Trust law has changed a lot in the last few years and it is important for financial advisers to review their client’s trusts to make sure that they have not become tax-inefficient, outdated, or antiquated. Trusts have been around since ancient times and can be used for both personal and business reasons. The laws regulating trusts are constantly evolving and it is important to make sure that the financial instrument is kept up-to-date. This article provides the reader with a quick review on trusts and how they can be used for asset protection. The tax environment regulating trusts has significantly changed since 2013 and it is important for clients and their advisers to be aware of the current tax regulations. Asset valuations have also radically changed, and it is important to review the language of a trust in order to think about the underlying investments and make adjustments according to the information. State governments have recently been drafting trust decanting laws to address some of the challenging trust and trustee issues discussed in this article.
See Tanya Tucker, It’s Time To Review Your Client’s Trusts, Trust Advisor, December 17, 2015.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse for bringing this article to my attention.
