Personal/Life Planning

We offer an integrated approach to legal needs that most people face. We are expert at drafting the documents to implement your estate and business plans, asset protection plans and even pre- and post-nup agreements to secure your assets in the context of marriage.

With estate planning, we consider your long term plan for aging, including your income needs, strategies to save taxes, role of pension or other benefits – as well as the need to integrate tax, business and asset protection elements.

We spend the time to create the plan that works best for you – whether it is a simple will, or a complex plan to pass family legacy assets to future generations.

Typical estate planning documents include:

• Last Will and Testament.
• Durable Power of Attorney to become operative upon mental incapacity.
• Health Care Directives:
• Health Care Proxy to appoint a trusted person to make health decisions for you if you cannot.
• Living Will which describes the protocols you want in the event you have a terminal illness.
• Trusts: A variety of trusts are also used in estate planning including:
• Revocable living trusts
• Irrevocable life insurance trusts
• Grantor trusts
• Marital trusts
• Special needs trusts
• Qualified personal residence trusts (QPRTs)
• Grantor retained interest or annuity trusts (GRITs and GRATs)

Business Planning

After careful consideration of your needs and goals we form business or investment vehicles, including family limited partnerships, corporations, limited liability companies (LLCs) and limited liability partnerships, to achieve your business and tax objectives. Often these entities are used in tandem with estate planning techniques to facilitate the transfer of discounted ownership interests down the road. As part of our services we:

• Form a variety of business entities
• Draft operating agreements among owners to map out the rules of the road
• Work with clients to maintain records and comply with corporate governance and
• Focus on asset protection and minimizing risk by:
• Separating personal and business assets
• Insuring title to assets is properly in place
• Separating business operations from assets, as needed

Tax planning

The firm has expertise and practical know-how on the countless state, local, federal and foreign tax laws and regulations that may impact the assets and interests of its clients. The firm often represents clients in the preparation, filing and audit of estate and gift tax returns in federal and state tax jurisdictions. Tax planning is a specialty, both individual, corporate and estate planning.

Non-Profits

For over thirty years we have been involved in forming not for profit business entities, making it easier for clients to put their plans in action. As part of the process we:

• Form the appropriate business entity for your tax exempt purpose.
• File with the IRS for tax exemption so that your organization may receive tax deductible contributions.
• Prepare state filings and annual state and federal information returns for the non-profits.
• Help maintain books/records in compliance with the rules governing non-profits.