Surgent's Advanced Trust Issues: A Roadmap for Success in An Increasingly Complex Area

Trusts are not cookie-cutter documents. In fact, they can be rather unwieldy, especially in explaining the functions to a client and then having the client comply with the trust terms. This course delves into best practices. Given common scenarios, what are the best trusts to use? And how can the client be best protected?

Tax practitioners who advise clients on the benefits of establishing a trust

• Advise individual clients on the benefits of using a trust to achieve their personal goals 
• Save clients money in their estate planning

• Key concepts of trusts, including recent trends; best practices; jurisdiction; and ways to avoid pitfalls
• Decanting
• Federal estate tax exemption and remaining relevance of trusts
• Irrevocable life insurance trusts
• The role of family dynamics
• Choice of trustee and other fiduciaries
• State trust-friendly considerations
• Charitable trusts
• Delaware Statutory Trusts
• Powers of attorney 
• Pet Trusts – the emerging necessities
• State, county, and local issues
• Portability
• QTIP issues
• Creditor considerations
• Potential IRA problems
• Problems with re-titling assets

A basic understanding of simple trusts