained annuity trusts (GRATs), and qualified personal residence trusts (QPRTs), and assist clients in funding them.
We negotiate and draft marital agreements.
We form companies, and reorganize them. These include C corporations, S corporations, and limited liability companies.
In an estate plan for a couple, we refer to the “client,” in the singular. We regard the client as one. Having represented them together, we could never represent one of them against the other. We believe that such a conflict of interest cannot be waived. If necessary we would refer each of them to separate counsel.
Nulla ac fringilla nibh. Ut molestie purus quam, ac finibus ante dapibus nec. Aliquam erat volutpat. Praesent dictum commodo massa, tempus varius ligula finibus ac.
It is essential that an estate plan accomplish the client’s dispositive objectives: that the client’s property passes as the client wants it to pass, to the persons the client wants to receive it. A revocable trust can accomplish a client’s dispositive objectives. A revocable trust can also enable a client to avoid probate upon succession to the client’s property—but only if the client transfers his or her property to the trust during his lifetime. The client’s will can bequeath to the client’s trust property which the client owns at his or her death, but such post-death transfer require a probate proceeding.
We generally recommend one revocable trust for a married couple. But there are circumstances in which each spouse needs his or her own revocable trust. For example, if the marital estate includes a closely-held company, and the spouses wish to avail of valuation discounts for minority interest or lack of control, then they could each have a revocable trust, and divide ownership of the closely-held business between the two revocable trusts, so that neither trust owns a majority interest in the company.
Nulla ac fringilla nibh. Ut molestie purus quam, ac finibus ante dapibus nec. Aliquam erat volutpat. Praesent dictum commodo massa, tempus varius ligula finibus ac.
We counsel clients to minimize federal income tax and federal estate and gift tax upon succession to their property. The step-up in the adjusted basis of property for income tax purposes upon the death of the property’s owner is an important advantage that is oft-missed. We endeavor to fully utilize the client’s applicable exclusion amount (often called “unified credit”) and, in the case of a couple, each spouse’s applicable exclusion amount. If a client’s spouse died leaving unused applicable exclusion amount, we counsel the surviving spouse concerning use of the deceased spouse’s unused applicable exclusion amount.
When appropriate I draft special-purpose trusts for clients, such as irrevocable life insurance trusts (ILITs), grantor retained annuity trusts (GRATs), and qualified personal residence trusts (QPRTs), and assist clients in funding them.
We negotiate and draft marital agreements.
We form companies, and reorganize them. These include C corporations, S corporations, and limited liability companies.
In an estate plan for a couple, we refer to the “client,” in the singular. We regard the client as one. Having represented them together, we could never represent one of them against the other. We believe that such a conflict of interest cannot be waived. If necessary we would refer each of them to separate counsel.
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