Elder Law Articles, Uncategorized

Elder Law Update – Financial Advisor’s Edition May 2009

Financial Advisor’s Can Instill Hope and Consumer Confidence.    There is Still A Lot to Protect Out There.    Why not Grow Your Business?   At The Law Offices of Anthony B. Ferraro, LLC, we have taken a number of steps over the years to try to help Financial Advisors round out and deliver services to their clientele. In our opinion, the most important thing you can do in this depressed economy, in our humble opinion, is to create a very proactive message and let your clients know “We are out here, and we can take steps to protect your assets.”  Financial advisors can take the very deliberate step of helping clients protect their assets through the usage of several simple techniques that I will talk about in this update.  Remember, these strategies are designed to provide peace of mind to clients who feel that everything else is working against them. As an advisor, I would offer my clients the following: 

  1. Trust Protector for Existing Trusts.  You may want to have all clients consider adding a Trust Protector to their existing trust or trusts.  This Trust Protector can do a couple of different things.  First, in connection with irrevocable trusts, the Trust Protector can provide discretionary asset distribution that the Trustmaker himself cannot undertake.  Second, the Trust Protector can make changes to the trust provisions that, again, the Trustmaker himself cannot make.  This creates flexibility and peace of mind for clients.    
 
  1. Dynasty Trust Planning.  This is not just for the Rockefeller’s and Carnegie’s.  Let’s assume you have a client that desires to deliver an estate of $300,000, $500,000 or $700,000 to their children.  The problem is that the client doesn’t trust their daughter-in-law or son-in-law, or for that matter, they may not trust their child.  A Dynasty Trust is a way of holding back a trust distribution at the death of the parents.  This enables the monies to be available for the children or grandchildren, but does not distribute outright all at one time.  This gives parents the peace of mind of knowing that everything that they strived and worked for to accumulate over the years will be available for their children and not squandered shortly after their deaths.  This type of planning may also afford you the opportunity to obtain an introduction to the next generation or two of your client’s family
 
  1. Grantor-Type Trust.  Explain to clients that grantor-type trusts are advantageous because they will not result in having to file an additional tax return during the life of the Trustmaker (Grantor).  Also explain that a grantor trust is something advantageous and that can be toggled on and toggled off at different points during their life such as for example in connection with planning for veterans benefits.  This is another widely used tool offering protection for clients at a time when all clients are looking for ideas regarding protection
 
  1. Multiple Trusts.  Sometimes a trust is a great idea.  Sometimes that idea no longer works.  It is a shame to terminate a trust simply because one idea does not work.  Perhaps having several trusts with slightly different objectives can avoid the need to totally eliminate otherwise perfectly valid trusts. 
 
  1. Trust as a Beneficiary.  Either in connection with beneficiary designation assets or tax-qualified assets such as IRAs or 401(k)s, a lot of work needs to be done in connection with beneficiary designations.  It really does not matter what is written into wills or trusts if the beneficiary designations are inconsistent with the client’s objectives.  You have a lot work to do as an advisor in connection with beneficiary designations, so let your clients know that you care enough to have reviewed such designations and will even go through the expense of preparing new ones, if necessary. 
 
  1. Second Marriages.  These are very common in our society.  A second marriage raises a whole host of issues on which the client needs counseling.  In order to provide protection to the client, the issues associated with second marriage need to be understood and discussed with clients.  This is fertile ground for advisors to be adding value to clients and how they perceive your services.  Please give consideration to second marriage planning as a special niche.
  The common theme throughout the six items described above is that they all deal with long-term care planning.  Long-term care planning is not just protection from a nursing home, as we have written about in recent Elder Law Updates.  Long-term care planning involves the long-term, and in the long-term there are all of the issues described above that need to be taken into consideration. Again, we are here to help you communicate with your clients so you can grow your business.  We hope you will continue to serve clients that need hope and ideas in tough economic times.  Let us know if you think that this type of message to your clients would be something of value to them.  Don’t hesitate to share with them this update or invite them to one of our free workshops that we offer.  Please recall that we offer 2 workshops: 1) the “Elder Care Journey” and 2) the “New Estate Planning Essentials,” both of which I think can spread the message of hope and protection that clients are so desperate for.  P.S.      Also, don’t miss our workshop: “The Elder Care Journey – How to Get Financial Assistance for your Nursing Home Care…Without Selling your Home or Leaving your Family Without a Dime” set for the following dates.  Please contact our office at (847) 292-1220 to register. May 18, 2009 at 6:30 PM June 11, 2009 at 4:00 PM June 23, 2009 at 6:30 PM July 9, 2009 at 4:00 PM Call (847) 292-1220 to make a reservation in our training room. You don’t want to miss this workshop! Long Term Care Planning Attorneys The “3 Phase” Lawyers   Legal Counsel Assisting You in the 3 Phases of Your Life:   –           Maturing Years –          Will, Trust, Taxes, and Asset Protection –           Senior Years –             Long-Term Care and Nursing Home Protection –           Post Death Years –       Estate, Probate, and Trust Administration     “Educate to Motivate”   Anthony B. Ferraro Attorney-CPA The Law Offices of Anthony B. Ferraro, LLC The Estate & Trust, Elder and Asset Protection Law Firm Columbia Centre I 5600 N. River Road, Suite 764  Rosemont, IL 60018 PH (847) 292-1220 FAX (847) 292-1221 Websiteabferrarolaw.com Emailabferraro@abferrarolaw.com NOTE: The information contained in this message is confidential and may be protected by the attorney-client privilege and/or the work product doctrine.  If you have received this electronic message in error, please reply to the sender and destroy this message. Pursuant to federal regulations imposed on practitioners who render tax advice (“Circular 230”), we are required to advise you that any tax advice contained herein is not intended or written to be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed by the Internal Revenue Service.  The Illinois rules of Professional Conduct require attorneys to identify unsolicited communications to prospective clients as Advertising Material.  If the context requires, please consider this letter and the enclosed literature to be Advertising Materials. To unsubscribe, please reply to this email.  In the subject line, please write your name and the word “unsubscribe.”  If you are responding on someone else’s behalf, please also include the email address that our message was sent to.  Thank you. This document is for discussion purposes only and is not intended to be, nor should it be, considered as legal advice.  You should never attempt Medicaid planning, Estate Planning, Probate, or Estate and Trust Administration without the advice of competent legal counsel.