The firm:

• helps clients articulate their goals and dispositive intent specifications, prescribe planning parameters, such as: appropriate prioritization /acceptable tradeoffs /risks willing to accept /comfort zone with consequences and methods, nonmonetary considerations (time and action), and monetary budget”
• creates a Specifications Model, a representation of the client’s goals and dispositive intent, as a “living” /adaptive /evolving tool to reference as a guide for decision making and tracking
• performs a comprehensive review, using a “fresh set of independent eyes” , analyzes all data /documents / vehicles for an external, impartial, objective, and considered estimation and simulation of the plan to flesh out the most damaging problems now 
• provides a “Downstream/ Estate Equalization” analysis, to assess the plan consequences on the heirs and whether all heirs will receive an equal share of the legacy
• provides an “Estate Planning Scheme/Tool/Vehicle Benchmarking and Cost-Benefit” analysis, to contrast the relative suitability of an estate planning tool category, or tool within the same category 
• uses the CFPIT^® Insurance Hurdle Rate, a benchmark /threshold when comparing or contrasting the advisability of other alternatives vs. custom configured insurance coverages, allowing for efficient decision making.
• uses the CFPIT^® Price Outs (defined as: the cost of insurance coverage to accommodate when a client asks “What will ‘doing it my way’ cost?”), to convert seemingly unquantifiable soft issues into a quantifiable value:  insurance coverages used to adjust*, hedge, leverage, power, or replace
• (re) configures existing coverages ( or new coverage when applicable)  IN THE INITIAL PLANNING PHASE to husband, or as an alternative to, any wealth-preservation scheme/tool/vehicle when no longer workable or desirable , and to offer “simple solutions first,” or “obviating the need to be driven by tax considerations first.”
• (re) configures existing coverages (or new coverage when applicable), for:
  • risk transfers, contingency plans, and hedges results not known for some time, to increase the likelihood that the clients will end up with the desired results; including configuration of estate tax repeal uncertainty and longevity risk , or shepherding an asset transfer
  • fortify and augment plans with greater certainty, flexibility, preferability, in tandem
  • discounting wealth-preservation expenses, taxes, and fees,
  • non-lawyer replacements, such as, with : 
    • Legacy replacement vehicles, defined as: coverages intended to make legatees whole.
    • Program completion vehicles, defined as:  coverages which replace failed or incomplete estate planning instruments, such as: Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts, equalization programs, or gift giving programs.
    • Trade down vehicles, defined as: lower cost coverages , equivalents of the more valuable or desirable policies, but which have fewer frills, lower value, and at a lower premium level.
    • Unwinding vehicles, defined as: coverages used when disentangling from overly engineered estate planning instruments
• coordinates with Trusts and Estates Attorney to address issues on parallel tracks teasing apart the issues, ameliorating impediments and removing limiting elements out of the equation, releasing pressure , allowing the process to proceed without being forced to work out problems the hard way, thereby replacing the cause for over-engineered estate planning structures
• helps determine the optimum ordering and timing for step down strategies , used for buying time / draw out /drawdown/ liquidation /reversing , and coordinates with the strategies’ execution,     
• shepherds clients around “institutional” resistance to restructuring,
• helps navigate clients through a myriad of obstacles and traps, such as: potential conflicts/ tax obstacles / uncertainty / cash flow crunch
• identifies and mitigates the consequences on the children; intermediates between clients and children or represents the children only, negotiates with charities for clients, and coordinates the mitigation execution

Basic Services

• Below 2x Credit Planning
• Blended Families Planning
• Bottom Up Planning
• Downstream Analysis
• Estate Planning Scheme/Tool/Vehicle Benchmarking /Cost- Benefit Analysis
• Estate Equalization Tracking / Dilution Prevention With Multiple Heirs
• Goals/ Dispositive Intent and Specification Model Articulation
• “Is this what you really want?” Analysis
• Leveraging Gifts/  Targeted Gifting Strategies
• Litigation Support
• Non-Lawyer Will Reading Simulation (Initial/Troubleshooting/Final/Update)
• Ordering and Timing Analysis
• Planning for Multiple Generations
• Preserving Assets
• Preserving Liabilities
• Price Out Quantification  
• Second Family Hedge Planning
• Scaffolding/Bracing Process
• Simple Solutions First/Obviating Against The Need To Be Driven By Tax Considerations First Analysis
• Special Needs Planning
• Special Planning for Foreign Nationals/Spouses
• Special Planning for Nontraditional Families and Individuals
• Spendthrift Planning
• Wealth-Preservation-Plan Tool Tradeoff Amelioration
• “What’s Riding On This Insurance” Analysis
• “What’s Wrong with This Picture?” Analysis
• Zero-Based Review and Challenge of Traditional Thinking

Life Insurance/Fixed Annuities (Re) Configurations:

Certainty Solution Coverages:

• Reliability (it will be done right), efficacy (it will work), predictability (no surprises), and durability (it will stay right).
• “It isn’t enough to ensure that the proceeds will be received, I need to also ensure that they will be used as intended.”
• “I want to guarantee the funds to enable a specific distribution in the right form, at the right time, to specific beneficiaries, not just insert a provision that will provide them with the right to receive it.”
• Ensure that the heirs will realize the same results as if the goals/dispositive intent had actually been realized.

Flexibility Solution Coverages:

• Flexibility Solution Coverages  
• Elasticity, adaptability, alterability, replaceability, revocability, and reusability; to provide maximum options, such as:
• Bequest or pay tax at first death/second death
• Bequest to grandchildren vs. children
• Leave asset to beneficiary vs. replace asset for beneficiary
• Annuitization vs. lump-sum payout
• To increase or decrease solutions over time
• Gift tax play vs. estate tax play
• In tandem with spouse’s estate plan or as a stand-alone plan
• Coordinated with the children’s wealth preservation plans or not
• Maintain possession of the property, yet still have the ability to amend it in the future

Preferability Solution Coverages:

• I want … / I don't want …
• Want to leave all to spouse outright 
• Want to guarantee $xxxx a month to spouse
• Don’t want to leave all to spouse
• Don’t want children to have to wait until second death to enjoy their inheritance 
• Don’t want to make gifts 
• Want the children to receive some distributions right away, and not to have to wait until the estate is settled, or until the CRT/CLAT can begin making distributions  
• Want to gift to grandchildren only  
• Want payout in trust vs. outright  
• Want to determine the extent of involvement of the lawyer (or other advisors) and work within their comfort zone, taking into account such factors as:
• Ease/more convenience
• More simplicity/elegance
• Less obtrusive
• Less disruption
• Less commitment
• Less maintenance
• Fewer updates required
• No exit strategy required
• More customization
• Greater precision
• Adherence to the parameters they would set in a (Specifications Model), such as: appropriate prioritization, acceptable trade-offs, acceptable risks, comfort zone with consequences and methodology, nonmonetary (time and effort) and monetary budget

Change of Circumstances Non-Lawyer Supplementing/Updating Coverages

Estate Creation Coverages

Estate Equalizing Coverages

Estate Planning Scheme Alternatives or Husbanded Coverages

• All to spouse, outright, no tax upon first death
• All to spouse, outright, tax upon first death
• All to spouse, outright: disclaim to bypass trust, no tax upon first death
• All to spouse, outright: disclaim to bypass trust, tax upon first death
• All to spouse through QTIP, no tax upon first death
• All to spouse through QTIP, tax upon first death
• Partial QTIP Election; “Clayton QTIP” Approach, no tax upon first death
• Partial QTIP Election; “Clayton QTIP” Approach, tax upon first death
• Reverse QTIP - a SEPARATE QTIP for GSST purposes
• Formula to bypass trust, balance outright to spouse, no tax upon first death
• Maximum to bypass trust, balance…
• Formula to bypass trust, balance outright to spouse, tax upon first death
• Formula to bypass trust, balance to QTIP, no tax upon first death
• Formula to bypass trust, balance to QTIP, tax upon first death
• Typical Bypass Trust/Marital Trust Formula Approach
• Two Bypass Trusts/Marital Trust Approach
• Zero Tax ON ENTIRE ESTATE, with replacement (outright/ in trust)
• Zero Tax ON A SPECIFIC ASSET, with replacement (outright/ in trust)
• X minimum $ to specific heir
• X property to specific heir
• X to charity: outright
• X to charity: CRT/CLT

Estate Planning Strategy/ Tactic Alternatives or Husbanded Coverages 

• excluding assets from estate
• taking deductions to defer taxation
• excluding assets from spouses estate
• passing appreciation out of estate: freezing
• reducing / discounting value / (preventing IRS from adding a premium)
• maximizing unified credit
• taking deductions to escape taxation
• estate equalization: to avoid maximum marginal rates
• discounting the tax payments
• accessing assets income tax efficiently, to pay the estate tax 
• deferring tax payments
• special government financing for tax payments
• avoiding Generation Skipping Transfer Tax
• arbitraging tax rates: income vs. estate, capital gains vs. ordinary income, income with respect of a decedent
• income shifting
• securing step up basis treatment vs. carryover basis
• maximizing annual exclusions
• maximizing GSST gifts
• avoiding gift tax
• leveraging gifts
• avoiding probate

Estate Planning Tool Alternatives or Husbanded Coverages

• Bargain Sales
• Below Market Rate Loans
• A-B ( +Q ) Trusts
• Bypass Trusts
• Buy-Sell Agreements
• Charitable Contributions
• Charitable Remainder Trusts
• Charitable Split Interest Trusts
• Conservation Easement Exclusions
• Credit Equivalent Bypass Trusts
• Defective Trusts
• Disclaimer Trusts
• Dynasty Trusts
• Family Limited Partnerships
• General Power Of Appointment Trusts
• Generation Skipping Transfer Trusts
• Gifts
• Grantor Retain Interests  ( GRAT/GRUT/QPRT)
• Grantor Trusts
• Installment Sales ( SCINs)
• Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts
• Limited Liability Companies
• Limited Power Of Appointment Trusts
• Non-Qualified Plans
• Personal Holding Companies
• Private Annuities
• Qualified Plans
• Qualified Small Business Stock
• Qualified Subchapter S Trusts/ 678 Trusts
• Qualified Terminal Interest Property Trusts (QTIP)
• Remainder Purchase Marital Trusts (RPMT)
• Sale/Gift Leasebacks
• Sale to Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust
• Section 303 Redemption
• Section 6166

Failsafes: Bottom Up / Shepherding Coverages

Hedges:   

• 2010 Hedge
• Below 2x Credit Hedge  
• Bottom-Up Planning Hedge (Including for Bypass Trust Overfunding)
• Chapter 14 Hedge
• Charitable Deduction of Majority LLC/FLP Interests Hedge
• Custom-configured , such as : Reverse Mortgage Maturity, Mortality, or Mobility Year Hedge
• Decoupling Hedge
• Defined Benefit Funding Status Lump Sum Distribution Restriction Hedge
• Divestiture Hedge
• Disclaimer Planning Hedge
• Domicile Dispute Hedge
• Estate/Gift Planning Tools Hedge
• Bargain Sales
• Below Market Rate Loans
• A-B ( +Q ) Trusts
• Bypass Trusts
• Buy-Sell Agreements
• Charitable Contributions
• Charitable Remainder Trusts
• Charitable Split Interest Trusts
• Conservation Easement Exclusions
• Credit Equivalent Bypass Trusts
• Defective Trusts
• Disclaimer Trusts
• Dynasty Trusts
• Family Limited Partnerships
• General Power Of Appointment Trusts
• Generation Skipping Transfer Trusts
• Gifts
• Grantor Retain Interests  ( GRAT/GRIT/GRUT/QPRT)
• Grantor Trusts
• Installment Sales ( SCINs)
• Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts
• Limited Liability Companies
• Limited Power Of Appointment Trusts
• Non-Qualified Plans
• Personal Holding Companies
• Private Annuities
• Qualified Plans
• Qualified Small Business Stock
• Qualified Subchapter S Trusts/ 678 Trusts
• Qualified Terminal Interest Property Trusts (QTIP)
• Remainder Purchase Marital Trusts (RPMT)
• Sale/Gift Leasebacks
• Sale to Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts
• Section 303 Redemption
• Section 6166
• Estate Tax Repeal Scenarios Hedge/”Repeal of the Repeal” Hedge
• Fail-safes Hedge
• Hedge Fund “Lock-up Period “ Hedge
• Hedging the Hedge
• Intrafamily Discount Hedge
• Intrafamily Loan Hedge
• Life Settlement Hedge
• Limited Liability Entity Hedge (IRC Section 2036)
• Listed Transaction Hedge
• Loss of Charity’s 501(c) (3) Tax Exempt Status Hedge 
• Loss of Step-Up Basis Hedge/Carryover-Basis Regimen Hedge
• Marital Deduction of Majority LLC/FLP Interests Hedge
• Marital Deduction Trust Hedge
• Patent Infringement Hedge
• Perfect Storm Hedge
• Phantom Asset / Value Hedge
• Plan/ Element Clashes Hedge
• Portability Hedge
• Premium Financing ( Recourse) Hedge
• Reportable Transaction Hedge
• Revocable Trust Interim Hedge
• Roth-IRA-Rollover Hedge
• Sale Via Structured Sales, SCINs, (Private Annuity) Hedge
• Second Family Hedge 
• Shepherding a Specific Asset Hedge
• Step Transaction Hedge
• Tax Hedges
• IRC Section 355 Tax-free Spinoff Hedge
• IRC Section 303/6166 Loss of Profile or Recapture Hedges
• Tax Patent Hedge
• Understatement of Liability :Accuracy Related Penalty Hedge

….. as well as many unpublished proprietary customized hedges

Implicit Guarantor / Problem Preventer Coverages

Legacy Replacement Coverages

“Make This Go Away” Coverages
 
“Make This Work” Coverages

“Nip It In The Bud” Coverages

Non-Lawyer Coverages

Obviating against the need to be driven by tax considerations first coverages

Powering / Funding Vehicles Coverages

• “Bottom-up Failsafe Planning” to make sure that the desired beneficiary ends up receiving no less than the desired amount
• Charitable Gift Planning
• Control Planning
• “Death-Occasioned” Financial Losses
• Estate Planning
• Executive Bonus Planning
• First-Death Planning
• IRA Rollbacks
• Key-Man Planning/Hiring and Retaining
• “Liquidity Events Planning”
• Long-Term Care Planning: Alternative Coverage to Reimburse the Estate for Long-Term Care Expenses
• Obligations Planning
• Qualified Plans/ESOP Planning
• Pre- and Postnuptial Planning
• Seller Financing for Children/Grandchildren
• Skilled Employees Hiring and Retaining
• Special-Needs Planning
• Special Planning for Noncitizens or Noncitizen Spouses
• Succession, Transition, and Shareholder Buy-out Planning
• Survivor Planning
• Wealth Preservation Plan Funding and Hedging

Price Out Coverages

Privacy Coverages

Probate Free Alternative Coverages

Program Completion Vehicles

Reimbursement for Long Term Care Alternatives Coverages

Replacement Vehicles Coverages

Scaffolding Coverages ( while addressing the §2035 rules)

Scalability Coverages

• Augmenting the plans (tools/strategies/instruments/entities) with greater certainty, flexibility, and preferability, all in tandem, by reconfiguring some existing assets, OR augmenting with only greater certainty and/or flexibility and/or preferability individually, with OR without reconfiguring any existing assets
• Degrees of planning: non-tax wealth preservation planning issues only / Value-based planning only/ or succession planning elements only
• Address only the mission critical functions of one discreet element / component, without being forced to address every aspect of every component
• Non-lawyer planning/updating
• Supplementing a funding instrument being used for, e.g., a prenuptial agreement, without requiring the actual agreement to be amended
• Funding needed for only a short duration, to tide over: to cover an illiquid investment/ restricted stock/ or potential IPO
• Limited purpose of avoiding probate, such as: to ensure privacy from other family members (when favoring/disinheriting)
• Focusing on only one asset, or beneficiary, e.g., shepherding a property to be earmarked for a specific beneficiary
• Conflicts between “in-business” children and “out-of-business” children, e.g., potential increase/decrease in value, "out-of-business" children say sell while "in-business" children say hold
• Sell vs. bequest quandary for a specific business/operating asset
• Grooming business for private equity infusion only
• One discrete impediment vs. multiple impediments which are facing the entire plan
• “I’ve been through it so many times, I just want to stay put, but I will ameliorate it.”

Shepherding Vehicles:

• Subsidizing the Homestead or Life Estate Coverages

Simple Solutions First Coverages

Trade Down Coverages

Testamentary Vehicle Alternative Coverages

Third Party Special Needs Trust Coverages

Unwinding Coverages

Other Estate Planning Uses Coverages:

• To Accelerate / Access / Accommodate / Adjust / Advance / Align / Alternative / Allow / Ameliorate / Augment
• To Brace / Buy time
• To/For/As:  To Choose / Change / Cohesion / Complete / Create / Customize
• To Defer / Discount
• To Eliminate / Enable / Enhance / Ensure / Equalize / Extricate
• To/For/As:  To Facilitate / Failsafe
• To/For/As:  To Bottom Up
• To Favor / Finance / Fortify / Fund
• To Hedge / Hide / Husband
• To Integrate / Leverage / Liquidify / Lubricate
• To Maintain / “Make this work” / “Make this go away” / Manage / Mitigate
• To Neutralize / “Nip it in the bud”
• To Offset / Optimize
• To Power / Preserve / Provide
• To Reduce / Replace / Resolve
• To Scale Back / Secure / Shepherd / Subsidize / Substitute / Supplement / Synchronize
• To Transfer / Transform
• To Unlock / Update

Tools

• CFPIT^® Insurance Hurdle Rate
• CFPIT^® Price Outs
• Estate Planning Diary/Log
• Family Love Letter
• Family Meetings
• Gap Analysis Checklist
• Goals/ Dispositive Intent Specification Model
•  “Will the Beneficiaries be Pleased with the Results?”, Acceptability Index