How Can Blockchain Help With Estate Planning?

Gabriel Katzner - December 19, 2023 - Estate Planning

Blockchain is, at its core, a distributed and immutable digital ledger. Because it records transactions across multiple computers, it ensures security, data integrity, and transparency. Blockchain does not rely on trust. While each individual holding cryptocurrency is anonymous, blockchain records are public and not issued by any centralized authority. Each transaction or contract must pass […]

Estate Planning Distribution

Gabriel Katzner - December 14, 2023 - Estate Planning

Lisa and Ken (both age 65) have three children and seven grandchildren. The couple has a last will and testament, but as they age and have grandchildren, they plan to meet with their estate attorney to update their estate documents and discuss how to best allocate and distribute their assets to their children and grandchildren. […]

Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts (ILITs): Leveraging Life Insurance for Estate Planning

Gabriel Katzner - December 7, 2023 - Trust Administration

Mark, a single parent of two daughters aged 9 and 11, has an estate valued at $17 million and plans to purchase a life insurance policy with a $5 million death benefit. Mark’s estate is currently valued at $22 million, which is over the federal estate tax exemption maximum and, therefore, would incur estate taxes. […]

Cryptocurrency in Estates and Trusts

Gabriel Katzner - November 30, 2023 - Estate Planning

Digital assets such as cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens are increasingly important when estate planning. Unlike physical assets, cryptocurrency, with its decentralized and borderless nature, presents unique challenges but also opportunities for people looking to secure and maximize their wealth and pass it on to future generations. The cryptocurrency market is estimated to exceed $3 trillion. […]

Immutable Asset Ownership Records

Gabriel Katzner - November 27, 2023 - Estate Planning

When physical property that has a significant value is transferred from one person to another, the title is also transferred to indicate that the property is wholly owned by the new owner. Some digital assets, such as cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens, may also be of significant value, so how is digital ownership transferred? Digital technologies […]

Spousal Lifetime Access Trust (SLAT): Preserving Assets for Your Spouse and Family

Gabriel Katzner - November 16, 2023 - Estate Planning

Ken, age 65, a widower, has recently married Kellie, age 49. Ken has two adult children who are both very active in their family business. Kelly has an adult daughter, who is married with two children and currently lives in Europe. Ken’s estate is valued at approximately $35 million. He wants to ensure that Kellie […]

Creating a Charitable Legacy With a Charitable Lead Annuity Trust

Gabriel Katzner - November 10, 2023 - Asset Protection

A charitable lead annuity trust (CLAT) is an irrevocable trust that allows donors to make yearly contributions to the charitable organization of their choice while reducing their estate tax liability and transferring assets to their beneficiaries. This split-interest trust makes it possible to fulfill charitable giving and family wealth transfer goals. You can establish a […]

Equity Stripping: Leveraging Mortgages to Protect Real Estate Holdings

Gabriel Katzner - October 25, 2023 - Asset Protection

Equity stripping is a set of financial strategies used to protect assets, such as real estate, from creditors. The goal of equity stripping is to reduce the equity in the property to the smallest possible, to make the property less appealing to potential claimants. Home equity is the difference between your home’s market value and […]

Family Limited Partnerships (FLPs): Preserving Family Wealth Through Strategic Ownership

Gabriel Katzner - October 15, 2023 - Estate Planning

Families who operate a business or jointly own real estate or other assets may take advantage of a family limited partnership (FLP) or a limited liability company (LLC) to protect their family’s assets, reduce estate taxes, and transfer wealth between generations while maintaining control of the business or other assets. What is a family limited […]

Domestic Asset Protection Trusts: Safeguarding Your Wealth Within the United States

Gabriel Katzner - October 13, 2023 - Asset Protection

How can you be a beneficiary of your trust and protect your assets in the trust simultaneously? Generally, if you place your assets in a trust and name yourself as a beneficiary, you cannot also benefit from asset protection. If you have a say in how the assets in your trust can be used, then […]

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