Creditors

Warning: Don’t Let Creditors Inherit from You

Shocking to most people, the retirement account you leave for your spouse can be seized in a divorce, lawsuit, or bankruptcy.

3 Options Available To Surviving Spouses

When your surviving spouse inherits your IRA, he or she generally has three options:

Cash-out the inherited IRA and pay the income tax.
- WARNING! The cashed-out IRA will not have creditor protection and accelerates taxation.
Maintain the IRA as an inherited IRA.
- WARNING! The inherited IRA will not have creditor protection.
Roll over the inherited IRA and treat it as his or her own.
- WARNING! This may offer some creditor protection; however, not in all cases.

It’s frustrating to many that a stranger can swoop in and take their hard-earned money; fortunately, there’s a solution and that solution is a retirement trust.

Standalone Retirement Trusts Provide Protection

A Standalone Retirement Trust (SRT) is a special type of trust designed to be the beneficiary of your retirement accounts after you die. It can protect your assets from your beneficiary’s creditors. We can include trust provisions that specifically benefit your spouse in situations such as:

Second marriages
Divorce
Lawsuits from car accidents, malpractice, or tenants
Business failure
Bankruptcy
Medicaid qualification

Want To Know More?

The bottom line is that a properly drafted SRT is often your best option for protecting your retirement assets (and providing the bonus of tax-deferred growth). Want to know more? Contact us today to schedule a conversation. We look forward to working with you. Contact us today! Call our office at 832.408.0505 or schedule your appointment right now.

What is an Inheritor’s Trust?

When it comes to estate planning there are several types of tools you can use, depending on your circumstances. One such estate planning tool is the trust. There are numerous types of trusts aimed at fulfilling different estate planning purposes. If you are anticipating an inheritance, there is a special type of trust designed to help protect it: an inheritor’s trust.

Purpose of an Inheritor’s Trust

An inheritor’s trust is a trust that has been established for the purpose of receiving a beneficiary’s inheritance in a way that is protected legally and financially. In order to fulfill its intended purpose, an inheritor’s trust must be set up in a way that follows numerous tax and legal rules. Virtually every state in the country forbids what is referred to as a “self-settled trust.” A self-settled trust is an irrevocable trust established by an individual, for his or her own benefit, with the intent to protect the trust assets from creditors. Therefore, once you receive an inheritance, it is very challenging to protect the inheritance assets yourself. Luckily, the inheritor’s trust provides an option for people expecting an inheritance.

Inheritor’s Trust Explained

If you are expecting an inheritance from a loved one, and he or she is unwilling or unable to leave your inheritance in a trust, you can protect these new assets with an inheritor’s trust. However, because you cannot set up the trust yourself because of the “self-settled trust” rule discussed earlier, you will need to work with your loved one to establish the trust. Instead of receiving the inheritance outright, the trust will be the recipient of the inheritance. The trust will typically include a spendthrift clause to protect against creditors, a more drawn out distribution schedule, or provisions granting only discretionary distributions to you. Once the trust has been drafted, your loved one will need to sign the instrument as the creator (grantor) but you will be the beneficiary.

There are several benefits to an inheritor’s trust:

The inheritance can be excluded from your taxable estate potentially saving your family estate taxes;
The trust can be a more cost effective way to protect the assets instead of your loved one revising their existing plans;
Upon your death, the inheritance will be distributed outside of your probate estate which can help ensure privacy and lower attorneys fees and administration costs;
The inheritance will be protected from creditors, lawsuits, and divorcing spouses;
In some circumstances, the inheritance can even be controlled and managed by you, as a trustee; and
You can decide how remaining trust assets will be distributed after you pass away if the trust gives you that power.

An inheritor’s trust is a sophisticated, but powerful estate planning tool. It is ideal for anyone who is to receive a substantial, outright inheritance that may need additional asset and tax protection.

Consult with an Estate Planning Professional

Estate planning can be complicated, but it is essential in protecting yourself and your loved one’s financial future. If you expect to receive an outright inheritance and desire to maintain control, gain superb asset protection, and use all possible avenues to avoid estate and transfer taxes, an inheritor’s trust may be right for you. Call or contact us today to learn about whether this estate planning tool is an option for you.

Why a Spendthrift Trust Can Be a Great Solution for Your Heirs

There are many tools that can be used when putting together your estate plan. One such tool is a trust.

A trust is a fiduciary arrangement, established by a grantor or trustmaker, which gives a third party (known as a trustee) the authority to manage assets on behalf of one or more persons (known as a beneficiaries). Since every situation is different, there are different types of trusts to ensure the best outcome for each beneficiary. One type of trust, known as a spendthrift trust, is commonly used to protect a beneficiary’s interest from creditors, a soon-to-be ex-spouse, or his or her own poor management of money. Generally, these trusts are created for the benefit of individuals who are not good with money, might easily fall into debt, may be easily defrauded or deceived, or have an addiction that may result in squandering of funds.

Spendthrift Trust Basics

Put simply, a spendthrift trust is for the benefit of someone who needs additional assistance managing or protecting his or her money.

The spendthrift trust gives an independent trustee complete control and authority to make decisions on how the funds in the trust may be spent and what payments to or for the benefit of the beneficiary are necessary according to the trust document. Under a spendthrift trust, the beneficiary is prohibited from spending the money before he or she actually receives distributions. These restrictions prevent the beneficiary from squandering their entire interest or having it garnished by the beneficiary’s creditors. The trustee controls the assets in the trust, including managing and investing the funds, once the trust is made irrevocable. Most trusts become irrevocable after the grantor has passed, but some are irrevocable from the start.

Creating a Spendthrift Trust

A spendthrift trust is created essentially in the exact same manner as any other trust. However, the vital difference of a spendthrift trust is that the trust instrument must contain the right language to invoke the law’s protection. A knowledgeable estate planning attorney can provide guidance on how to best structure this provision, so it meets your family’s needs.

Like any trust, the benefits of a spendthrift trust can help avoid the delay and expense of probate as well as provide tax benefits and peace of mind. Of note, there are several states that limit a grantor from naming his or herself as a beneficiary under a spendthrift trust for the purposes of avoiding creditors.

Estate Planning Help

Creating a spendthrift trust is invaluable because it can give you peace of mind that your loved ones will be taken care of after your passing. If you are considering creating a spendthrift trust, or have any other estate planning questions, call or contact us today to explore your options.

Isn’t There Already a Law That Leaves Everything to My Spouse and Kids?

Many people think that if they die while they are married, everything they own automatically goes to their spouse or children. They’re actually thinking of state rules that apply if someone dies without leaving a will. In legal jargon, this is referred to as “intestate.” In that case, the specifics will vary depending on each state’s law, so where you live when you die can significantly change the outcome for your family. However, the general rule is that your spouse will receive a share, and the rest will be divided among your children. Exactly how much a spouse will inherit depends on the state, though.

Now, it may seem like, “So far, so good.” Your spouse is getting an inheritance, so are the kids. But here are some examples of how the laws can fail many common family situations.

First off, if both parents of minor-aged children die intestate, then the children are left without a legal guardian. Kids don’t automatically go to a godparent, even if that’s what everyone knew the parents had intended. Instead, a court will appoint someone to be the children’s guardian. In such situations, the judge seeks to act in the children’s best interests and gathers information on the parents, the children, and the family circumstances. But the decision is up to the court, and the judge may not make the decision that you, as a parent, would have made.

When it comes to asset division, in most cases, state intestacy law presumes that a family consists of a husband, wife, and their natural-born children. But, that’s not necessarily the way many families are structured, and things can become legally complicated quickly.

According to Wealth Management, one analysis has 50 different types of family structures in American households. Almost 18% of Americans have been remarried, and–through adoption and step-families–millions of children are living in blended families. The laws just haven’t kept up, and absurd results can occur if you rely on intestacy as your estate plan. Stepchildren that you helped raise (but didn’t legally adopt) may end up with no inheritance, while a soon-to-be-ex-spouse may inherit from you.

Say, for instance, a father has a will that allocates assets to his spouse and two children, then they adopt a third child. Then, the father dies in a car accident before he’s able to revise his will. In some states, because the adopted child is not mentioned in the will, she may not be entitled to any inheritance.

If that isn’t worrisome enough, consider that, in some states, the law provides that an adopted child still has rights to the biological parents’ assets–and the biological parents are entitled to inherit a child’s wealth. (Imagine if the adopted-as-an-infant Steve Jobs had died intestate, and his biological parents demanded a share of his estate!)

Of course, with a will or trust, you can control your estate and essentially eliminate the risk of these crazy results.

What if You and Your Spouse Are Separated?

State law decides what happens to your estate if you are separated from your spouse when you die. Much of the time, the court ignores your separation and just considers you still legally married.

Unless you have a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, it is extremely difficult to disinherit your spouse. Again, even if a spouse is omitted from a will, state laws might choose to give a surviving husband or wife a share of the assets.

If you are separated from your spouse, and your divorce is pending, you should definitely talk with your divorce lawyer and an estate planning attorney about your options.

Creditors Win

Intestacy provides no asset protection or preservation benefits. Without any protections in place, an estate’s assets are still vulnerable to creditors, lawsuits, and others who may claim entitlement to the property. These claims would take precedence over the statutory requirements for inheritance. In other words, the family may not receive the lion’s share of the estate. They’d get the leftovers.

The best way to safeguard and pass along what you’ve worked so hard to build is to talk to a qualified estate planning attorney. Protect yourself, your family and your assets by contacting us today.

How You Can Build an Estate Plan That Includes Asset Protection

Much of estate planning has to do with the way a person’s assets will be distributed upon their death. But that’s only the tip of the iceberg. From smart incapacity planning to diligent probate avoidance, there is a lot that goes into crafting a comprehensive estate plan. One important factor to consider is asset protection.

One of the most important things to understand about asset protection is that not much good can come from trying to protect your assets reactively when surprised by situations like bankruptcy or divorce. The best way to take full advantage of estate planning in regards to asset protection is to prepare proactively long before these things ever come to pass — and hopefully many of them won’t. First, let’s cover the two main types of asset protection:

Asset protection for yourself:

This is the kind that has to be done long in advance of any proceedings that might threaten your assets, such as bankruptcy, divorce, or judgement. As there are many highly-detailed rules and regulations surrounding this type of asset protection, it’s important to lean on your estate planning attorney’s expertise.

Asset protection for your heirs:

This type of asset protection involves setting up discretionary lifetime trusts rather than outright inheritance, staggered distributions, mandatory income trusts, or other less protective forms of inheritance. There are varying grades of protection offered by different strategies. For example, a trust that has an independent distribution trustee who is the only person empowered to make discretionary distributions offers much better protection than a trust that allows for so-called ascertainable standards distributions. Don’t worry about the complexity – we are here to help you best protect your heirs and their inheritance.

This complex area of estate planning is full of potential miscalculation, so it’s crucial to obtain qualified advice and not solely rely on common knowledge about what’s possible and what isn’t. But as a general outline, let’s take a look at three critical junctures when asset protection can help, along with the estate planning strategies we can build together that can set you up for success.

Bankruptcy

It’s entirely possible that you’ll never need asset protection, but it’s much better to be ready for whatever life throws your way. You’ve worked hard to get where you are in life, and just a little strategic planning will help you hold onto what you have so you can live well and eventually pass your estate’s assets on to future beneficiaries. But experiencing an unexpected illness or even a large-scale economic recession could mean you wind up bankrupt.

Bankruptcy asset protection strategy: Asset protection trusts

Asset protection trusts hold on to more than just liquid cash. You can fund this type of trust with real estate, investments, personal belongings, and more. Due to the nature of trusts, the person controlling those assets will be a trustee of your choosing. Now that the assets within the trust aren’t technically in your possession, they can stay out of creditors’ reach — so long as the trust is irrevocable, properly funded, and operated in accordance with all the asset protection law’s requirements. In fact, asset protections trusts must be formed and funded well in advance of any potential bankruptcy and have numerous initial and ongoing requirements. They are not for everyone, but can be a great fit for the right type of person.

Divorce

One of the last things you want to have happen to the nest egg you’ve saved is for your children to lose it in a divorce. In order to make sure your beneficiaries get the parts of your estate that you want to pass onto them — regardless of how their marriage develops — is a discretionary trust.

Divorce asset protection strategy: Discretionary trusts

When you create a trust, the property it holds doesn’t officially belong to the beneficiary, making trusts a great way to protect your assets in a divorce. Discretionary trusts allow for distribution to the beneficiary but do not mandate any distributions. As a result, they can provide access to assets but reduce (or even eliminate) the risk that your child’s inheritance could be seized by a divorcing spouse. There are a number of ways to designate your trustee and beneficiaries, who may be the same person, and, like with many legal issues, there are some other decisions that need to be made. Discretionary trusts, rather than outright distributions, are one of the best ways you can provide robust asset protection for your children.

Family LLCs or partnerships are another way to keep your assets safe in divorce proceedings. Although discretionary trusts are advisable for people across a wide spectrum of financial means, family LLCs or partnership are typically only a good fit for very well-off people.

Judgment

When an upset customer or employee sues a company, the business owner’s personal assets can be threatened by the lawsuit. Even for non-business owners, injury from something as small as a stranger tripping on the sidewalk outside your house can end up draining the wealth you’ve worked so hard for. Although insurance is often the first line of defense, it is often worth exploring other strategies to comprehensively protect against this risk.

Judgment asset protection strategy: Incorporation

Operating your small business as a limited liability company (commonly referred to as an LLC) can help protect your personal assets from business-related lawsuits. As mentioned above, malpractice and other types of liability insurance can also protect you from damaging suits. Risk management using insurance and business entities is a complex discipline, even for small businesses, so don’t only rely on what you’ve heard online or “common sense.” You owe it to your family to work with a group of qualified professionals, such as us as your estate planning attorney and an insurance advisor, to develop a comprehensive asset protection strategy for your business.

These are just a few ways we can optimize your estate plan in order to keep your assets protected, but every plan should be tailored to an individual’s exact circumstances. Give us a call or contact us today to discuss your estate plan’s asset protection strategies.

Discretionary Trusts – How to Protect Your Beneficiaries from Bad Decisions and Outside Influences

Leaving your hard-earned assets outright to your children, grandchildren or other beneficiaries after you die will make their inheritance easy prey for creditors, predators, and divorcing spouses. Instead, consider using discretionary trusts for the benefit of each of your beneficiaries.

What is a Discretionary Trust?

A discretionary trust is a type of irrevocable trust that is set up to protect the assets funded into the trust for the benefit of the trust’s beneficiary. This can mean protection from the beneficiary’s poor money-management skills, extravagant spending habits, personal or professional judgment creditors, or divorcing spouse.

Under the terms of a typical discretionary trust, the trustee is limited in how much can be distributed to the beneficiary and when the distributions can be made. You can make the terms and time frames as limited or as broad as you want. For example, you can provide that distributions of income can only be made for health care needs after the beneficiary reaches the age of 21, or you can provide that distributions of income and principal can be made for health care needs and educational expenses at any age.

An added bonus of incorporating discretionary trusts into your estate plan is that the trusts can be designed to minimize estate taxes as the trust assets pass down from your children to your grandchildren (this is referred to as “generation-skipping planning”). In addition, you can dictate who will inherit what is left in each beneficiary’s trust when the beneficiary dies, which will allow you to keep the trust assets in the family.

While the distribution choices that can be included in a discretionary trust are virtually endless (within certain parameters established under bankruptcy and creditor protection laws), the bottom line is that a properly drafted discretionary trust will protect a beneficiary’s inheritance from creditors, predators, and divorcing spouses, avoid estate taxes when the beneficiary dies, and ultimately pass to the beneficiaries of your choice.

Where Should You Include Discretionary Trusts in Your Estate Plan?

Discretionary trusts should be included in all of the trusts you have created that will ultimately be distributed to your heirs, including:

Your Revocable Living Trust
Your Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust
Your Standalone Retirement Trust

What Should You Do?

If you are concerned that your children, grandchildren, or other beneficiaries will not have the skills required to manage and invest their inheritance or will lose their inheritance in a lawsuit or divorce, then talk to your estate planning attorney about how to incorporate discretionary trusts into your estate plan.