Client Alerts
DOING BUSINESS IN CALIFORNIA AFTER BRINKER 12-30-11
CLIENT ALERT (December 2011) – MORE IMPORTANT IRS REPORTING
CLIENT ALERT (November 2011) – PIERCING THE CORPORATE VEIL
With the advent of the Internet and websites offering low cost incorporation services, many business owners will seek these lower cost alternatives to hiring a business lawyer and can run into trouble.
CLIENT ALERT (August 2011) – New Changes in Year-End Tax Legislation
Many of the widely used tax reduction tools and strategies will be under review by the Joint Committee. If you may benefit from entity discounts, GRATs, intra-family sale transactions, dynasty trusts or a host of other planning benefits that have been previously discussed for restriction or elimination, you should consider acting now.
CLIENT ALERT (July 2011) – The HIRE Act and the Law of Unintended Consequences
In March of 2010, Obama signed into law the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (“HIRE Act”), which I wrote about in a previous Client Alert. The HIRE Act includes a new set of provisions known as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”). You will begin to see the FATCA rules applied in a myriad of ways, as its application will be far reaching.
CLIENT ALERT (July 2011) – IPM Investment Cruise – A Special Invitation
I will be presenting two workshops: “What Every Successful Investor Should Know About the New Estate and Gift Tax Law and How to Profit From It”. If you have been following our Client Alerts, you know that I have exciting news in light of the 2010 tax law changes.
CLIENT ALERT (July 2011) – Public Unions on Trial
The most popular event at FreedomFest every year is the mock trial. In the past we’ve put “Capitalism on Trial” and “Religion on Trial.” This year we are putting “Public Unions on Trial,” with Steve Moore (Wall Street Journal) as the prosecuting attorney and Thea Lee (AFL-CIO) as the defending attorney.
CLIENT ALERT (July 2011) – Switzerland Adopts OECD
On Wednesday, July 6, 2011, the Swiss government officially adopted the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (“OECD”) standards regarding banking secrecy. Subject to certain conditions, Switzerland must now turn over information to foreign authorities investigating claims of tax evasion allegedly accomplished through the use of Swiss accounts.
CLIENT ALERT (June 2011) – Nevada Law Amendment Enhances Creditor Protection for Nevada LLCs, LPs, and Corporations
Asset Protection Alert: Effective October 1, 2011, the new statute expressly limits the remedies of a judgment creditor for Nevada situs LLCs, LPs, and Corporations to that of a “Charging Order.” A charging order is a court-ordered lien over a debtor’s interest in a business entity.
CLIENT ALERT (June 2011) – Join Me At FreedomFest 2011
What better place to gain essential knowledge than from dozens of experts, legal scholars, authors, think tanks, and media professionals at FreedomFest 2011. In fact, on Thursday, July 14, I will be sharing the stage with Steve Forbes, Mark Skousen, Peter Thiel, John Mackey, Judge Andrew Napolitano, among others, as I speak on “The Outlook on Taxation and Estate Planning Under ObamaNation”.
CLIENT ALERT (June 2011) – Have You Heard About Our HYCET Trust?
If you were unable to attend the 2011 World MoneyShow in May, here is an overview about our HYCET Trust℠. One of the remarkable pro-taxpayer changes to the 2010 tax law increases the amount a taxpayer may gift on a tax free basis from $1M to $5M per donor. This new gift tax exclusion is only available until the end of 2012. Why is this new tax law so important? If a 60 year old taxpayer makes a gift of $5M in 2011, and the average return on investment (ROI) on the gifted asset is 6%, in 30 years the gift has grown to $29M free of any estate tax of the donor’s and that of his children and grandchildren.
CLIENT ALERT (April 2011) – Advice from an Israeli Agent
Juval Aviv was the Israeli Agent upon whom the movie ‘Munich’ was based. He was Golda Meir’s bodyguard, and she appointed him to track down and bring to justice the Palestinian terrorists who took the Israeli athletes hostage and killed them during the Munich Olympic Games.
CLIENT ALERT (April 2011) – Emerald Isles Golf Cruise – A Special Invitation
New Estate Gift Tax Law and Asset Protection Strategies and how to profit from them. This 11-day cruise will also offer guests a chance to play golf on some of
the best courses throughout Northern Europe. This promises to be a memorable experience—one that I sincerely hope we can share together.
Liverpool grew to greatness in the 18th century, as the riches of the Americas and the West Indies flowed through its docks and marketplaces. Enjoy the Town Hall built in those flourishing years, the Walker Art Gallery, or the delights of the restored Albert Dock.
CLIENT ALERT (March 2011) Freedom Fest Cruise – Mediterranean Tapestry, October 3-15, 2011
A $200 deposit by March 7 will hold your room for the October 3-15, 2011 adventure. This is one of the most exciting itineraries so far so don’t be left behind! I will be presenting my extremely popular workshop: “Estate and Wealth Planning for Women Only — No Men Allowed”, where I discuss important estate planning concepts. And with no men sitting in the audience, there is more audience participation.
CLIENT ALERT (February 2011) – New Social Host Liability Law for Furnishing Alcohol to Minors
A violation of this new law will most assuredly void your homeowner’s insurance and umbrella coverage, leaving you, the homeowner, bare and without any general liability coverage. While this new law will apply in California, many other states have similar such laws or will soon be enacting such laws.
CLIENT ALERT (January 2011) – New Tax Law Creates Opportunity to Recover All of the Year 2008 and 2009 Real Estate and Investment Losses
Very few people were immune from the losses to their real estate and securities portfolios in 2008 and 2009. Investors have become extremely conservative in their investment planning seeking preservation of principal vs. preservation of capital. This Client Alert will describe a tax and investment planning structure that will not only take advantage of the temporarily higher Estate and Gift Tax exemption amount, but to do so in a manner that will replace all or most of the investment losses using investment grade life insurance. Yes, we all hate life insurance – but just indulge me for a bit longer.
CLIENT ALERT (January 2011) – Paying Estate Tax May Now Be Voluntary
The Act increased the amount that one can give away or die possessed of from $1M to $5M without being subject to gift or estate tax through December 31, 2012. (The new law sunsets in 2013 and reverts back to the 2001 law so take advantage of these benefits while they last.) Married couples can combine their exemption to $10M. Any unused exemption may be added to and used by the surviving spouse.
CLIENT ALERT (December 2010) – 2010 Tax Alert: Year End Tax Planning Alert
1. 2010 Gift Exclusion:
a. The gift exclusion remains at only $1 million for 2010. If you are married you and your spouse can together gift $2 million.
b. Caution: These figures assume that you have never made taxable gifts before (gifts in excess of $13,000 per donee/year).
c. Caution: The $5 million gift exclusion only begins in 2011.
This might be confusing to many taxpayers because the $5 million exclusion for estate and Generation Skipping Transfer (“GST”) is effective 1/1/10.
CLIENT ALERT (December 2010) – The New Estate Tax Law
A GST Tax Rate of 0%: Any generation skipping transfer (GST) (a transfer to a grandchild or more remote descendant or another skip person [i.e., an unrelated individual more than 37 ½ years younger than the donor] to such person) before 2011 will incur only a gift tax at 35% (above the donor’s available $1M gift tax exemption) and will not incur any GST tax.
If the grandchild is a minor or if asset protection is an overriding consideration (which today, it should be), careful planning considerations must be given.
CLIENT ALERT (November 2010) – New HIRE Act
The trustee of an APT can make the APT assets available for use or loan to U.S. persons not otherwise designated as beneficiaries of the trust. Despite contrary beliefs, going offshore is legal so long as you inform the IRS about your offshore planning and transactions. Thus, U.S. taxpayers who establish a foreign trust for asset protection purposes know that there are certain prescribed tax reporting requirements.
CLIENT ALERT (October 2010) – Roth Asset Protection Planning
Asset Protection Alert: Often, a client’s CPA, not familiar with the nuances of asset protection laws, will advise their retiring clients to move their qualified plan accounts to an IRA. Similarly, there has been much written about the income tax advantages of converting to a Roth IRA. Nonetheless, in light of this new Act, the decision to convert one’s 401(k) plan to a Roth account must be made carefully considering the tax and non-tax consequences of the conversion.
CLIENT ALERT (August 2010) – David McNair P.C. – Asset Protection Trust Audit
Below, I am pleased to introduce a new and innovative service available to those who have established or are considering establishing a foreign asset protection trust.
David McNair’s company, the provider of this new service, is one of the early pioneers of offshore asset protection trusts, as a founder of one of the most successful offshore trust companies of the Cook Islands.
CLIENT ALERT (July 2010) – Conversion of Traditional IRA to Roth IRA (How To Deal With the Income Tax Consequences)
Upon conversion, the taxpayer must recognize the income in the year of conversion (or elect to spread the income over 2010 and 2011). The taxpayer must also wait to receive distributions from the Roth IRA for a period of 5 years. Otherwise, a premature distribution from the Roth IRA will be subject to income tax and early withdrawal penalties.
CLIENT ALERT (June 2010) – Asset Protection Trusts & The Attorney Client Privilege
While the comparison of foreign and domestic APTs is beyond the scope of this article, in the author’s law practice, he has observed an alarming trend in the nature of how these trusts are being drafted for their clients. This article will examine this trend and suggest (no implore) lawyers who are engaging in this design to consider changing their approach, and to repair those APTs in which such structural designs exist, especially before they find their client’s APT subject to legal challenge.
CLIENT ALERT (May 2010) – The Jamie Solow Case: Counsel Discusses “What Really Happened”
Now, Howard D. Rosen, Esq., of Donlevy-Rosen & Rosen, P.A., Coral Gables, Florida, joins Jeffrey M. Verdon, Esq. of Jeffrey M. Verdon Law Group, LLP, Irvine, California and Las Vegas, NV, and together they provide members with their unique perspective on Solow.
Leimberg’s Newsletter (April 2010) – Domestic Asset Protection Trusts – Key Factors Examined
Steve has written some of Nevada’s most important and innovative estate planning and creditor protection laws, including the law making the charging order the exclusive remedy of a judgment creditor of a Nevada LLC and LP, the law changing the Nevada rule against perpetuities to 365 years and the law making Nevada the first and only state to allow a Restricted LLC and a Restricted LP.
CLIENT ALERT (December 2009) – Is Your LLC a Time Bomb? – Updated
CLIENT ALERT (December 2009) – Your Estate Plan — Could This Happen To You?
Assume that in 2008, a married couple had a net worth of $10M and instituted a very common estate plan, wherein at the death of the first spouse the then applicable estate tax exemption amount ($2M in 2008) is allocated to the children or a trust established for their benefit (the “Bypass Trust” as it is sometimes called). Under this estate plan, the balance of the estate is allocated to a trust for the surviving spouse.
CLIENT ALERT (October 2009) – Mortgage Over Basis Issues? Not Anymore…
If the Partner sells the partnership interest for its value, receiving $3,000,000 in cash, the entire $8,000,000.00 gain is reported immediately. The Partner’s amount realized includes the mortgage encumbering the real estate, even though the Partner is not personally liable on the mortgage. The “phantom gain” is therefore $5,000,000.
CLIENT ALERT (October 2009) – Lesson’s Learned from Mastro’s Case
The bankruptcy trustee has focused on a combination of Delaware LLCs, and domestic and offshore trusts, to allege that Mastro has engaged in a complex series of fraudulent transfers. In particular, the trustee claims that Mastro’s personal residences, a Rolls Royce automobile, and countless jewelry have been titled into a Delaware series LLC owned entirely by a Belize trust.
CLIENT ALERT (September 2009) – Is Your LLC a Time Bomb?
Like the limited partnership (the “LP”), the LLC has grown in popularity as a vehicle for asset protection. Under current law, when a Member of a LLC is sued, and a subsequent judgment is rendered against the Member, the remedy available to the holder of the judgment is called a “Charging Order” (the “CO”).
CLIENT ALERT (July 2009) – Announcing New Association with Oshins & Associates, LLC in Nevada
About Oshins and Associates…
Oshins and Associates is a boutique trusts and estates and asset protection law firm with a national reputation and clientele. The firm includes eight estate planning and tax attorneys, headed by Steve Oshins. Steve is well known across the country for his work in domestic asset protection and has been integral in getting some of the most valuable trust and creditor protection laws passed in Nevada, including one of the country’s first domestic asset protection trust laws, as well as several bills that have improved limited partnerships both for asset protection and estate tax planning.
CLIENT ALERT (May 2009) – Insurance Implications of Transferring Real Estate to a Trust, Partnership, or LLC
In Kee Kwok v. Transnation Title Insurance Company (2009), the California Court of Appeals held that the insurance policy covering an LLC did not cover a husband and wife when they transferred title to the property from the name of a LLC to themselves as trustees of a family trust. The court reasoned that the insured was the LLC and the policy did not cover the Kwoks because title was transferred from the LLC to the Kwoks as trustees of their family trust, a separate entity, and therefore they were not covered under their existing policy.
CLIENT ALERT (April 2009) – Protecting Assets & Lifestyle – Why “Going Offshore” May be the Best Option
The recent economic downturn has substantially affected most everyone’s estate plan—both high-net worth and moderate taxpayers alike—making protecting one’s remaining assets critically important. Unfortunately, we still see very few estate planning professionals including asset protection options into their clients’ estate plans.
CLIENT ALERT (March 2009) – American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009
The $787 billion new law,which contains nearly $300 billion in tax relief, sets in motion a wave of direct spending and tax incentives to jump start the U.S. economy out of recession.
V.O.I.C.E. Newsletter (Dec 08)
These times certainly present their challenges; but with these challenges come growth and opportunity—particularly in the areas of estate and gift tax planning. This newsletter will highlight some of these challenges, discuss areas in your existing planning that should be reviewed as a result thereof, and explore planning opportunities that are available to you.
DEMOCRATS INTRODUCE BILL (H.R. 3467):LOWERS ESTATE & GIFT TAX EXEMPTION TO $1 MILLION FROM CURRENT $5MILLION (Nov 08)
Just because the Super Committee failed to reach an agreement hasn’t stopped the tax raising members of Congress from introducing legislation to reduce the $5M estate and gift tax exemptions presently called for under the changes to the 2010 Tax Reform Laws legislation before they are set to expire next year.
