Estate Planning from Fresh Perspectives

The following is from a slide show posted on NYTimes.com, entitled Inheritance Reconsidered, discussing various estate planning strategies chosen by affluent individuals:

With the largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in American history now under way, Martin Rothenberg and others are reconsidering the meaning of inheritance. ***

Fearing complacency, Dal LaMagna, founder of the Tweezerman company, set up trusts to provide only small incomes for his children. “If you give them more, it’s counterproductive to their motivation,” he said.***

Frank Butler, a retired chief executive, wanted to give his fortune to charity. His wife, Ruth, however, wanted to subsidize the education of their three grandchildren. So they divided their resources in half, creating an educational trust from Mrs. Butler’s side and a charitable foundation from Mr. Butler’s[.]***

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.