The golden rule of asset protection is: plan ahead.  Once the proverbial asset horse has left the barn, there is no point – or legal way – to close the barn doors.  Once a divorce is filed, a creditor begins pursuit or bankruptcy looms, there is no way to protect your assets unless you have planned ahead.

A post this week at NuwireInvestor.com details a number of asset protection techniques that can protect you if you implement them before trouble strikes:

Exemption planning – the law allows you to keep certain assets, called exemptions, in situations of credit default, bankruptcy and even divorce.  Converting nonexempt assets into exempt assets can be done, but it must be done in advance.

Life insurance – the wealthy can use life insurance to protect assets from estate taxes, and the less wealthy need it if they have dependents to protect.

Liability insurance – liability insurance will pay creditors in the event of a lawsuit, and will also cover the majority of your legal expenses.

Qualified retirement plans – IRAs and 401(k)s provide an extra layer of asset protection as well as a tax deduction for contributions.

Spousal gifting trust – if you’re married, you and your spouse can create a Spousal Gifting Trust to protect assets against estate taxes and creditors, while retaining the control and use of those assets.

Family LLCs and FLPs – Family Limited Liability Corporations or Family Limited Partnerships can be used to shield assets from creditors.

DAPTs – if you are a California resident and set up an irrevocable trust naming yourself as beneficiary, you are not protected against creditors.  However, A California estate planning attorney can help you set up a Domestic Asset Protection Trust in a number of other states that will allow you to establish an irrevocable trust, name yourself as beneficiary, and protect your assets from creditors.

Offshore Asset Protection Trusts – one of the best vehicles for protecting assets against lawsuits or creditors is the Offshore Asset Protection Trust.  This is a trust established in one of a number of foreign countries that have laws in place prohibiting creditors from taking your trust assets, no matter what – while still allowing you to access your assets.

If you need information on estate planning strategies to protect both personal and professional assets, contact our California estate planning and asset protection law firm.

On Monday, the IRS announced that it had collected $4.4 billion during its two previous offshore voluntary disclosure programs in 2009 and 2011, and that it is opening a third program in 2012.

The IRS said that the new program is very similar to the 2011 program, with a few differences for the 2012 program:

• There is no deadline to apply;
• The penalty on the highest aggregate account balance in a taxpayer’s foreign account increases from 25 percent to 27.5 percent;
• Taxpayers with offshore assets of $75,000 or less in any calendar year covered by the program will qualify for a 12.5 percent penalty rate;
• A narrowly defined list of taxpayers will qualify for a 5 percent penalty rate;
• The IRS can increase the penalties or end the program at its discretion.

As in the 2011 program, participants must file all original and amended tax returns and include payment for back-taxes and interest for up to eight years as well as paying accuracy-related and/or delinquency penalties.

Our California asset protection and estate planning law firm has been a trusted source for estate planning, asset protection and business transactions for more than 35 years.  Contact us today for asset protection and estate planning strategies to meet your unique needs.

A Wall Street Journal article last Saturday helps clarify the new reporting requirements for offshore assets as a result of the passage of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FACTA) in 2010.

The IRS released FACTA forms and guidance earlier this month, which requires a new tax filing for many with foreign accounts.  That new filing – via Form 8938 – must accompany 2011 returns and differs from the Foreign Bank Account Report that must be sent to the IRS by June 30 every year.

Taxpayers with foreign holdings must also include Form 8621 to report Passive Foreign Investment Company those holdings, which has largely been overlooked in the past.  According to the article, some commonly overlooked items that must be reported can include:

• Non-U.S. based checking or savings accounts that “sweep” into a money-market account.
• Proceeds from a parent’s life insurance policy left in an account overseas after the parent died.
• Company retirement accounts outside the U.S., such as ORSO accounts in Hong Kong or Second Pillar accounts in Switzerland.
• Funds deposited in a foreign account for a child who is living or working abroad. If the amount is more than $10,000 during the year, FBAR reporting is required.
• Foreign trusts with a beneficiary that is a U.S. taxpayer.

Consequences for not reporting can be severe, and can include interest, penalties and past tax due.

Our California asset protection and estate planning law firm has been a trusted source for estate planning, asset protection and business transactions for more than 35 years.  Contact us today for asset protection and estate planning strategies to meet your unique needs.

An offshore trust allows you to protect your liquid assets very well, as it is not governed by the same laws and regulations as a trust within the United States.  An offshore trust is an irrevocable trust and the assets are protected from a debtor by the laws of the nation in which they are kept. Essentially, this means that a nation in which you have an offshore trust will not recognize any legal judgment from any country, including the United States, regarding the assets held within the trust.

As California asset protection goes, an offshore trust is a great choice for those looking to keep their liquid assets protected in the event of lawsuits (such as malpractice). An offshore trust can be more powerful than a simple offshore account because it can harbor liquid assets like a regular bank account, but it can also safeguard intellectual property and other types of assets that an offshore account cannot.

An offshore trust is managed by a trustee, which keeps it from being in the name of the person who earned or owns the assets in the trust. What makes this type of trust so powerful is that even though it is in the name of a trustee, the trustee cannot do anything with or to the assets without the express consent of the individual to whom the assets belong. In addition, the rightful owner of the assets can control or determine what happens to the assets without having his name on the trust or anywhere else that would indicate his possession of the liquid assets or other property within the trust.

Those with large estates and professionals who are at greater risk of being sued due to the nature of their occupation are encouraged to look at offshore trusts as a part of their California estate plan. If you’d like to protect your assets and have considered offshore accounts, consult with a Newport Beach estate attorney to determine if an offshore trust is a good fit for your estate.

Our California asset protection and estate planning law firm has been a trusted source for estate planning, asset protection and business transactions for more than 35 years.  Contact us today for asset protection and estate planning strategies to meet your unique needs.

For the past three years, the IRS has been cracking down on illegal offshore accounts, using both the carrot (amnesty programs) and the stick (prosecution) to get U.S. taxpayers to accurately report foreign holdings.

An excellent article in the Wall Street Journal last weekend delved into the new rules affecting offshore accounts, noting that under FACTA (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2010), taxpayers are required to file a new form to disclose offshore assets in excess of $50,000.  This informative infographic accompanied that article:

As the article notes, even in light of the IRS’s efforts to uncover offshore assets, there are new – and legal – benefits to investing offshore.  Of course, the best reason to go offshore is for asset protection.  See our www.whygooffshore.com site :

Our California asset protection and estate planning law firm has been a trusted source for estate planning, asset protection and business transactions for more than 35 years.  Contact us today for asset protection and estate planning strategies to meet your unique needs.

The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP)
SAVE THE DATE
Super STEP Conference
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Live from the Shady Canyon Golf Club
100 Shady Canyon Drive, Irvine, CA 92603

• Program commencing at 8:00 AM and concludes at 3:00 PM PST
• Includes breakfast, lunch and networking reception from 3:00 – 4:00 PM PST
• 6 Hours of MCLE and CE for CPAs, CFPs, and insurance professionals applied for
• Admission Fee $ 275.00, check made payable to STEP-OC

“Putting It All Together: Evaluation, Selection and Implementation Decision Making for Wealth Shifting Techniques; An Analytical, Actuarial, Financial and Practical Guide for the Conscientious Advisor” –  Jonathan Blattmachr, Esq., Retired Partner, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, LLP

“Gifts By Foreign Persons To US Persons: Traps And Planning
Suggestions” – Professor Jerome Hesch, Esq., Director, Notre Dame University Tax Institute and Faculty Member,
University of Miami School of Law

“The Challenges of an Aging Population” – Andrew J. Policano, Dean, The Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California at Irvine

“The Care and Feeding of Domestic and International Family Offices” Timothy Speiss, CPA, Partner at Eisner Amper LLP (Recent winner of the STEP North American
Advisor of the year award).

“You Have a Foreign Trust – When Trusts Are Deemed Foreign Trusts and the Tax and Reporting Implications of Foreign Trusts” –  Michelle Graham, Esq., Partner at Luce Forward, LLP

Program summary and suggested implementation of material presented. Translate the day’s proceedings into
billable hours – Renee Gabbard, Esq., Partner at Paul Hastings LLP,  Jeff Saccacio, CPA, Partner at Price Waterhouse Coopers LLP,

Reservation Form:
(Please print)
Name: _______________________ Telephone: ____________________
Firm: ________________________ Email: ________________________
Address: __________________________________________________________

Mail this form, along with your check payable to STEP-OC in the amount of $ 275.00 to: Mark P. Silberfarb,
TEP, CFP, Global Financial Institute, 18662 MacArthur Blvd., Ste. 200, Irvine, CA 92612.