We are starting to see a renewed interest in the Spousal Lifetime Access Trust (“SLAT”). This was a new estate planning strategy that surfaced in late 2012 designed to take advantage of the lifetime exemption by funding the bypass trust…
A recent article in PLANSPONSOR provides updates on the Final Electronic Disclosure Rule published by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). The final rule expands the ability of private sector employers to communicate…
Safe Cyber Hygiene is needed to protect oneself from the onslaught of COVID-19 Related Cybercrime COVID-19 has fundamentally altered life in innumerable ways. The true extent of its impact remains unknown, but it will certainly reverberate in manners foreseen and…
When it comes to managing wealth, women have a large impact. Much larger than most may realize. For example, women control more than 50% of personal wealth within the United States. More than 40% of women are the primary breadwinners…
Challenges and Options The 3 C’s: “You cannot control it, you did not cause it, you cannot cure it,” - but you can contribute to it. - Anonymous Opioid addiction has reached epidemic proportions. According to the Centers for Disease Control and…
We recently were presented with an institutional trust opportunity from one of our alliance partners. The trust specialist working for the large wealth management firm was pleasantly surprised to see that today’s institutional trust road with First State Trust Company…
Market moves since the onset of COVID-19 have been unprecedented, and there is certainly no precedent for the majority of the global economy coming to a sudden stop in response to a pandemic. To highlight how historic the market volatility…
On Feb 23-25, I attended the ABA Wealth Management and Trust Conference in Orlando and thought I would share some observations and critical points from some of the sessions I attended: On the regulatory side, it was fascinating to hear…
“Avoidance is the best short-term strategy to escape conflict, and the best long-term strategy to ensure suffering.” -Brendon Burchard According to a 2017 survey from Caring.com, 60% of Americans do not have a will or living trust. There are many…
On Friday December 20th, 2019 the SECURE ( Setting Every Community Up for Retirement) Act was signed by President Trump after passing the House and Senate. The SECURE Act contains many provisions that will help individuals save for retirement such…