Estate Plan In The New Year

Originally posted on Forbes.com   Yes You Have to Update Your Planning   Estate planning is about as much fun as getting a root canal. Unless there is a strong […]

Read article »

Crypto Donations Now Need An Appraisal

Originally posted on Forbes.com   Cryptocurrency Donations More Complicated   Donating cryptocurrency and getting a charitable contribution deduction has just gotten more complicated and costly as a result of a […]

Read article »

Estate Planning New Year’s Resolutions

Originally published in wealthmanagement.com   Here’s a sample letter encouraging clients to formulate commitments for 2023.   New Year’s is a time for resolutions, and estimates are that one-third of Americans […]

Read article »

Free Webinar: Year End Estate Planning

Date and Time: Thursday December 22, 2022 4-5:30 pm ET Register Here   Course Description: Year-end tax planning 2022 is different from prior years. Practitioners might recommend traditional annual gift planning […]

Read article »

Sarcoidosis: Estate And Related Planning

Originally posted on Forbes.com   What is Sarcoidosis: Sarcoidosis (pronounced SAR-COY-DOE-SIS) is an inflammatory disease characterized by the formation of granulomas—tiny clumps of inflammatory cells—in one or more organs of […]

Read article »

Human Aspects of Estate Planning

Too often estate planning focuses on technical nuances of complex tax matters, or intricate legal issues, drafting finesse and almost anything other than the human aspects of estate planning. These […]

Read article »

Better Estate Planning

Practical observations from the field, including: – Illustrations of holistic planning – Building the planning foundation – Planning fatigue – What a better approach can provide – Intelligent, not “simple” […]

Read article »

The Modern Revocable Trust

The high federal estate tax exemption may have reduced the urgency of estate tax planning, but it does not reduce its critical importance.  Herewith, an examination of the broad utility […]

Read article »

Advising Clients About Addiction Matters

Originally appeared in Estate Planning, a Thomson Reuters publication. Copyright 2020 Thomson Reuters/Tax & Accounting.   Many more clients of estate planners, or their immediate family members, are struggling with […]

Read article »

Heckerling… It’s a Wrap

Originally posted on wealthmanagement.com With the 2013 Heckerling Institute completed, perhaps a look back at the past week might be worthwhile. There have been, and will be, scores of articles […]

Read article »

Sharia Inheritance Estate Plans

Trusts & Estate’s Magazine September 2021 As advisors, it’s important to be sensitive to our clients’ unique values and objectives.  In many cases, a client’s planning considerations are motivated by […]

Read article »

The Split-Dollar Legacy Trust

Originally posted on wealthmanagement.com Every advisor is aware of the importance of clients making large gift transfers before 2013.  Changes to the law are expected, including a reduction in the […]

Read article »

Biden 2-Step for Wealthy Families: Why Affluent Families Should Immediately Sell Assets to Irrevocable Trusts for Promissory Notes Before Year-End and Forgive the Notes If Joe Biden Is Elected, A/K/A What You May Not Know About Valuing Promissory Notes and Using Lifetime Q-Tip Trusts

This article was originally posted on Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Email Newsletter as Archive Message #2813. Wealthy individuals who postpone taking appropriate action to eliminate estate taxes may not be able […]

Read article »

Estate Planning for Vacation Homes

WealthManagement.com Apr 07, 2020 Bronwyn X. Martin, Martin M. Shenkman  There are 7.4 million Americans who own a second home . Planning for these assets is important to the estate-planning […]

Read article »

Employee vs. Independent Contractor

WealthManagement.com Apr 02, 2019 Alan Gassman, Martin M. Shenkman  What’s the distinction between characterizing someone as an employee or independent contractor? Perhaps more importantly, do you as a wealth advisor […]

Read article »

Trust Income Tax Basics

WealthManagement.com Mar 21, 2019 Martin M. Shenkman  Trusts are ubiquitous in asset protection and estate planning. Regardless of a client’s wealth level, he should be using trusts to avoid problems […]

Read article »

Disinheriting an Heir

WealthManagement.com Mar 12, 2019 Stanley H. Teitelbaum, Martin M. Shenkman  Disinheritance creates complicated issues for many families. There are myriad ways to leave assets to heirs, so there are many […]

Read article »

Legacy Planning Is Changing

WealthManagement.com Oct 30, 2017 Philip Cubeta, Thomas Rogerson, Martin M. Shenkman  Fewer clients need estate tax planning. Automated service platforms and artificial intelligence are making it more difficult for investment […]

Read article »

Crowdsourcing Tax Confusion

WealthManagement.com Oct 20, 2017 Martin M. Shenkman, Bernard A. Krooks, Jonathan G. Blattmachr  In the wake of any tragedy, charitable efforts to help victims often come with a sense of […]

Read article »

SLATs Provide Flexible Plans for Many Clients

WealthManagement.com May 15, 2017 Andrew T. Wolfe, Martin M. Shenkman  In the current environment of uncertainty, many married clients should consider implementing non-reciprocal spousal lifetime access trusts (SLATs). This strategy […]

Read article »

Religion and Estate Planning

WealthManagement.com Sep 27, 2016 Martin M. Shenkman  Showing sensitivity to a client’s religious concerns should be an integral component of estate planning. Religious goals can be achieved by integrating a […]

Read article »

Trust Friendly States

WealthManagement.com Sep 15, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  Most folks (and lawyers) tend to set up trusts in the state where they live and their lawyer practices. While this might seem […]

Read article »

A Symphony of Collaboration is the Key

WealthManagement.com Sep 1, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  Jonathan Clements wrote the following in a recent article in Financial Planning, “To Beat Robos, Stop Selling Fantasies,” Aug. 31, 2015: “Many traditional […]

Read article »

Dissolving an FLP/LLC: Part I

WealthManagement.com Jul 20, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  Family limited partnerships (FLPs) and family limited liability companies (LLCs) have been a mainstay of estate and related planning for decades. FLPs and […]

Read article »

Gifts under Powers of Attorney

WealthManagement.com Aug 19, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  It’s common to include in a durable power of attorney (POA) the right for an agent (the person named to act on behalf […]

Read article »

Getting to Delaware

WealthManagement.com Sep 22, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  In my prior article , I discussed trust friendly jurisdictions and compared Delaware and New Jersey. But while using a trust friendly jurisdiction […]

Read article »

Safe Powers of Attorney

WealthManagement.com Jul 30, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  Powers of attorney (POAs) are one of the most basic and important estate planning documents. Even most nonprofessionals are well aware of what […]

Read article »

Unitrusts To the Rescue

WealthManagement.com Jul 01, 2015 Martin M. Shenkman  Sometimes, it can be incredibly useful to have another arrow in your planning quiver. Consider the following: • A trust is set up […]

Read article »

Psychological Issues of Bequests

Trusts & Estate’s Magazine July 2016 Stanley H. Teitelbaum & Martin M. Shenkman  In crafting an estate plan, many clients struggle with sleepless nights caused by wrenching emotional issues pertaining […]

Read article »

Estate and Tax Planning Roadmap for 2019-2020

Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Email Newsletter – Archive Message #2745 Date: 03-Sep-19 From: Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Newsletter Subject: Estate and Tax Planning Roadmap for 2019-2020: Martin M. Shenkman, Jonathan […]

Read article »

Estate and Tax Planning Roadmap for 2019-2020

Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Email Newsletter – Archive Message #2745 Date: 03-Sep-19 From: Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Newsletter Subject: Estate and Tax Planning Roadmap for 2019-2020: Martin M. Shenkman, Jonathan […]

Read article »

Catholic Estate Planning

WEALTH PLANNING>ESTATE PLANNING Catholic Considerations and Estate Planning Taking into account religious issues Martin M. Shenkman | Oct 01, 2015 Pope Francis recently concluded a 10-day tour de force in […]

Read article »

Disinheriting an Heir

Stanley H. Teitelbaum and Martin M. Shenkman, contributors for WealthManagement.com Give your client options to help deal with tough emotional issues. Disinheritance creates complicated issues for many families. There are […]

Read article »

Estate Planning Basics for Consumers

Free Consumer Webinar:  Consumer: Estate Planning Basics (for People Not Subject to Estate Tax) Course Description: This is a CONSUMER level course on basic estate planning. This course will help […]

Read article »

New Jersey Estate Tax to be Repealed

Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Email Newsletter – Archive Message #2467 Date: 19-Oct-16 From: Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Newsletter Subject: Martin M. Shenkman, Richard Greenberg & Glenn Henkel: The New Jersey […]

Read article »

Religion and Estate Planning

 Introduction   Showing sensitivity to a client’s religious concerns should be an integral component of estate planning. Religious goals can be achieved by integrating a client’s religious concerns into the […]

Read article »

Charitable Planning Tips

                                            ► Remainder Interest in Residence and Farms: Generally, a charitable deduction is not permitted for charitable gifts of less than a donor’s entire interest in property. IRC Sec. 170(a)(3). […]

Read article »

Christian Estate Planning

  By: Pastor Chris Edmondson and Martin M. Shenkman, Esq.   What is Estate Planning?   First, let’s define “estate planning” since it is commonly defined too narrowly. Estate planning […]

Read article »

A Symphony of Collaboration is the Key

Jonathan Clements wrote the following in a recent article in Financial Planning, “To Beat Robos, Stop Selling Fantasies,” Aug. 31, 2015, at http://www.financial-planning.com/news/technology/clements-to-beat-robos-stop-selling-fantasies-2694000-1.html?utm_medium=email&ET=financialplanning:e5051599:52149a:&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=Aug%2031%202015-am_retirement_scan&st=email: “Many traditional advisors, of course, do far […]

Read article »

Safe Powers of Attorney

Introduction   Powers of attorney are one of the most basic and important estate planning documents. Even most nonprofessionals are well aware of what a power of attorney is and […]

Read article »

The New World of Estate Planning

Introduction   Estate planning is rapidly moving away from the historical focus on bypass trusts and saving estate taxes. While many professionals have rightfully focused considerable attention on income tax […]

Read article »

Unitrusts To the Rescue

Sometimes it can be incredibly useful to have another arrow in your planning quiver. Consider the following: A trust is set up to provide for your surviving spouse, your third […]

Read article »

Powers of Attorney: What You Must Know

Understand Your Power We’re talking financial concepts not Ayurvedic. You’re planning for retirement and what will hopefully be decades of exiting “later life” following. You coordinate your financial and estate […]

Read article »