Life Settlements of Life Insurance Policies: What, When, and How

Many individuals take out life insurance policies for valid planning reasons which later are no longer needed or desirable. Alternatively, the policy owner may need current liquidity. While many policies can be surrendered for their cash value or the owner may take loans against the policy, there may be other options. One of those options…
Read More

Threading the Needle – The Utility and Structural Requirements of ING Trusts

Estate planners and tax practitioners have been utilizing incomplete non-grantor trusts, or “ING” trusts, with increased frequency. ING trusts can be utilized for a number of reasons, including, but not limited to, federal income tax planning,[1] asset protection, planning for qualified small business stock benefits, income shifting through distributions to descendants, and others. While this…
Read More

Mississippi Medicaid Estate Recovery

None of us know how long we are going to live. This uncertainty makes planning for long term care a daunting task, especially since the average cost of a nursing home in Mississippi is over $7,000 a month.[1] Some may have purchased long-term care insurance to cover most of these costs. For many individuals, applying…
Read More

GSS Holdings – A Reminder on Economic Substance and Step Transaction

Most tax law is made up of very detailed statutes, regulations, case law, and other guidance. Layered on top of that body of law are a number of “judicial doctrines” that seek to serve as a backstop to formalistic analyses that could result in unintended tax results, allow taxpayers to place the form of transactions…
Read More

Evaluating the Landscape: Impact of CIC Services, LLC Case on Attorneys’ Fees and Government Fairness

The recent opinion from the United States District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee, continues the saga of the case of CIC Services, LLC (“CIC”) and has implications for taxpayers seeking to recover attorneys’ fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (“EAJA”) and for its broader reflections on governmental fairness, particularly those looking to challenge…
Read More

Do Not Be Caught Unaware – The Reporting Requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act are Approaching

The Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) was passed on January 1, 2021, under the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020. As previously written about by Josh Sage[1] and Devin Mills[2], the CTA subjects reporting companies, their beneficial owners, and the company applicant (all defined hereunder) to report certain information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FINCEN”), or…
Read More

When Asset Protection Planning Goes Wrong – Yegiazaryan v. Smagin

In asset protection planning, sometimes things go as planned. Other times, they go horribly wrong. The United States Supreme Court just issued its opinion in Yegiazaryan v. Smagin[1] which illustrates one situation where the debtor finds himself facing the potential treble damages due to alleged violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”).…
Read More

Your Estate Plan and Life Insurance – A Complementing Pair

It is estimated that approximately 52% of all Americans have some form of life insurance. On the other hand, there are also estimates that only 27% percent of Americans have some form of an estate plan in place. This article provides a brief and simple overview of how the two are not mutually exclusive, and…
Read More

Directions