CLE on Asset Protection and Bankruptcy

The American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education (ALI CLE) is presenting a CLE entitled, Asset Protection and Bankruptcy: What Estate Planners Need to Know, Thursday December 4, 2014, 12:30 – 2:00pm Eastern, online and by phone.  Here is why you should attend:

If you are even a bit uncomfortable with the provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, then be sure to register for ALI CLE’s program with leading bankruptcy and estate planning lawyers for a fast-paced review of bankruptcy provisions to know when engaging in estate and asset protection planning.

Planners who utilize trusts as part of their estate planning should understand the effectiveness of certain provisions in a bankruptcy setting (e.g., when an interest in a trust is included in the bankruptcy estate, the impact on holdback/spendthrift clauses under various scenarios, etc.).  Furthermore, do you know when the state exemptions apply and when federal law is trumped by the state exemptions?

The recent U. S. Supreme Court decision in Clark v. Rameker came as a surprise to many estate planners. The case highlights the fact that many estate and asset protection plans are created without consideration to the effect of bankruptcy.

Topics to be discussed include:

• brief overview of bankruptcy, including involuntary bankruptcy;
• scope of the bankruptcy estate, including reporting requirements for a debtor who is or becomes a beneficiary;
• scope of a bankruptcy trustee’s avoidance and recovery powers, especially pertaining to fraudulent transfers;
• fraudulent transfers and clawback theories such as constructive trusts and unjust enrichment;
• strategies for dealing with recalcitrant debtors and debtors who have beneficial interests in asset protection trusts;
• use of exemptions – including identifying when state exemptions trump federal exemptions; and
• effect of a denial of discharge