Asset Protection Planning Without Going Offshore
Asset protection planning is important to an increasingly broad range of clients -- both for themselves as well as for their children. Creditors are generally more aggressive these days, and more clients are becoming conscious of the potential to wake up one day in a vulnerable financial situation. Accordingly, a discussion of the advantages of and available mechanisms by which to achieve at least some measure of asset protection should be offered early in the estate planning process. Many of our clients will be interested in one or more of the following:
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Using tenancy by the entirety form of ownership
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Asset protection status of qualified retirement plans, IRAs and life insurance proceeds
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Avoiding fraudulent transfers
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Self-settled trusts (including "qualified spousal trusts") and third party-settled trusts
