Our firm exists because we believe that our clients recognize they are Stewards. Like us, you believe that how you use your time, talent, treasure and trust is important; that there are important purposes in your life; and that you believe in things bigger than yourself. You don't start from the premise that the world revolves around you, but that you have things you care about, things that need to be protected and accomplished.
We feel that way too. We believe ultimately it's not about "how much", it's about meaning. Our goal is to help teach our clients how to protect whatever it is that is important to them. While more money, more assets, and more authority or influence are important, these are just tools. How we use these things is ultimately what's really important.
Our practice is limited. We don't claim to be expert at everything. But we concentrate our Practice on what we think we do well. We teach, listen, counsel, plan, coordinate and work alongside our clients for the purposes they believe to be important.
The chart shown here is a sample of the areas of service we cover. You can click on any of the balloons to view more details on each area of service, or select one of our trademark approaches listed on the right.
 |
 |
Free Educational Workshop
We offer both scheduled and "special event" workshops to teach you and your loved ones what you need to know to protect what is important to you.
Free Initial Consultation is available for only those who attend a workshop. At the private meeting, we'll learn more about your particular situations and offer ideas and cost estimates for how we can help.
"What Everybody Needs"
Planning is often put into place at or immediately after the Free Initial Consultation. This reasonably priced service provides clients with specialized Power of Attorney for Property and Health Care, and Medical Information Release documents, all of which help Protect the Power to Plan.
LTC Plan Design Meeting
For those who want to begin a real LTC Plan, we offer a "Stage 1" or "Stage 2" design meeting.
Stage 1 is where the need for Medicaid Care is still far in the future. This type of meeting typically results in a similar plan, involving "Padlock"™ and perhaps "Out The Door"™ concepts followed by necessary asset transfers.
Stage 2 design meetings take place when nursing home care is imminent. A more accurate plan is established.
LTC Medicaid Eligibility Plans are created after the design meeting to provide your family with a "roadmap" towards eligibility for Government assistance, by controlling what asset transfers you make, when, how, and to whom. This plan will often have the following components:
• Padlock™ - Exemption Planning - turning assets you could lose into assets that you can use, keep or otherwise protect without delaying Medicaid benefits.
• Out The Door™ - Planning (Family) Gifts - preserving your assets for your spouse and family despite the prospect of future nursing home care.
• Asset Transfer Planning - Analyzing how best to protect and preserve the greatest proportion of your resources while still becoming eligible for Medicaid benefits. Asset transfers are , as in all forms of planning, critical. Making the right transfer at the right time in the right way is a complex matter. We establish a plan for your family to follow.
Once the plan is understood and approved by you, we will help with an Eligibility Plan & Asset Transfers.
We oversee or assist with the transfers. These sometimes include Family Gifts, reinvestment of funds, use of Medicaid Annuities, purchase of exempt assets, "Caregiver Agreements", and family created "Special Needs Trusts".
Medicaid Application
We can help with the actual Medicaid Application when the time comes.
Medicaid Appeals
Sometimes the application for benefits is rejected. Or during the annual review of eligibility a problem arises. We can help deal with these problems, which are more commonly the result of administrative mistakes than real problems.
Optional Annual Review Service provides
ongoing education, notice about changes in eligibility rules, and caregiver education. This can be particularly useful for clients during their spend-down period or where only a Stage 1 plan was implemented.
Benefit Recovery Defense
Defending your family against wrongful attempts by the governments to be reimbursed for the benefits it paid after you or your loved one has died.
 (back to top of page)
The transfer of title, control or the benefits of any asset is at the core of our services. Everything you have will be transferred at some point. Planning to these transfers is a significant part of our other services. But the planning is pointless unless the right transfers are made, at the right time, and in the right way.
Possible Purposes
• To fund trusts
• "Out the Door" gift transfers for tax, business and LTC plans
• Death transfers via Trusts, Wills and others
• To convert to Exempt Assets (aka "Padlock" plan)
• Sales and tax-favored exchanges
• Capitalize business entities
• Sales of Real Estate and other assets
• Transfer in settlement of disputes
• Coordination of other financial advisors
• Transfers and collection of contested assets by court action
Some of the Tools
• Deeds
• Mortgages
• Assignments
• Contracts
• Bills of Sale
• PBO Transfer Documents
• Retirement Plan Integration
• Beneficiary Designations
• Account Splits
• Title Change
(back to top of page)
Private trust administration consists of...
• Trust Interpretation
• Counsel Successor Trustees
• Oversee Appraisal / Inventory
• Debt Collection and Payment
• Retirement Plan Integration
• Hire / Coordinate with Service Providers (accountant, appraiser, auctioneer)
• Survivor Estate Plan (FHP)
• Beneficiary Trust Creations
• Asset Transfer Service
• Court Representation
• Tax Counsel
(back to top of page)
Function Analysis
To determine how many, and what businesses you're actually operating. This breakdown allows us to fine-tune your Plan to your individual and family situation.
TCB Analysis
To determine which person or entity should hold Title to particular business assets, how Control should be allocated, and for whose Benefit.
Entity Creation
We work with you and your accountant to determine what entities are needed, and then we create them, to assure the TCB goals are met.
Asset Transfer / Capitalization
As with any kind of plan, assets need to be transferred into the control structures and entities you've created. These transfers need to be valued and documented for tax, equity and other purposes.
Entity Operation Rules
Without operating documents, any corporation or other entity you create is just a "shell", offering no legal protection or assurance that the plan will work. We create the documents necessary to establish the operating rules of the entity.
Buy / Sell Counseling and Documentation
No business can easily survive ownership disputes. To assure that your TCB goals are met, regulating future transfers of interests in the business is critical.
Some of the Tools
• LLC (Limited Liability Companies)
• LLP ( Limited Liability Partnerships)
• FLP (Family Limited Partnerships)
• S and C Corporations
• Business Split
• Operating Agreements
• By-Laws
• Minutes
• Employment Agreements
• Buy / Sell Agreements
• Non-Compete and Non-Solicitation Agreements
• Confidentiality Agreements
• Specialized Contracts
• Assumed Names
• State Filings
• Local Filings
(back to top of page)
Probate Administration cosists of...
• Will Interpretation
• Guardianship Litigation
• Court Representation
• Counsel Personal Representative
• Oversee asset Appraisal / Inventory
• Debt Collection and Payment
• Retirement Plan Integration
• Hire / Coordinate with Service Providers (accountant, appraiser, auctioneer)
• Survivor's Family Heritage Estate Plan
• Beneficiary Trust Creations
• Asset Transfer Service
(back to top of page)
IN YOUR HAND™ - Title held in your own name. Rarely a good idea.
OUT THE DOOR™ - Gifts to those you care about, for purposes that are important to you.
DESK DRAWER™ - "What everybody needs" Planning: Powers of Attorney with Transfer and Planning Powers.
PADLOCK™ - Exemption Protection - converting assets you could lose into assets you can use. Applied differently in LTC, pre-nuptial and typical creditor protection situations.
IN YOUR POCKET™ - Revocable living trust through Family Heritage Estate Planning.
SAFE™ - Limited liability entities (corporations, LLC, FLP, etc.) and some irrevocable trusts.
VAULT™ - Irrevocable trusts - heirs, special needs trusts.
FORTRESS™ - Domestic and foreign asset protection trusts.
PRO ACTIVE DEFENSE™ - Analysis, negotiation and coordinating defense against certain creditors and predators.
(back to top of page)
Stewardship & "Plain Talk" Workshops
Teaching families how to protect what is important to them through planning.
"What's Important" Worksheet
Teaching us about your goals and worries.
Prep / Goals / Worries Meeting
Teaching us about your family, while we offer suggestions about how we can, together, create your Estate Plan.
Disability and End of Life Decision Process
Counselling you and your family about the hardest choices: what should happen if or when you lose the ability to control your own care.
Design Meeting
We lay out your Plan, step-by-step, so that you can see how what you have and what you care about is protected.
Plan Creation / Signing Meeting
We review your Plan documents and you put them into effect.
Funding (Asset Transfer Service)
Making sure the plan we create will actually control the transfers of title, control and benefits to loved ones in the future.
Tax Avoidance / Deferral
Making sure you and your family pay no avoidable taxes, and defer taxes as long as possible.
Retirement Plan Integration
Assuring that while deffering income taxes, we keep in mind other planning goals, such as avoiding Estate Tax and protecting inheritances.
(back to top of page) |
