Remember when you were in your teens and still driving your parents’s cars? Every Friday night, it was the same routine, “Dad, Mom, can I use the car tonight?” And either the keys would come flying your way–or they wouldn’t. But when they did, you were off in a flash and out for the night. […]
Plans to continue the [farming] firm may be frustrated by the lack of a competent management team. This situation may be avoided by taking steps, such as the following, to prepare for the future: Stressing the idea of a team approach to making decisions. Focusing on developing management skills. Emphasizing cross-training. Developing a system of routine communications. Implementing routine, nonthreatening […]
I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35
“Decanting is the act of distributing the assets of an old trust to a new one with more desirable terms. It provides an easy method for correcting errors or ambiguities, adapting a trust to changes in a settlor’s objectives or changes in a beneficiary’s circumstances, taking advantage of new planning opportunities or adding flexibility to a trust.” Peter J. Melcher, Robert […]
I listened to an interesting seminar yesterday titled “Estate Planning in Agriculture: Protecting a Way of Life” sponsored by WealthCounsel.com. Stan Miller and Robert Serio were the presenters. Serio covered the Farm Service Agency (FSA) Subsidy Programs and the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Programs. He cautioned attorneys to be careful to not to do […]
“Serving as an executor or trustee is neither an honor, nor a game for beginners to play. Acting as an executor or trustee requires technical skills, experience, and an ability to deal with the family members involved. Nevertheless, clients often choose an executor and the trustee without fairly evaluating the needs of the estate or trust against the […]
I’ll be brief, and in being brief, I’ll gloss over some details. But here’s the low down. A husband and wife farming couple can receive up to $250,000 annually in FSA program subsidies if they grow corn, soybeans, cotton, rice, and the like AND if they are actively engaged in farming AND if they are […]
Regarding the benefits of so-called gun or NFA trusts: In gun trust planning, it’s in some ways less important to know who owns an NFA firearm and more important to consider who has the right of possession. Access equals possession. A spouse or other family member with access to an NFA firearm registered solely to one […]
“It’s easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of what worked for you two years ago, but will soon be out of date.” Roger von Oech
My entire immediate family was in town for the last five days. My three children, my son-in-law, and my one grandchild–a two-year-old girl with lots to say and not enough words to say it. Now actually, what I just wrote is true and not true at the same time. What I just described is that […]