To make sure an estate plan can be administered effectively, it takes more than putting in place the right documents, structures and strategies. The executor, agent, trustee and other important figures must have access to information that will help them administer the estate or trust – and in many cases, the successors don’t know where to begin. This episode explores one of the most popular concepts from the last 50 episodes: the “death dossier,” a collection of documents and records that help successors identify and administer the assets in the event of a client’s death or incapacity.
A power of attorney is a foundational document in an estate plan that names an agent to make decisions on behalf of the principal who, for instance, is disabled or not available. While it can be an important method of managing the principal’s finances, there are key issues the planner should consider when drafting a power of attorney.
When donors make gifts — during their lives or upon death — they typically give up control. Trusts have long been a tool for donors to maintain influence over how assets are managed and distributed by choosing trustees and drafting instructions. Traditionally, the settlor — the person creating the trust — cannot serve as trustee, especially if they want the trust to achieve certain tax or asset protection goals.But an AI program could be trained on the settlor’s wishes to make decisions the way the settlor would. This program can be incorporated into the trust structure as a settlor-trained AI (STAI) trustee, in a formal or informal way, so that a digital version of the settlor provides guidance long after the settlor can.This episode explores the concept of the STAI trustee and summarizes key concepts from a recent article Steve authored with colleague David Hirsch. The STAI trustee could be a powerful tool to help settlors structure trusts to carry out their wishes in the future, but there are pitfalls to navigate in exploring this concept.
Under current law, individuals have a high estate tax exemption. But if one spouse dies without using all of his or her remaining exemption, steps can be taken to allow the surviving spouse to pick up and use a deceased spouse’s exemption — the Deceased Spouse’s Unused Exclusion (DSUE) — through a process called portability. This can result in significant tax savings upon the surviving spouse’s death.Yet the election for portability is not automatic. There are steps that must be taken and other nuances to consider in electing portability. The recent case of Rowland v. Commissioner illustrates potential pitfalls and the importance of following the applicable requirements to take advantage of this important election.Rowland also serves as a reminder to review the estate plan to ensure it properly takes advantage of and recognizes the limits of portability and that processes are in place so that upon one spouse’s death, due consideration is given to whether to elect portability.
As part of their estate planning, many clients want to specifically provide sums for the education of their descendants or other beneficiaries. It is easy to understand why — many clients see education as a way to facilitate their beneficiaries’ personal and professional development and help them lead productive and fulfilling lives. This episode explores the concept of an Educational Dynasty Trust and examines issues clients should consider for the structure, funding and administration of such a trust over time.
The passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act provides some clarity around the laws related to estate tax, gift tax and generation-skipping (GST) tax — at least for now. This episode summarizes the key provisions of that act. Perhaps most importantly, the passage of this act provides an opportunity for clients to revisit their estate plan and current tax strategies without the immediate time pressure of a potential “sunset.” This episode also provides some specific tips on how clients can make the most of this opportunity to review their estate plans in this period of clarity and predictability.
Tax laws seem to regularly change, and clients face estate and tax planning challenges in the face of that uncertainty. For the last few years, estate and tax planners had one issue in mind: the scheduled “sunset” of the high estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions at the end of 2025. But the Trump administration’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act proposes to keep the exemptions high. It remains to be seen whether this bill will pass, and whether its terms will be “permanent” or subject to another “sunset” that will leave taxpayers uncertain years from now. This episode explores the terms of the bill and offers suggestions on how to plan in the face of this proposed legislation — and other uncertainties in tax law.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act being considered by Congress serves as a reminder of the uncertainty of tax law. Although tax law should not be the only consideration in an estate and legacy plan, clients should adopt such plans with tax issues in mind — which is difficult because tax laws often change. In a recent episode, “Countdown to Sunset 2025: Planning in the Face of Scheduled Changes in the Law,” Steve reviewed the possibility that estate and gift tax exclusions could “sunset” at the end of 2025 and how that could impact a client’s planning.In addition to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, there is another proposed bill that would repeal the entire estate tax. Although repeal seems unlikely, this bill shows what it could look like. Estate tax repeal is a possibility clients should consider, if for no other reason than to illuminate the role of tax considerations in decisions about estate and legacy planning.In this episode, Steve discusses the state of the potential “sunset” and reviews the proposed bill that would repeal the estate tax. This episode explores the proposals and how clients can approach their planning in light of uncertainty.
The last two episodes discussed the challenges everyone faces with being purposeful and productive throughout the day. Part 3 of this series continues the exploration of this topic through the metaphor of golf and other golf-like activities. This episode examines the metaphor of finalizing and polishing projects with care and using self-reflection to build positive habits for the future.
As discussed in the last episode, a common feature of daily life seems to be that everyone in the family is busy, and everyone struggles with being productive. Part 2 of this series explores more lessons from sports — particularly golf — for identifying the most important things to work on and staying productive throughout the day.
One common feature of daily life in every generation is that everyone is busy and struggles with being productive. This episode explores lessons from sports — in particular, golf — as a metaphor for helping us start our day in a way that makes it productive and meaningful.
There are numerous ways to give or leave assets to beneficiaries, and each structure should be carefully tailored to be consistent with the client’s goals. Three common goals for estate planning are to protect, manage and preserve assets. This episode explores ways to structure asset protection, asset management and asset preservation trusts to balance access, control and flexibility.
There is a lot of talk about fostering the right “mindset” to facilitate personal growth and fulfilment. The most popular seems to be a “growth mindset,” compared to a “fixed mindset.” This episode explores a related concept — that of a “legacy mindset.” The legacy mindset is a mindset directed at an individual’s legacy or effect on people, institutions, or ideas. This episode considers the value of a legacy mindset, and it provides some thoughts on how to identify and develop your legacy mindset — not just upon death, but during life.
Estate plans and lifetime gifts are often based on discretionary distributions to beneficiaries. But famed investor Warren Buffett and movie star Ashton Kutcher have suggested an alternative, in which beneficiaries do not receive gifts – instead, those beneficiaries can take out a loan from a trust, or can ask a trust to make an investment in a beneficiary’s venture. This episode explores this concept, called a “family bank” or “family venture capital fund.” This structure can be used to facilitate loans and investments for a beneficiary, which can serve the settlor’s overall purpose. This episode highlights the advantages of a family bank and lays out opportunities to structure the entity for proper governance, investment philosophy and asset protection.
An estate plan often involves establishing an irrevocable trust for certain beneficiaries. But when circumstances change, clients wonder if the benefits no longer justify the costs of keeping the assets in a trust. Before moving to terminate a trust, however, parties should consider carefully whether the purposes of the trust would best be served through termination, if termination is permitted, what might be some available alternatives and how to move forward to make sure all parties are informed and protected. This episode explores potential options and pitfalls for terminating a trust, including adverse tax issues, and lays out some options as parties consider the future.
Many clients ask whether and when to share the estate plan with beneficiaries. Even after a client’s death, during the administration of an estate or trust, executors and trustees often ask the same questions about how much to share with beneficiaries. Communicating this estate plan can have important practical, moral and legal benefits in making sure the plan is carried out in the right way while fostering family unity and reducing tension or disagreement.In this episode, Steve draws on the lessons from Warren Buffett’s 2024 letter to the shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway in which Buffett provides wisdom on the question of sharing the estate plan with beneficiaries.
On this podcast, Steve often explores ways to establish and administer trusts to facilitate productive and healthy beneficiaries. This episode explores a particular structure to further this goal: a “beneficiary well-being trust,” now authorized under Delaware law. A beneficiary well-being trust authorizes, and could require, the trustee to provide programs for the beneficiary regarding any number of subjects, including financial literacy, investments, mental health, and family history and legacy. The episode also delves into ways trusts can serve these important goals — now and after a settlor’s gift or the settlor’s passing.
There are many ways for a client to incorporate charitable giving into planning, during life and upon death. That charitable giving can be a significant part of the client’s legacy, and it can result in tax advantages.Many of the exemptions that apply for gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer tax are adjusted for inflation each year. In this episode, Murphy will review those exemptions and the adjustments for inflation in 2025 and discuss some strategies for efficient use of those exemptions in 2025.
There are many ways for a client to incorporate charitable giving into planning, during life and upon death. That charitable giving can be a significant part of the client’s legacy, and it can result in tax advantages.In a prior episode, Murphy discussed outright gifts and gift agreements. But some clients are not ready to decide which charities to benefit, nor when and how. For those clients, a donor-advised fund (DAF) might be a good option. In a DAF, the client transfers funds to a fund within a public charity, which might be part of a community foundation or financial institution.A DAF can offer flexibility and simplicity for the donor. But there are some limitations to a DAF that donors should keep in mind as they consider which charitable vehicle to use. On this episode, McGuireWoods attorney Hunter Glenn discusses the advantages and limitations of this popular strategy.
Many clients ask about generation-skipping planning, or dynastic planning – ways to benefit future generations in a tax-efficient way.This episode reminds listeners of the scheduled “sunset” of the GST tax exemption at the end of 2025 and steps to consider in light of those changes in the law. Donors, beneficiaries and trustees should take this opportunity to make sure all their records are complete regarding the GST tax status of any trusts. Steve recently wrote about these concepts in the ACTEC Law Journal and in a shorter essay in the journal Trusts & Estates.This information will be critical when needed, which might be years from now. Although this information might be hard to track down, it will only get more difficult to collect later.