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5 publish Home “[et_pb_section admin_label=””Section”” fullwidth=””off”” specialty=””off”” background_image=””/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/AssetProection-Header-02.jpg”” transparent_background=””off”” allow_player_pause=””off”” inner_shadow=””off”” parallax=””off”” parallax_method=””on”” padding_mobile=””off”” make_fullwidth=””off”” use_custom_width=””off”” width_unit=””on”” make_equal=””off”” use_custom_gutter=””off”” gutter_width=””3″” custom_css_main_element=””background-position: center top; “”][et_pb_row admin_label=””Row”” make_fullwidth=””on”” use_custom_width=””off”” width_unit=””off”” use_custom_gutter=””on”” gutter_width=””1″” padding_mobile=””off”” allow_player_pause=””off”” parallax=””off”” parallax_method=””on”” make_equal=””off”” parallax_1=””off”” parallax_method_1=””off”” parallax_2=””off”” parallax_method_2=””on”” column_padding_mobile=””off”” parallax_3=””off”” parallax_method_3=””off”” custom_width_percent=””10%”” padding_top_2=””5%”” padding_right_2=””5%”” padding_bottom_2=””5%”” padding_left_2=””5%”” bg_img_3=””http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/boxing-protector.png””][et_pb_column type=””4_4″”][et_pb_text admin_label=””Text”” background_layout=””light”” text_orientation=””left”” use_border_color=””off”” border_color=””#ffffff”” border_style=””solid”” custom_padding=””5%||5%|14%””]

YOUR PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL
FINANCES ARE WORTH THE FIGHT

Contact Us Today For Your Free Consultation!

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What’s New with AssetProtection.com?

Check out the latest asset protection strategies we’re utilizing to help clients with their personal and business savings.

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Private Retirement Trust

The PRT℠is the first line of defense for any successful Californian because it offers “true” asset protection.

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Friendly Liens

Our unique method of placing a friendly lien on your property allows you to soak up excess equity in your property.

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SPA Trust

Offshore trusts protect assets, but do domestic trusts?  Here’s a look at three commonly used in the U.S.

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Over 25 Years In Business

Total Asset Protection – Legally, Quickly, Conveniently, Inexpensively and Privately.

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Total Asset Protection

Business or Personal

Focusing on the laws of your state, we’ll set you on the right path and get you the asset protection you need.

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Personal Asset Protection

Planning your estate? Dealing with a personal lawsuit? We can help.

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Business Asset Protection

AssetProtection.com is your go-to destination business asset management.

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[/et_pb_cta][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=””1_4″”][et_pb_blurb admin_label=””Lawsuits Biz Blurb”” title=””Business Lawsuits”” url_new_window=””off”” use_icon=””off”” icon_color=””#124363″” use_circle=””off”” circle_color=””#124363″” use_circle_border=””off”” circle_border_color=””#124363″” image=””http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/column.png”” icon_placement=””top”” animation=””off”” background_layout=””dark”” text_orientation=””center”” max_width=””300px”” use_icon_font_size=””off”” header_font_size=””18″” body_font_size=””14″” use_border_color=””off”” border_color=””#d1d1d1″” border_style=””solid”” custom_padding=””5%|5%||5%”” alt=””Business””]

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[/et_pb_cta][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/
9 publish What Is Asset Protection Planning? “This is a question we get asked on a regular basis. Along with this question is another one. “Is it legal?” The answer to the last question is “Yes, it is legal, if done properly.” It is not legal if it is done in a fraudulent manner.

Asset protection planning is a process by which one organizes their financial affairs in such a manner as to safeguard assets from the risk of exposure. The process of asset protection involves transferring the assets from an unprotected form of ownership to a protected form of ownership. The unprotected form generally applies to property held directly in an individual’s name of even the name of a revocable living trust. The protected form can be one of many asset protection vehicles such as limited partnership, corporations, certain kinds of trusts, limited liability companies and other such entities. Protecting assets can also be a process of transferring them into exempt assets to the extent permitted by the individual states.

However, care is cautioned in utilizing exemptions as a form of asset protection. Certain creditors are not subject to state exemption. Some of these examples are federal tax liens, state tax liens, alimony and child support, purchase money retailers, and mechanics liens.

Due to the lottery style court cases and judgments that exist today, a well drafted asset protection plan can go a long way in deterring a creditor. If you can avoid the appearance of being the “deep pocket” then you can frequently be passed over and the creditor will look to someone else. In fact deterrence is a major part of asset protection. The plaintiff is generally unwilling to mount countless attacks against a defendant who has a well established asset protection plan. Judgment creditors are cost conscious and if the efforts to collect are just too difficult, then that creditor is likely to settle for far less than the amount of the judgment or move on to easier pray.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/what-is-asset-protection-planning/
14 publish Lawsuits Against You “

Personal reasons to protect yourself

We design, implement, consult and service asset protected Limited Liability Companies, Asset Protection Trusts, Family Limited Partnerships and estate planning entities. We do not just form entities. We plan with you, the best way to structure an asset protection and estate plan for you. All of our Limited Liability Companies, Family Limited Partnerships, trusts and Asset Protection Trusts come with the forms and paperwork needed to provide the estate planning and asset protection planning you need.

Why Protect Yourself?

If you lose your assets – your accounts, cash, cars, real estate, small business, income,- you lose your family’s financial lifestyle and security. Would you want to be forced out of your home, pack up your family and wave goodbye to your friends and the neighborhood where your children are growing up?

Asset protection allows you to maintain your lifestyle for you and your family.

Asset protection provides you peace of mind that your nest egg will still be there when you retire and need it.

Asset protection protects you from harm. It keeps financial predators away. It will prevent or discourage lawsuits. Lawyers get 40% of what they can take from you by way of judgment. If you have no exposed assets, lawyers and their clients gain no financial advantage by suing you.

Asset protection can prevent all your assets from being taken from you by expensive nursing home care when you are elderly.

You have spent a lifetime getting to where you financially are now. Do you want some greedy attorney walking off with your family’s future?

What Could I Possibly Be Sued For?

  • Personal lawsuits can be for many reasons. Here are just a few.
  • Divorce
  • Children suing parents
  • Parents suing children
  • Lawsuits from business partners
  • Creditor’s claims
  • Accidental injury caused by a family member
  • Pregnancy (your son gets a girl pregnant)
  • Personal injury caused by a drinking guest
  • Personal injury caused by your teenager driver hitting another car
  • Personal injury when a guest slips and falls down
  • Neighbor disputes
  • Homeowner association disagreements
  • Personal guarantees
  • Willful, harmful acts which are not covered by insurance
  • Libel and slander
  • Excessive judgments on automobile accidents

Employment lawsuits arising from:

  • Age discrimination
  • Racial discrimination
  • Gender discrimination
  • Religious discrimination
  • Pregnancy discrimination
  • Disability discrimination
  • Mental illness discrimination
  • Addiction discrimination
  • Sexual harassment
  • Peer harassment
  • Gossip among employees
  • Job references (good or bad)
  • Whistle blowing
  • Retaliation
  • Wrongful termination
  • Negligent employee retention
  • Releasing medical information
  • Unequal mental vs. physical health coverage
  • Employee injury from chemical exposure

Professional Malpractice lawsuits arising from:

  • Medical malpractice.
  • Legal malpractice.
  • Psychological malpractice.
  • Engineering malpractice.
  • Architectural malpractice.
  • And much more.
  • Business Liability lawsuits arising from
  • Environmental cleanup liability
  • Product liability
  • Shareholder liability
  • Securities fraud
  • Liability of outside directors
  • Liability from unsatisfied customers
  • Personal injury when a customer drinks too much and hurts someone
  • Personal injury when a customer slips and falls.
  • And much more.

How Do We Protect You?

For your brokerage and other accounts: an asset- protected LLCÂ and/or family limited partnership.

Neutral taxation

100% protection from lawsuits and creditors or any other financial attack.

For your home: an asset-protected family limited partnership.

strips the exposed equity from the home so no lien can be placed on your equity

For your rental property: an asset-protected LLC.

properties deed transferred into the LLC

Fast, convenient. We form it, transfer assets into it, service it and consult with you. Discover how easy it is to asset protect your home, bank accounts, real estate, business, and stocks/mutual funds.

1. You hold assets in your own name:

You have no asset protection and are vulnerable to attack by any creditor or lawyer wanting to file a lawsuit against you. A judgment creditor can swoop in easily and attach  any assets you have.

2. You do NOT hold title to your assets in your own name:

Your Family Limited Partnership holds title but as general partner you control everything. It is no longer easy for creditors to discover what you own and it is very difficult, if not impossible for them to break through.

If you want even more privacy and anonymity, we can assign your Nevada or offshore corporation as the general partner. You can also use more than one Family Limited Partnership. This way you can segregate safe assets like bank accounts, from risky assets like investment real estate, boats, and planes.

Example:

LLC Combined With FLP and Revocable Trust

We form for you an asset-protected Nevada LLC with to hold risky assets like real estate or to run your business privately. Our Nevada LLC is the strongest out there, with a 100-page operating agreement designed specifically to take full advantage of every one of Nevada’s asset protection laws. Guaranteed to stand up to any creditor or attacking attorney.

We form for you an FLP to protect your personal assets and to work with the LLC in a specific way.

We structure everything so that everything flows through your revocable trust for all assets to pass easily to heirs.

The FLP will hold safe assets like bank accounts, and we will prepare for you an equity stripping lien with consideration, for the FLP to place on your home to secure its equity.

Do it yourself asset protection

For information on do it yourself asset protection please click here.

Nevada Corporations – Wyoming Corporations – Delaware Corporations – Asset Protection Service – Asset Protection Strategies – Nevada LLCs – Nevada Family Limited Partnerships” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/lawsuits-against-you/
17 publish Lawsuits Against Your Business “

We form, plan and implement asset protection for small business owners and entrepreneurs. We assist you in structuring a business model that will allow you to achieve the maximum in asset protection and operational efficiencies for your business endeavors.

What is business asset protection? 

Beware! Your business entity, whether it is a limited liability company, limited partnership, or corporation does not protect you from inside attacks. The entity you are using may protect you from outside attacks if properly set up.

Business asset protection requires that the proper entities be set up to protect you from both inside and outside attacks.

A properly drafted asset protection entity and a soled plan are both need to protect you from both inside and outside attacks.

  • Protect Accounts receivable, plus all personal assets from creditors/lawsuits
  • Protect equipment
  • Protect trademarks
  • Protect Patents
  • Protect stocks and bonds
  • Protect raw material

Protect notes receivable 

Asset-rich small-business owners are the prime target of hungry attorneys.

2 out of 3 small businesses will be sued in 2010. Seventy million civil lawsuits were filed in 2009.



Don’t be their next victim. Let our 20 years of asset protection experience provide you with the best plan and asset protection entities that you need for your individual business requirements.

How Do We Protect You?

We custom design the proper mix of protective structure for your unique business needs. We have many choices to choose from.

Friendly liens can be placed on business assets

Holding entities that can be limited liability companies, limited partnerships, corporations or asset protection trusts can be formed to hold valuable business assets and lease them back to the operating entity on favorable terms.

Aged entities can be provided if necessary

The operating entities which are the ones most likely to be sued will hold little incentive for a greedy attorney if they hold no assets

Agreements with the valuable asset holding entities can be structured to prevent use of the asset to the operating entity in the event of lawsuits, involuntary bankruptcy, judgments or any kind of creditor attack

Call us for consultation on which entity(ies) is best for your needs. We can assist you in designing a business asset protection plan that will keep your creditors at bay and meet your needs for business and personal privacy.

Below is a list of just a few of the reasons your business can be sued. But remember, we can protect you!!

  • Employment lawsuits arising from:
  • Age discrimination
  • Racial discrimination
  • Gender discrimination
  • Religious discrimination
  • Pregnancy discrimination
  • Disability discrimination
  • Mental illness discrimination
  • Addiction discrimination
  • Sexual harassment
  • Peer harassment
  • Gossip among employees
  • Job references (good or bad)
  • Whistle blowing
  • Retaliation
  • Wrongful termination
  • Negligent employee retention
  • Releasing medical information
  • Unequal mental vs. physical health coverage
  • Employee injury from chemical exposure

Professional Malpractice lawsuits arising from

  • Medical malpractice
  • Legal malpractice
  • Psychological malpractice
  • Engineering malpractice
  • Architectural malpractice
  • Malpractice for any licensed professional

Business Liability lawsuits arising from

  • Environmental cleanup liability
  • Product liability
  • Shareholder liability
  • Securities fraud
  • Liability of outside directors
  • Liability from unsatisfied customers
  • Personal injury when a customer drinks too much and hurts someone
  • Personal injury when a customer slips and falls
  • And much more

Remember an attorney only needs 10 minutes on a computer to find out everything you, your spouse, your children, your in-laws and all relatives have every owned or currently own. If they find assets in your name or your business name, then you and your business will become a target. 

Placing assets in the names of friends and family does not work. It is fraudulent conveyance and will cause the judge to unwind the transfer. It can also cause gift tax issues of up to 35% to 40% with the IRS plus state tax issues.

Over 2/3 of all judgments exceed the liability insurance coverage limits. You or your business is liable for the excess. 


Attorneys’ income comes mostly from filing lawsuits against business owners.

They file 55,000 lawsuits every single day in the U.S. 


The only way to guarantee you cannot lose anything to a lawsuit is to have business asset protection in such a way that no judge or attorney can find or seize business or personal assets.

What we do

  • Complete all government filing forms for the entity filing and officer’s list filing
  • Obtain EIN for your entity if needed
  • Prepare the essential for asset protection, operating agreements, partnership agreements, by-laws and trust documents that are required
  • Prepare any lien documents for you to file

We will analyze with you your individual situation and needs and recommend several different scenarios and price points to assist you in making the best choice possible.

We will quote you one price that will encompass all of our services. If necessary, we will make offshore solutions a part of your domestic structure in order to give it more strength and viability.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/lawsuits-against-your-business/
19 publish Creditor Seizures / Charging Orders “We design, form and service asset-protected LLCs, corporations, trusts and family limited partnerships

Creditor Protection

If you cannot pay your debts and you do not negotiate to manage your debt, your creditor who has extended you the funds to pay for what you bought will sue you and get a judgment from the court.

Once the creditor has the judgment, if you have assets they can attack, they will simply attach those assets. That means they now own them or have liens against the assets. They are also aggressive about garnishing wages and all states except Pennsylvania, North and South Carolina, Florida and Texas allow generous percentages of attachment of your W2 wages.

What Is A Fraudulent Transfer of Assets?

A fraudulent transfer is transferring or protecting assets with the intention of ‘hindering delaying or defrauding’ your creditors. If a transfer is deemed fraudulent the court will unwind it.

Asset protection plans that are structured and implemented years in advance of need will withstand any creditor attack. But, they must be set up before a problem arises. If you set up a plan the day after a judgment, then the plan is of no value. It must be set up before a problem arises. In some cases the court may apply the Badges of Fraud in determining if the transfer was fraudulent. It is difficult to prove your intent. So the pages of fraud are used to try and sort things out.

When financial transactions hide assets the subject of a debt collection, divorce, or bankruptcy case, the Court looks for badges of fraud. The badges of fraud for fraudulent asset transfers are:

  • A Close Relationship Between The Parties
  • A Transfer Outside The Ordinary Scope Of Business
  • Inadequate Consideration
  • Knowledge Of A Creditor’s Claim
  • Retention Of Control Of The Property

If the court looks at the above and decides that the Badges of Fraud apply, then they may reverse the transfer and put assets back where they were beforehand so that the creditor can attach the asset.

How to Make your Creditor Cry!

What if your assets are in a limited liability company, family limited partnership, or asset protection trust? Can a creditor still attach them? Usually not. If you have properly set up an asset protection program in advance then your creditor, as one commentator put it “can just sit down and cry”. They can try to go back to court and get what is called a charging order against your interest. But, few bother. A charging order allows them to get any distributions made to you. But, if no distributions are made, but profits are realized, then the creditor can end up having to pay income taxes on money he never got as a result of the charging order.

Can you still protect me if I am already in default?

Asset protection options are extremely limited and difficult if you wait to get protection until after you are already in default to your creditors. One possible solution can be found in the Xonics Case. In that case it was determined there may be circumstances where you can protect assets after a lawsuit. It would require your attorney to look at the lawsuit, the amount you are being sued for, and the actual settlement that is likely to be reached. He can take into account insurance proceeds, and any other elements that he reasonably feels may lower your ultimate liability. Then, if may be possible for you to protect anything over and above the number he comes up with.

Call us for details.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/creditor-seizures-charging-orders/
21 publish If You’re A Physician “

We protect Physicians

We form, plan and implement asset protection for physicians, dentists, chiropractors and other health care professionals. We assist you in structuring a business model that will allow you to achieve the maximum in asset protection and operational efficiencies for your professional practice. We help shield you from excessive malpractice claims.

What is professional asset protection?

Protect the assets of your practice and your personal assets from any lawsuit. Protect your practice from internal lawsuits resulting from greedy attorney filing phony lawsuits against you for discrimination, sexual harassment and terminations. Accounts receivable can be protected from creditor attachment

Doctors are the #1 target of unscrupulous attorneys.

Regardless of how you are running your practice, you need to have the proper mix of asset-protected entities to shield both your business and your personal assets from any attack.

We have physician clients in all 50 states sleeping better at night, with the knowledge they cannot be sued successfully by anyone for any reason.

How can we protect you?

We use one or more of the following:

Nevada corporations, Nevada LLCs, Nevada family limited partnerships, Wyoming corporations and LLCs, Delaware corporations, U.S. Grantor trusts, offshore IBCs. More and more physicians are now forming Integrated Asset Protection Trusts (APT) which allows us to effective prohibit any creditor from reaching your assets.

Call us for consultation on which entity(ies) is best for your needs.

2 out of 3 doctors will be sued in 2010.

67% of malpractice lawsuits exceed malpractice coverage limits. The doctor is personally liable for the excess. Doctors need effective medical asset protection.

There is a disturbing, growing trend of criminalizing medical decisions. Doctors don’t just lose their medical license, they can go to jail. More and more doctors are having their medical decisions second guessed by 12 jurors who know nothing about medicine.

If you carry a large bank or brokerage account, a large malpractice policy, or have a lot of business and personal assets, you WILL be targeted by an attorney. You must have medical asset protection such that you cannot be successfully sued by anyone.

An attorney needs only 10 minutes to find every asset you have ever owned from past to present. A more detailed search using their private investigator will find assets in your father’s brother’s best friend’s uncle’s name that you have tried to hide. Putting assets in the name of spouse, family or friends does not work. In fact in can work against you by causing your relatives to be sued for fraudulent conveyance and get the IRS involved trying to collect gift taxes from them. At 35% to 40% these gift taxes can be worse than paying the creditors.

The only way to guarantee you cannot lose anything to a lawsuit is to have asset protection where no judge or attorney can find or see what you own, thus they cannot seize your assets. You need not only an entity that can provide a degree of invisibility and anonymity but an entity that is structured so that an attack is futile

Discover how real people just like you are asset protecting their home, bank accounts, real estate, securities. We do everything required to form, set up and service asset protection structures customized to your needs. It does not matter where you live and practice; we have clients in all 50 states.

Examples of how to protect your assets:

1. You hold assets in your own name:

You have no asset protection and are vulnerable to attack by any creditor or lawyer wanting to file a lawsuit against you. A judgment creditor can swoop in easily and attach any assets you have.

2. You do NOT hold title to your assets in your own name:

Your Family Limited Partnership holds title but as general partner you control everything. It is no longer easy for creditors to discover what you own and it is very difficult, if not impossible for them to break through.

If you want even more privacy and anonymity, a Limited Liability Company (LLC) properly structured will work with the FLP to segregate safe assets like bank accounts, from risky assets like investment real estate, boats, and planes.

LLC for Asset Protection, Combined With FLP and Revocable Trust

We form for you a Nevada LLC with to hold risky assets like real estate or to run your business privately. Our Nevada LLC is the strongest out there, with a 65-page operating agreement designed specifically to take full advantage of every one of Nevada’s asset protection laws. Guaranteed to stand up to any creditor or attacking attorney.

We form for you an FLP to work together with the LLC.

We structure everything to flow through your revocable trust so all assets pass easily to heirs.

The FLP will hold safe assets like bank accounts, and we will prepare for you an equity-stripping lien with consideration for the FLP to place on your home to secure its exposed equity.

3. Protecting Your Business Assets:

Your Nevada, Wyoming, Delaware or offshore corporation provides a line of credit secured by the assets of your existing domestic business that’s in your state. The assets can be equipment, autos, stock accounts etc.

Now all your assets, personal as well as business, are encumbered and a creditor will have little luck in reaching you.

4. Using a domestic or offshore corporation to add extra protection to a FLP:

Your Nevada, Delaware, Wyoming corporation, or offshore corporation provides an equity line of credit to your limited partnership and takes a 2nd trust deed as an equity stripping lien with consideration, to secure its position. The Nevada Corporation or Foreign Corporation will be ahead of any creditor that files a lien. When the first trust deed is paid off, the Nevada or foreign corporations now are in first position. Upon a sale the proceeds will be paid to the Nevada or foreign corporation.

Are These The Only Scenarios?

No, the above examples are just a few ways that asset protection can be put to use to protect your home and business assets. There are many more ways and methods of doing things. Contact us to find out what works best for you. A good plan requires time to set up, the proper transfer of assets, and solid documentation, all of which we do for you.

Asset Protection – Asset Protection for Doctors – Asset Protection Service – Asset Protection Strategies – Offshore Trusts – Limited Partnerships – Nevada Corporations” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/if-youre-a-physician/
24 publish If You’re In Mortgage Default “Many people today are calling about mortgage defaults and their desire to protect good properties from bad properties. Real estate bought during the boom years is now underwater and it is no longer possible to maintain the mortgage payments on this property. However properties bought in other geographical locations or many years ago frequently can be saved. The banks are not very cooperative in this area and few banks are working with the borrowers. Answers are not forthcoming and solutions seem to be impossible to obtain.

The good news is that due to the huge volume of defaults, the banks are not doing a very aggressive job of collecting. What is known for sure is that if nothing is done, then the bank will attach all of the good properties you may own in order to cover the deficiencies on the bad properties. In addition they will attach cash and brokerage accounts. So, if you do nothing it is 100% sure that they will attach assets.

If an asset protection plan is put into place, then the banks are very unlikely to pursue the other assets due again, to the huge volume of defaults they are dealing with. So, if you do something it is no longer 100% sure that the banks will attach assets. All of this must be done by keeping the fraudulent conveyance rules in mind.

We have had great luck in this area and we are not aware of any client who as lost their good properties after we have worked on a properly done and legal asset protection plan.

The judicious use of limited liability companies, family limited partnerships, and asset protection trusts in this area can do wonders. Friendly liens can also accomplish tremendous things when properly utilized.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/if-youre-in-mortgage-default/
26 publish Asset Protection and Estate Planning Structures “An asset protection and estate plan require professional structuring of the plan. Just forming entities such as Limited Liability Companies, Limited Partnerships, Corporations, or International Asset Protection Trusts will not be sufficient to protect your assets. It is important to know how to manage them and how to structure these entities so that they inter relate in a way that makes sense and works.

As part of our service we bring our 20 years of expertise in asset protection and business to assist you in putting together a tax neutral and asset protected plan that makes sense both from and asset protection point of view and from and estate planning point of view.

Far too often we see clients come to us with a group of Limited Liability Companies or Family Limited Partnership but absolutely no idea how to put them all together. They bought them from a smart salesman but that smart salesman had no idea of tax laws, structuring or documentation.

A properly done asset protection plan will properly segregate assets in such a way as to achieve the maximum in asset protection and in estate planning. It does not make sense to do one without the other.

So, do yourself a favor and focus on the integrated package of asset protection planning and estate planning. Done properly it will not only keep your creditors at bay, but allow you to avoid probate and lower your estate taxes. And, lowering estate taxes is a worthy goal for all us.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/estate-planning-structures/
28 publish Do You Want an S Corp. or an LLC? “This is a question that we are frequently asked so here is a brief comparison between the two. They both have certain similarities. They are pass-through tax entities and offer some degree of liability protection. However, an LLC would be more likely to offer superior liability protection over an S corporation based on the individual state laws where the entity is incorporated. The pass-through taxation feature means that the income or loss is reflected on the personal income tax returns of the owners.

However, there are many other areas where the two are quite different. The ownership of an S corporation is restricted to 75 shareholders. An LLC has no restriction on the number of shareholders. S corporations are restricted to U.S. citizens as shareholders whereas LLCs have no such restrictions. An S corporation cannot be owned by C corporations, other S corporations, partnership, LLCs and many kinds of trusts. LLCs have no such restrictions.

S corporations are restrictive when it comes to distributing profits. An S corporation can only have one class of stock and your percentage ownership in the stock determines your percentage of pass-through income or loss. An LLC does not have these restrictions. It can have multiple classes of interest and the pass-through profits or loss are not dependent on the ownership percentage. The members can set an agreement that allows for the pass-through percentage to differ from the ownership percentage.

S corporation stock is freely transferable to others, while an LLC ownership is not. The operating agreement generally requires approval from the other members before ownership can be transferred. This is generally regarded as a plus from an asset protection point of view, so that a creditor cannot get an ownership in the company.

S corporations also can have an advantage with the payment of self-employment taxes. It is generally assumed that most income from an LLC is subject to self-employment taxes, whereas the dividends from an S corporation are not.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/s-corp-or-llc/
30 publish Who We Are “Robert Matthews is the founder and primary owner of Assetprotection.com. The business started in 1988 and in the beginning years there were offices in Riverside and Thousand Oaks, California. In the early and mid-nineties, the company put on numerous asset protection seminars up and down California and in Texas, Nevada and Florida. The name robertmatthews.wpengine.com was obtained in 1993 when the Internet was in its infancy. Today it is a coveted name sought after by many. However it is not for sale.

We now operate from Ojai California with satellite affiliates in Palm Desert, Salt Lake City, North Carolina and New York. Our emphasis is on integrated estate and asset protection planning. We can provide anything from a simple asset protection plan to a complex domestic and foreign estate and asset protection plan. Through the uses of Family Limited Liability Companies, Family Limited Partnerships, Corporations and numerous kinds of domestic, hybrid and foreign trusts we protect your personal and business assets.

We have over 22 years in the asset protection and estate planning business and we are among the most knowledgeable experts in this unique field. When necessary, we can bring attorneys and CPAs in as a part of our team to provide even more insight and planning depth. Our asset protection plans allow you the comfort of knowing that your hard earned assets are protected completely. A good asset protection plan allows your to Sleep Easy at night!

The business is operating under the name Global Asset Advisors, Inc. a California Corporation with a Better Business Bureau rating of A+.

Please call us at 800-710-0002 for a free consultation.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/who-we-are/
32 publish Limited Liability Company “Keep your creditors from grabbing your hard earned assets with an asset protected Limited Liability Company.

What is it?

The first Limited Liability Companies ( LLCs) were set up in Wyoming in the 1970’s. The goal was to set up a business structure that had the benefits of a corporation (limited liability) without the downside of double taxation.

Why use a Limited Liability Company?

A Limited Liability Company is used because it is a highly effective way to move assets out of your name and into a tax neutral, asset protected entity. A judgment against you is not valid against a Limited Liability Company and the assets it holds. Properly set up with our asset protected LLC and operating agreement, a creditor will have a very difficult time trying to break through to the underlying assets.

Where are they used?

Limited Liability Companies are now used in every state and can provide extensive asset protection benefits. Most asset protection attorneys and accountants now recommend them. Some foreign countries now use them also, such as the Cook Islands, Nevis and Samoa.

How is an LLC taxed?

From a tax standpoint they have distinct advantages. An LLC can be used as a pass though entity so that you do not have any double taxation. A single member LLC can be a disregarded entity and no tax return need be filed at all. A husband and wife in a community property state can also set the LLC up as a single member entity.

Can an LLC own real estate?

Yes, in fact only a disregarded entity LLC should be used to own your home. A big mistake made by many unknowledgeable web based asset protection sites is that they recommend that you put your primary residence into an Family Limited Partnership (FLP). Big mistake. You could lose your $250,000 per person exemption at time of sale and you could lose the ability to write off your mortgage interest!

What is a charging order?

In a “sole remedy” state a charging order is the only remedy a creditor has against the Limited Liability Company.

What does this mean? It means that the creditor cannot take your ownership or your place in the LLC. It means that they are only entitled to any distributions you make to yourself. If your Limited Liability Company makes a profit but does not distribute, then a creditor that has obtained a charging order, inherits your tax position. They must pay taxes on the money they never received!!

What is a “sole remedy “state?

It is a state that says that a charging order is the only remedy a creditor has. Some of these states are Nevada, Arizona, Delaware, and Wyoming. Other states such as California allow a creditor to foreclose on your ownership interest.

Do I need an operating agreement?

This is one of the most important considerations in forming a Limited Liability Company. It is second only to the state it is formed in. A properly structured and designed operating agreement is ESSENTIAL. Without one a creditor will slide right through your veil like a hot knife through butter. One of the biggest mistakes we see is customers forming Limited Liability Companies with discount internet sites, which not only give no structuring or estate planning advice but provide 7 to 10 page operating agreements that are worthless. Be Careful. You get what you pay for.

Click here for our 21 items that must be included in a properly structured operating agreement.

Will a Limited Liability Company keep the wolves at bay?

Yes, it separates your assets from each other and from business assets. It limits if not outright prevents the ability of a creditor to attack or attach assets.

Can a Limited Liability Company have only one member?

Yes, this is one of the advantages of an LLC over an FLP. You can have just one member. That member can be a person, corporation, another LLC, trust, FLP. They choices are almost limitless.

Friendly Liens. Click here to see how our unique friendly line method can help preserve your assets.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/limited-liability-company/
36 publish Family Limited Partnership (FLP) “The Limited Partnership has been around in the United States for over 100 years. They became very popular in the 1980’s when many real estate professionals started using them. A Limited Partnership has two classes of partners…the General Partner and the Limited Partners. The General Partners are the managers and have unlimited liability. The Limited Partners are the investors and they have limited liability. The Limited Partners are not allowed to get involved in the management or day to day operations of the partnership.

The word “family” in front of the name is just an adjective to define the fact that the partnership is owned mostly by family members.

If a Family Limited Partnership (FLP) is drawn up in an asset protection state that is regarded as a sole remedy state, the charging order is the only recourse a creditor has against the assets of the partnership. With a charging order a judgment creditor may get a lien but if the partnership agreement is properly drafted he will never be able to force a distribution of partnership assets.

Why does the charging order matter to you?

Simple. It will force the creditor to come back to the table and negotiate with you. A charging order that nets the creditor no money and maybe even a tax liability is of no value to him. But, if you can get the creditor to accept far less than he otherwise would accept, then the asset protection plan and specifically the Family Limited Partnership will have worked for you.

The Family Limited Partnership is one of the powerful tools we use to protect you. However in and of itself it may not be enough. It may very well be that you need multiple FLP’s and Limited Liability Companies combined with other more sophisticated techniques to keep your creditors at bay.

Unlike an Limited Liability Company, a Family Limited Partnership requires two members. However, that can be arranged by using a Limited Liability Company as a member, the family trust, another family member etc. There are multiple ways to achieve the two member minimum.

Some people prefer the FLP because the partnership agreement normally requires Unanimous Consent for dissolution as opposed to majority in interest (51%) as with an LLC. However, with proper drafting this can be overcome.

Also in some states the Family Limited Partnership laws are stronger than the Limited Liability Company laws and in those states an FLP may be the way to go.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/family-limited-partnership/
38 publish Corporations “There are two main types of corporations that are used in the United States. There is the C corporation and the Sub Chapter S corporation. The C Corporation is used by most major public stock companies. It can have unlimited shareholders and the shareholders can be both foreign and domestic in nature. These corporations have typically had what is called the “double taxation” issue. This is because the corporation pays taxes and then when dividends are paid to the shareholders, they pay taxes a second time on the same profits.

For this reason C corporations are not common among small business people. They will tend to use an S corporation where the profits are only taxed once. The corporation does not really pay taxes. The shareholders do, much like with a partnership. The S corporation has restrictions on the number of shareholders and who can be a shareholder, so they are not for everyone.

From as asset protection point of view the corporation does not offer a lot in benefits. A creditor can seize your stock ownership and thus your interest in the company. In as S corporation, if you are the sole shareholder, they may seize all of your stock and thus gain access to all of the assets of the company.

The stock in a C corporation can be placed in a Limited Liability Company or an Asset Protection Trust in order to protect it. The stock in an S corporation is not so easily protected due to the limitations on ownership of the stock. Usually the assets have to be distributed to another entity that in turn offers asset protection such as a Limited Liability Company, Family Limited Partnership or and Asset Protection Trust.

Contact us for questions in this area and we will be pleased to assist you in drawing up your asset protection plan.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/corp/
40 draft Asset Protection Trust “Sample of an asset protection trust set up. Please see comments below.

People frequently say “I want bullet proof asset protection.”  I had an attorney friend of mine some years ago joke during seminars that the only true way to be bullet proof was to be poverty stricken and destitute.  Then he would go on to say that the next best thing to that was to form and International Asset Protection Trust (IAPT).  This was 12 years ago that he used to say this.  It was true then and it is still true today.

Many Asset Protection Trusts that are formed are actually hybrids. Â They are both in the U.S. and outside of the U.S. Â This allows for easy tax compliance and does not initially require any extra IRS or Treasury Department reporting requirements. Â As long as an Asset Protection trust meets the Court and Control test it does not have any special reporting requirements. The Court and Control test, simplified, says that as long as the trust is controlled from within the U.S. and is subject to U.S. court jurisdiction it does not have to do any special reporting. Basically it is a U.S. Grantor Trust.

Over the past 20 to 25 years IAPTs have become the most popular trusts for U.S. citizens to set up in foreign jurisdictions. Â The ease of annual administration is simple and inexpensive and they have been proven to have highly effective asset protection benefits. Â Essentially, at the time of formation, the Asset Protection Trusts are not offshore trusts. Â They are domestic trusts with the ability to become an offshore trust, if necessary.

In reality, most trusts that are set up as hybrids never have to become true offshore trust.  The reason is that most creditors quickly back off once they find that an International Asset Protection Trust  is in the picture.  If the IAPT was set up long enough ago that there is no issue of fraudulent conveyance, then the creditor knows that an attack is futile.  In fact many creditors that could make a fraudulent conveyance argument rarely do. It is simply too expensive for them to go down that path.  In the 20 years our company

has been in business, only two trusts needed to convert to offshore status. Â In all other cases the creditor either walked away or the client was able to negotiate a satisfactory settlement.

Elements of an International Asset Protection Trust

There are various elements to a trust that make it an International Asset Protection Trust. Â Although, different people will have different definitions, these attributes are common in an IAPT.

  • 1. It has a U. S. Managing Trustee
  • 2. It has an offshore Custodian Trustee or Standby Trustee
  • 3. It has a U.S. Protector
  • 4. It has a foreign registration in an asset protection county
  • 5. It states clearly in the trust document that the trust is a U.S. Grantor Trust for tax purposes

Most clients want to be their own Managing Trustee. Â This is an absolute no no. Â This control will immediately allow a creditor to get access to the trust assets. If properly done a client can be the Protector if necessary. Â But, even this position id

eally should be someone else. Â The Custodian Trustee is a trust company in a foreign jurisdiction and normally an asset protection country such as Belize, the Cook Islands, or Nevis is used. These countries are considered asset protection jurisdictions because they have trust laws that support International Asset Protection Trusts and prevent any access to the trust or its assets.

As mentioned the International Asset Protection Trusts are set up as U.S. Grantor Trusts at inception.  However, in the face of a very aggressive creditor, the trusts can morph into a true foreign asset protection trust. Once that happens there is no longer a U.S. Managing Trustee or a U.S. Protector. Thus, there is no U.S. presence and no U.S. court can gain jurisdiction over the trust. The Asset Protected Trust is now managed in a jurisdiction that has laws and policies that are favorable to the trust, the trust Settlor and the trust assets.

Obviously the trust document for an International Asset Protection Trust is a very specialized and finely tuned instrument. This is not something that is available “off the shelf” from a foreign trust company. There are no foreign trust companies that make this document available to the general public.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/?page_id=40
42 publish Living Trust “A living trust is used for a variety of reasons. One is that they allow the assets to pass to the heirs without going through probate. Probate can be a very expensive and time consuming process that states use to transfer money from the deceased to the heirs. Many times probate fees are based on a percentage of the net worth or in some cases on gross asset values.

A living trust also allows for privacy. When the estate goes through probate, all of the information is public. When an estate has a living trust, the assets and terms are private and not available to snooping eyes.

Another reason for a living trust is that it can allow for an estate tax savings when formed by a married couple. Without a trust, a married couple’s estate does not allow them to effectively double the estate tax exemption. When the first dies, the estate passes tax free to the second spouse, but when that spouse dies only one exemption passes to the heirs. With a living trust, a married couple can pass both the husband and wife’s estate tax exemption to the heirs. This is done by creating two trusts at the time of death of the first spouse. One is created for the dead spouse and one for the spouse that still lives. Sometimes referred to an A B Trust. The A for above ground and the B for below ground. The surviving spouse will still have access to funds from both trusts for his or her welfare, maintenance and support.

Usually, the Settlors of the trust are also the Trustees. The trusts are normally revocable so that the Settlors can change and alter the terms of the trust at will. The trusts do not provide asset protection but do provide estate planning.

A typical trust will also have a will for both spouses as well as health care directives. Most couples make their children the beneficiaries of the trust. The one common problem with this is that the trust typically calls for a mandatory distribution to the kids as ages 25, 30 and 35. The problem with this is that a creditor of the child can easily get and attach those funds. It is far better to make the distributions to the children discretionary so that a creditor cannot automatically attach the trust funds.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/living-trust/
44 publish Special Power of Appointment (SPA) Trust – GUIDE “A Special Power of Appointment Trust offers you superior asset protection and allows you to remove assets from the trust without being a named beneficiary. It allows you to pull the assets back out of the trust at any time. While the assets are in the trust you are not the trustee or a beneficiary but a trusted person can name you as a beneficiary at some future date. At that future time you can gain access to the income or to the assets once again.

COURTS AND THE SPA TRUST

If a Settler is a beneficiary of a trust, then the courts can attach the assets. The beauty of a Special Power of Appointment Trust is that since the Settler is not a beneficiary or a Trustee then the creditor cannot get what the Settler cannot get. As the California Probate Code section 15304(b) states in part:

“if the settler is the beneficiary of a trust…a creditor of the settler may reach the maximum amount that the trustee could pay to or for the benefit of the settler under the trust instrument.”

In addition, California Probate Code goes on to say in Section 681:

“property covered by a special power of appointment is not subject to the claims of creditors of the done or of the donee’s estate or to the expenses of the administration of the donee’s estate.”

Most all states have similar language in their Probate Codes. So as you can see these trusts are very powerful indeed.

California is one of the most creditor friendly states around. However, even in that state a SPA Trust was upheld in Wilmington Capital LLC vs. The Big Whale Trust. In May of 2012 the Los Angeles County Superior Court dismissed a case against The Big Whale Trust…a SPA Trust.

There are many cases nationwide that support the usage of a SPA Trust and the inability of a creditor to gain access to the assets.

THE PERSON WITH THE POWER

In our SPA Trusts we like to use both a Trustee and a Protector. The Protector is the one with the power. The power to appoint you or anyone else in an approved class as a future beneficiary. That person with the power can appoint you as a beneficiary at any time that you want. It can be one day, one year, ten years, twenty years, it does not matter. They have to power to place the assets back in your hands.

THE USAGE OF A SPA TRUST

How the SPA Trust is used is so very important. Like most trusts the SPA Trust should not be used to directly hold assets. Just like if you hold all of your assets in your name, they are now available for a creditor to get access to, the same is true for a trust.

The actual assets are normally held in some form of additional entity and that entity is in turn owned by the SPA Trust. Real Estate is normally held within an asset protected LLC (PUT LINK TO MY LLC PAGE) The SPA Trust then becomes an owner or a sole owner of the asset protected LLC. Cash or stocks can be owned by an LLC and the SPA trust in turn will be an owner of that LLC.

Business entities may be held by an S Corporation or a C Corporation. The SPA Trust can then be a shareholder in those corporations.

You can make your spouse the trustee of the trust and have her open a bank account. The trust can deposit the money into that account and then she can transfer the money to your joint account. This now allows you to gain access to those trust funds.

NO PUBLIC RECORD OF TRUST

The SPA Trust is not filed with any government agency. Therefore, there is no public record of the trust. No other person can see the terms and conditions of the trust. It is all private. The only thing that may need to be reveled is a one-page Certificate of Trust that gives a very brief summary of the conditions of the trust. But the actual document in totally private.

THE SPA TRUST AND INCOME TAXES

There is no effect on your income taxes. This is what is called a Grantor Trust, and as such all income is reported on your personal return. If you put assets in, or take them out, there is no difference in the tax that you owe. You can even have the assets taxed to your spouse if you want. In the event you file a separate tax return this would keep the assets from showing up on your return at all. You could also invest in assets such as growth stocks assets that are not taxed such as muni bonds so that the income and assets of the trust do not show on your return at all.

ASSETS IN YOUR TRUST

One of the great things about the SPA Trust is that there are no restrictions on the kinds of assets you can place into the trust. So, anything you can think of can be placed into the trust. However, be careful that you do not mix valuable assets with risky assets or assets that are likely to incur liabilities. This is where asset protected LLCs really come in handy. They can be used to separate the assets from each other and then the SPA Trust can be the owner of the asset protected LLCs.

THE TRUSTEE

We like to use the Trustee of your SPA Trust as the administrator. He or she is the one who handles all administrative functions that arise from communicating with the CPA, opening bank accounts, and properly maintaining paperwork. This is obviously a trusted person to you. However, the most trust is the Protector who can make you a beneficiary of the trust now or in the future. The Trustee and Protector are persons that you trust who would not also be beneficiaries of the trust.

YOU DO NOT OWN THE ASSETS

You have no personal ownership of assets with the SPA Trust. The assets are owned by the irrevocable trust or the assets are owned by an asset protected LLC that in turn is owned by the SPA Trust. If you get sued or file bankruptcy you are required to disclose your assets. But the assets in the SPA Trust will not have to be disclosed because you do not own them. If a creditor requests a list of your assets at a deposition, the assets in the SPA Trust would not have to be listed. You do not own them. The trust is the true owner.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/spa-trust/
46 publish Friendly Lien – GUIDE “

Effective Equity Stripping Through Friendly Liens

Friendly liens are a fantastic way to protect the equity in your real estate or other business assets. We can provide equity stripping for both real estate assets through the use of a Mortgage or Deed of Trust and business assets through the use of a UCC-1 filing.

Many times potential creditors will run checks on your assets to see how much equity is available for them to get a hold of. If they see that you own real estate with lots of available equity, then the assets can become a target for the creditor. It can be something they want. The same can be said for business assets. If a potential creditor sees lots of equity in equipment, inventory or other business assets, they may decide to go after those assets.

A good solid equity stripping program can remove these assets from prying eyes. The assets will give the appearance of now value due to the kind and nature of the liens and therefore the potential creditor will move on the greener pastures someplace else.

THE MAGIC OF MAKING IT HAPPEN

There are many equity stripping programs on the Internet. The problem is most of them make no economic sense. And, in far too many cases a third party whom you do not know is the one controlling the lien on your assets.

An equity stripping lien works best when it is set up in such a way as there is a business purpose behind it. If you can go before a judge and tell him what you did and why and have it make economic sense, then you are in a good place. Far too often people will say that there is a lien on their assets but they have no idea why it is there. Frequently there is no consideration for the lien. Someone, somewhere just puts a lien on the assets. Not good!

However, there is a better way. By using our capitalization notes, our liens make total economic sense. As long as you make payments on your notes you are good to go.

TAX CONSIDERATIONS

Since the entity placing the lien is ultimately owned by you or has a pass through taxation that points to you, then there are no tax issues. In essence you are paying yourself. So it is a dollar deduction on one end and a dollar income on another.

LIEN ENTITIES

Normally an entity is formed for the specific purpose of placing the lien. All different kinds of entities could be used for this. We normally like to form an entity in a state that does not publish the names of the managers or owners and allows us to have some degree of freedom in the words available for the name. It helps if the entity that placing the lien has a name that is associated with lending and has no easy availability of Internet access as to who the owners and managers might be.

YOU HAVE TO WORK IT

In order for an equity stripping lien to work and hold up in court, it is vital that the lien by properly honored. That means any payments that need to be made must be made on a regular basis. Even through the payments may be made to an entity owned or controlled by you, those payments still must be made and they must be made on a regular basis.

The basic idea is that if you do not honor your own structure, then you cannot expect a judge to honor it. In those cases, where our clients have properly utilized the structured and made the payments, then it has proven to be a powerful and effective asset protection tool.

DOCUMENTS NEEDED FOR A FRIENDLY LIEN

In order to place the lien, we will need to form an entity that will be capitalized by you with a note. As collateral for that note the entity will place liens on various assets in the form of a mortgage, deed of trust or UCC-1 filing.

It will be necessary for you to provide us with copies of your deeds, and or a list of business assets to that we can properly prepare the documents. The finished documents will include a security agreement, note, operating agreement, minutes, share certificates and many other documents that will allow you to sleep easy knowing that your assets are protected.

The liens are then filed with the appropriate government agency to make sure that there is the proper public record of the asset lien.

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/friendly-lien/
48 publish IRS and Asset Protection “

Many years ago I was at a seminar and someone asked the speaker what effect asset protection had against the IRS. His response was that the “IRS is like any other creditor and will have to get in line”. That may have been true then, but not today. Fifteen years ago tax evaders received maybe 2 years or less in jail. Today it is seven to ten years. Penalties used to be something that was added on to discourage cheating. Today penalties are a major source of IRS revenue. It is almost impossible to not pay them.

Whereas asset protection techniques may work against the IRS in the short run, in the long run they work against the person who put them in place. Unlike other creditors the IRS never goes away. They will follow you to your death and then go after your heirs. In the meantime the IRS has a mind boggling array of penalties and fines that can increase the taxes owed by ten times in a very short period. Over the years, many potential clients have come to us owing the IRS many many times what the original tax was. They have decided to stonewall the IRS, hide, take money under the table, etc. etc. And, they only thing that has happened is that the tax keeps increasing and the IRS keeps pursuing.

For those who want tax reform, refusing to pay taxes is probably not the way to accomplish it. The reform needs to happen by electing congressmen and women who want change and will make it happen. They are the only ones who can do this. To date, none of them seem to want to do it once they get elected. And, with the deficits our country is running, it is no wonder.

Unlike many countries where tax evasion and avoidance is not a crime, it is in the United States. In many countries it is quite common to brag to your friends and co-workers how you did not pay taxes. However, in the United States that is not really the case. Most people here are not in favor of those who illegally fail to pay taxes and will openly complain about the taxes they have to pay because someone else is refusing to pay.

U.S. Tax evaders do not get much sympathy from the tax paying public.

So, the goal of this web site and our skills in asset protection is not to help people avoid paying taxes. So, please do not ask us to assist you. We will not do so. It is our feeling that all U.S. reporting requirements must be complied with and all U.S. taxes must be properly reported and paid.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/irs-and-asset-protection/
50 publish Pre-Inheritance Trust “Another effective option of protecting your assets is a Pre-Inheritance Trust (PIT). A PIT was originally used by wealthy individuals to reduce their estate tax liability while providing an inheritance for their children. The PIT has since evolved into a powerful asset protection tool.

Let’s look at the two benefits the PIT offers separately to understand how it works:

Estate Tax Planning

The U.S. estate tax law allows each individual taxpayer a certain amount of exemption when you pass an estate on to your heirs without having to pay an estate tax. For 2012, the exemption amount is $5 million.  This exemption amount will automatically go down to $1 million in 2013 unless Congress renews this exemption amount. In other words, if you die this year, the first $5 million of your estate is not subject to an estate tax. You might ask, “I’m not planning on dying this year. So how does that affect me?” Well, the tax code allows you to take that exemption any time in your life. So if you wish to gift $5 million to your children this year, they don’t have to pay a gift tax on that $5 million. Of course, any additional amount you leave to them in the future when you die will ALL be subject to estate tax since you have used up your $5 million lifetime exemption.

In addition to the $5 million exemption that might be reduced to just $1 million starting next year unless Congress acts, if you gift that $5 million to your children this year, the future compounded growth of that $5 million will not be counted toward your estate. Let’s say you don’t gift this $5 million now and keep it in your personal account and this $5 million earns a 5% annual return. Let’s also say that you’re going to live for another 25 years. The $5 million will grow to $17 million in 25 years. When you die, you will be paying an estate tax (currently at about 50%) on the $12 million cumulative earnings (or more if Congress allows the estate tax exemption amount to slide back down to $1 million after this year).

So if you gift that $5 million today to your heirs, you use up your lifetime exemption now but the compounded growth of that $5 million (the $12 million cumulative earnings) will no longer be counted toward your estate since they’re no longer yours.  You’re effectively saving yourself a 50% estate tax on the $12 million cumulative earnings when you die.

“But, but, but if I gift $5 million to my children now, they will just squander it,” you might say. Well, that’s where the PIT comes in. By gifting the money to the PIT instead of to your children directly, they cannot actually touch the money until a certain time and manner determined by you. In other words, you can gift money to the PIT now to reduce your estate and your future estate tax liability while keeping that money from your children until you want them to have it.

A married couple can gift up to $10 million to the PIT without gift tax liabilities.

Asset Protection

The asset protection benefit of a PIT is very easy to understand. Since you have gifted the money to the PIT, it’s no longer yours. If you are sued in the future, your judgment creditor cannot collect from the PIT since it’s no longer your assets.

In addition, since your children are just beneficiaries of the PIT and not owners of the trust assets until the assets are distributed to them at the time and manner predetermined by you, court judgments against your children are not recoverable from the PIT either.  The timing and manner of asset distribution from the PIT may be in one lump-sum or in small periodic payments.

In other words, the PIT completely protects your assets from lawsuits against you or your children.

Here are a few more important aspects of the PIT to consider:

  • In order to qualify as a gift and use up your $5 million lifetime exemption, you, the settlor of the trust, may not serve as the Trustee or Protector of the PIT. The Trustee and Protector can be a friend, financial advisor, your attorney or certain relatives.
  • You don’t have to gift $5 million into the PIT immediately. Any amount is perfectly fine. You may also gift in periodic chunks over time instead of in one lump sum upfront.
  • PITs are Irrevocable Asset Protection Trusts. Therefore the assets you place in the PIT may not be returned to you without tax consequences. You may, however, take out the earnings or interest generated from the assets.
  • A PIT can hold any assets including bank accounts, real estate, and ownership interests in companies (corporations and LLCs).
  • You can serve as the officer or manager of the corporations and/or LLCs owned by the PIT. As officer or manager of these entities, you may draw a salary or other non-salary compensation for your service. Since you are the officer/manager of these business entities, you have direct and executive control over the assets owned by these entities.
  • Your children can also be employed by these companies and draw compensation in amounts determined by you.

By proper construction, a PIT creates an insurmountable shield against the claims of creditors and ex-spouses as well as lowers your future estate tax exposure. If you want your children to have the use of your properties and assets, and not their spouses and potential step children, the PIT is a superior strategy to outright gifts.  PITs are growing in popularity as estates of middle-class families become larger. For further question on how a PIT can protect your assets while you maintain control over them, please give us a call.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/pre-inheritance-trust/
52 publish Renewals

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55 publish Contact Us “[et_pb_section admin_label=””section””][et_pb_row admin_label=””row”” make_fullwidth=””on”” use_custom_width=””on”” width_unit=””on”” custom_width_px=””1460px”” use_custom_gutter=””on”” gutter_width=””1″” padding_mobile=””off”” allow_player_pause=””off”” parallax=””off”” parallax_method=””off”” make_equal=””off”” parallax_1=””off”” parallax_method_1=””off”” parallax_2=””off”” parallax_method_2=””off”” column_padding_mobile=””on””][et_pb_column type=””1_2″”][et_pb_text admin_label=””Text”” background_layout=””light”” text_orientation=””left”” text_font_size=””14″” use_border_color=””off”” border_color=””#ffffff”” border_style=””solid”” custom_padding=””5%|5%|5%|5%””]

Contact Us

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57 publish Privacy Policy “Welcome to www.robertmatthews.wpengine.com (the “”Site””). This website privacy policy (“”Policy””) describes how Asset Protection.com and its subsidiaries (“”We””, “”we””, or “”Asset Protection.com””) may use and disclose personally identifiable information that we may collect about you through the Site (“”Personal Information””).

Collections and Uses of Personal Information

When you use or register with the Site, we may ask for certain Personal Information. The categories of Personal Information we may request include your name, contact information (email, address and phone number). Depending on the nature of your inquiry or activities on the Site, we may also ask for other personal and financial details, educational history, your occupational history, and other information.

We use Personal Information and other data collected through the Site to register you with the Site, to provide you with information regarding asset protection opportunities and other related information, and to otherwise provide you with requested information or services. We may also from time to time use your Personal Information to send you automated email messages or marketing materials regarding our services, including employment information. You may opt out of receiving such marketing email messages by sending a message to the email address below.

Disclosures of Personal Information

As described in Section 4 of the Terms of Use, Asset Protection.com will not sell or share your personal information with any 3rd party for commercial, marketing, or data mining services. Â We may disclose Personal Information to third parties in the following circumstances:

We may disclose information to the extent necessary or appropriate to government agencies, advisors, and other third parties in order to comply with applicable laws, the service of legal process, or if we reasonably believe that such action is necessary to (a) comply with the law requiring such disclosure; (b) protect the rights or property of Asset Protection.com or its affiliated companies; (c) prevent a crime or protect national security, or (d) protect the personal safety of the users or the public.

Revisions to the Policy

If we change this privacy policy we will post any updates here for your review. If we change material terms in this Policy, we will provide notice of the revised policy for 30 days on the home page at www.Asset Protection.com with a link back to this page.

Last updated: May, 2007.

Help Desk – If you need more information regarding the Site or this Notice, please contact:

Mailing Address

Asset Protection.com
226 W. Ojai Ave. Suite 101-513
Ojai CA 93023

Email Address

info@assetprotection.com

© 2010 Asset Protection.com All rights reserved.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/privacy-policy/
59 publish Terms of Use ”

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The Site and any related services are available to you, provided that you can form legally binding agreements under applicable law. The Site is not available to minors. If you are a minor, please do not use the Site.

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You acknowledge and accept that Asset Protection.com is only a passive forum for users to obtain information. Asset Protection.com does not screen or monitor any Submitted Materials. Asset Protection.com, therefore, makes no representation regarding the reliability, accuracy, completeness, validity, or truthfulness of any Submitted Materials. Â Asset Protection.com reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to delete, refuse, or ignore any Submitted Materials that Asset Protection.com considers to be unacceptable. Â In the event Asset Protection.com receives notification regarding any unacceptable Submitted Materials, Asset Protection.com may investigate such materials, in its sole discretion.

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Last updated: May 2007.

Help Desk – If you need more information regarding the Site or this Notice, please contact:

Mailing Address

Asset Protection.com
226 W. Ojai Ave. Suite 101-513
Ojai CA 93023

Email Address

info@assetprotection.com

© 2006 Asset Protection.com All rights reserved.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/terms-of-use/
61 publish How and Why Asset Protection Works “For years at robertmatthews.wpengine.com we have heard attorneys say to our clients, “Don’t do asset protection. It does not work.” It is never made clear to the client what “it does not work”, really means. Does it mean that the attorney is afraid that if the client does asset protection that the attorney will not get paid? Does it mean that the judge will throw it out? Does it mean that the client will have to settle? Does it mean, as some attorneys will try to make you believe, that you will go to jail if you do it?

In truth, people do not go to jail for protecting their assets. This is just something that some attorneys will use to scare you into keeping all of your assets where they can see them and get their hands on them.

When people protect their assets, by the use of some of the plans we recommend here, the assets are out of their name. The individual’s net worth does not change. Just the way they hold title or perhaps the amount of equity left in the asset.

When a creditor gets a judgment against someone, that judgment is filed in the county where the person lives and sometimes even four or five counties around where they may live. When that is done, then any real estate assets, bank accounts, cars boats, planes, etc., automatically get a lien against them. As soon as the creditor files and then takes a copy of the filing to the county recorder, bank, DMV, then they can get a lien on any assets that are in the same name as the judgment.

If assets are not in the name of the person on the judgment, then the lien. Â And this is a key point. If the asset is not in your name, then the judgment does not automatically attach to it. So assets that are in the name of limited liability companies, family limited partnerships, asset protection trusts, or other asset protected type of entity, will be safe from judgments against you.

85% to 95% of all judgments that are not collected in the first year are never collected. So, if you can have a plan in place that gets by the first year or two, then the chances are the creditor will move on to someone else.

It takes time and money for a creditor to try and break through an asset protection plan. Most creditors do not want to take that time and money. They purchase judgments in mass quantities and yours is just one of many. If you are difficult and the next one in the pile on their desk is easy, then who do you think they will pursue? Like anyone else they have to feed their families and they will go after the easy ones.

What you know for sure is that if you leave assets in your name, then the creditor will attach them. If assets are not in your name then you know that a creditor cannot automatically attach your assets. And that is the key. You do not want the automatic attachment that comes from having assets in your name.

But, you must take assets out of your name properly. Giving them to friends and relatives will not work. You must use a proper tax neutral asset protection plan with limited liability company operating agreements, limited partnership agreements and asset protection trust agreements that will hold a creditor at bay. Click here for why our agreements are better than the competitions.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/how-and-why-asset-protection-works/
63 publish Why Our Operating Agreement Is Better ”

The Importance of a Good Operating Agreement!!

First of all, it’s important to understand why an operating agreement is critical when using a LLC or a FLP in your asset protection planning. You see, LLC and FLP are partnerships in their legal sense. Assets inside the LLC/FLP are not owned by individual partners separately but by the entire partnership as a whole by agreement, hence the operating agreement or formally called, the partnership operating agreement. The fact that the LLC and FLP are partnerships is what makes them such ideal entities for asset protection.

When there is not a written operating agreement among the partners, there simply is no formal partnership. Just because you register a LLC or a FLP in your state doesn’t mean that you have a real partnership when it comes to protecting your assets.

If your LLC/FLP is ever challenged in court, the first thing the opposing legal counsel and the judge will ask for is your operating agreement. If you don’t have one, it’s likely that the judge will disregard your LLC/FLP as just an extension or alter ego of the owners.  Even if you have an operating agreement, you want to make sure that it’s really doing what you want, that is, asset protection, instead of running a business. An operating agreement that’s drafted for someone to run a business will actually do more harm than good to your asset protection plan.

Many customers ask about our operating agreement. They have checked into the discount services available and find that the operating agreements are either nonexistent or very poorly drafted. What do we offer that the competition does not? Here are just a few examples.

  • We list the business purpose of your LLC or FLP. We list over 15 business reasons why your entity was formed.
  • We list all of the business activities that your entity may engage in. This keeps a creditor from saying that you just formed it for asset protection purposes.
  • We state why the company has built-in restrictions among the members such as capital contributions and ownership transfers. This keeps a judgment creditor from claiming the restrictions are pure punitive in nature.
  • We have Mandatory Capital Contribution clauses at the discretion of the Manager.
  • We list extensive accounting issues and tax issues to keep a creditor from causing dissolution of the company due to their actions.
  • We limit distribution of profits or assets to frustrate creditors’ attempts to force distribution
  • Restrictions regarding Charging Orders. No distributions can be made to any member whose interest has been charged by a charging order. (Most competitor agreements DO NOT provide this!
  • Members cannot be forced to return a distribution in order to satisfy a creditor
  • Manager is given full authority and broad powers to manage the company. No creditor can claim he does not have the authority to make decisions.
  • Certain decisions require the unanimous consent of the members so that a creditor cannot force changes that are not to the benefit of the company and its members.
  • If any member is under court order, his vote does not count towards the total of votes needed to pass a decision.
  • A creditor cannot force the removal of a Manager.
  • A Manager can file for personal bankruptcy and still not be removed by a creditor.
  • No Creditor can force a distribution of assets to themselves.
  • No Creditor can force a partition of assets to themselves.
  • No Member, who gets a charging order against himself, can force a distribution or partition of assets.
  • No Member, Assignee or Creditor can force a dissolution of the company.
  • Creditors do not have the right to vote on many important issues.
  • A charging order does not allow the creditor to become a member of the LLC or FLP.
  • No Member’s interest can be assigned to a creditor.
  • If a creditor tries to force the LLC or FLP to pay them the amount owed by the charging order and the Member’s Interest so charged, the LLC or FLP has 30 years to pay. Requirements to get to this state are exhaustive and difficult.

The purpose of the operating agreement is to have a clear understanding between the partners at the time the LLC or FLP is formed. It is to have all parties agree to the terms and conditions. If, an outside creditor tries an attack on a Member’s interest, then the agreement makes it very difficult, if not impossible for that creditor to ever get a viable interest in the entity.

 

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/why-our-operating-agreement-is-better/
233 publish Do It Yourself Asset Protection “AssetProtection.com once provide Do It Yourself asset protection kits to its clients. However, over time we found that this DIY approach was not always a safe, sound choice.

Also, due to the complexities of asset protection, potential taxation issues, and because of the expertise required to bring harmony to the entirety of the planning process, our clients were often not able to implement the plans for which they had paid.

As a result, we no longer offer this type of service.

Instead, we highly recommend to all potential clients that they let us help with all planning activities, which is something we definitely still do!” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/do-it-yourself-asset-protection/
239 publish How Does a Creditor Find Your Assets How does a lawyer find something you have of value? Very easily. They hire one of many firms that specialize in locating assets for attorneys. They can locate bank accounts, real estate, brokerage accounts, auto, businesses etc. all in your name. In fact, many times a contingency fee attorney will do an asset search on you before he even bothers to sue you. He wants to make sure you have something of value before he spends his time and money. There is little about your personal and financial well being that cannot be found. However, if the assets are not in your name and are instead listed in the name of a corporation, trust or partnership finding them becomes much more difficult (if not impossible) and expensive for the plaintiff’s lawyer. http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/how-does-a-creditor-find-your-assets/
248 publish Receive A Free Confidential Consultation “Fill out the form below to receive a free confidential consultation to discuss your current situation.

Fill out my online form.

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/receive-a-free-confidential-consultation/
251 draft PPLI Get you PPLI here. http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/?page_id=251
256 publish The Private Retirement Trustâ„ “

True Asset Protection for California Residents

Private Retirement Trust℠(“PRT℠”) is a proprietary asset-protection Trust that tactically supports exempt assets for California Private Retirement Plans. The PRT℠is the first line of defense for any successful Californian because it offers “true” asset protection.

Whereas most asset protection planning involves the irrevocable “transfer” or “gifting” of assets to outside entities, such as estate planning trusts or offshore accounts, the PRT℠instead simply utilizes state statute (law) to convert “exposed” assets to “exempt” assets. In this fashion, asset-owners can fully maintain current status and asset attributes, retain beneficial interests during lifetime, and yet receive the highest degree of asset protection from unwanted creditors. The California law (Section 704.115) is a statutory safe harbor that is impregnable by creditors. The funds in and the distributions from a California PRT℠are virtually protected against creditor claims.

The greatest benefit of a PRTâ„ is that a client can immediately receive full protection of funds, and can fully maintain asset protection even after distributions have been made. As long as the funds can be traced to a distribution from the PRTâ„ , the distributions can be invested however, you choose. So if you purchase a boat, real estate, gold coins, stocks, etc. with these proceeds, then they are protected. This benefit allows a client to reserve the flexibility to do future advanced planning while enforcing continued protection against creditor attack.

Top PRTâ„ benefits include:

  • immediate and absolute asset protection, without irrevocably giving up asset control.
  • self-direction of PRTâ„ funding and investments, including private business interests.
  • continued protection of all PRTâ„ distributions, regardless of future planning needs.
  • assets in the plan are completely protected from lawsuits and judgments, even in bankruptcy.
  • no requirement to cover other employees.
  • no annual IRS filings

A PRTâ„ does not:

  • provide tax deductions because it is tax-neutral and owners pay taxes just as if they owned the asset in their own name.
  • remove assets from the taxable estate, so assets are included in a client’s estate as a retirement benefit during his or her lifetime, which advanced planning can easily resolve this issue if desired.
  • invoke fraudulent conveyance by evading creditors because a PRTâ„ simply maximizes State exemptions available to all Californians under California law.

The PRTâ„ is simple, flexible, cost-effective, and yet the most powerful tool available to a Californian.

If you would like to learn more or receive a free PRTâ„ Diagnostic to determine how you may benefit, please call us at 800-710-0002.

OR

Please visit the following link for more information Private Retirement Trustâ„ .” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/the-private-retirement-trust%e2%84%a0/
304 publish What is Asset Protection Planning? [et_pb_section admin_label=”section”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section] http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/what-is-asset-protection-planning-2/
305 publish Business Asset Protection Planning ”

Presented as an FAQ format, this guide will help you understand the steps and actions you should pursue if protecting your business assets has become a concern.

How do the issues for a business differ from those for an individual?

  1. Protecting business assets allows you to use all the various business structures that are available in today’s world, including:

    Limited liability Company

    A combination of a partnership and a corporation they allow limited liability and charging order protection. Â They are great business entities to utilize. They are recognized in every state and can be taxed in numerous different ways. The members can be active and still maintain their limited liability.Corporations
    Corporations have been around since the United States was founded. In fact, corporations have been given “corporate personhood” dating back to an 1886 Supreme Court case. This gave corporations the right to fully enjoy the legal status and protections created for human beings. As such corporations have long been used to own and hold assets with limited liability for the owners and officers.

Partnerships
These exist as both general partnerships and limited partnerships. The Family Limited Partnership craze in the 1980s really helped start the whole asset protection business that we see today. Â A general partnership really has no asset protection but a limited partnership does. Â They have pretty much been replaced by limited liability companies due to the fact that the general partner has unlimited liability in a limited partnership. In a limited liability company, the manager has limited liability as do corporate officers.

What if I already have a corporation and do not want to change the structure?

  1. One of the simple and easy things that can be done to protect your corporate shares from a creditor is to have a buy/sell agreement between you and the other shareholder(s). This can prevent a creditor from attaching your stock in the company.
  2. Another possibility is to put liens on the shares in the form of a UCC filing.
  3. Your shares could be transferred to an LLC where they will receive charging order protection.

I have multiple businesses. How do I protect them all?

  1. This takes a good advisor who really understands the nature of asset protection and has the sill to implement it in a business environment.
  2. Many adverse tax issues can arise if the planning is not professionally done.
  3. Multiple structures are normally needed in a way that allows the entire plan to work and flow together for ease of access and management.
  4. Frequently we use different management and ownership arrangements to best utilize the structures.

What about putting liens on my assets?

  1. This can be done but it must be done correctly. Â Just arbitrarily putting liens on assets where someone else controls that liens is not the best way to do things.
  2. Liens that you control and that have a business purpose are the way to go. Â We are one of the few companies that truly understand how and why the lien structure works. We can assist you is setting up a structure that makes good business sense, provides asset protection and give you the best possible chance of surviving a creditor inquiry.
  3. Liens are also an excellent way to move cash from a risky structure to a safe structure.
  4. Talk with us about our friendly liens, how they work and how you can be in control.  With our unique Capitalization Note process, the lien “makes sense” and will work.

How do I decide which assets to put into which structures?

  1. The fundamental rule is to never mix assets of value with assets of risk.  So, a company that sells food products that goes into someone’s body and can cause problems should never be mixed with a company that does graphic design, which is a far less risky business from a lawsuit point of view.
  2. Trucks and cars driven by employees would be risky. Â But, the underlying business may be far less risky. So it is important to separate ownership and control.

The FAQ items above will give you some idea of what goes into a business asset protection plan. Many entrepreneurs are dealing with multiple businesses and assets and therefore have to give careful thought as to how best to protect each separate unit. It is not unusual for one operation to be the lawsuit magnet and the others need to be protected for the risky business.

A good business plan can protect:

  • Accounts Receivable
  • Equipment
  • Trademarks
  • Patents
  • Stocks and Bonds
  • Raw Material
  • Notes Receivable

As a business owner you can be sued for many different violations of laws that you may not even know exist. There are attorneys who specialize in suing business for violating obscure and unknown requirements just so that they can make money. An example of this is a well-known Los Angeles California attorney who sued restaurant owners for years for failure to post the proper employee notices. No employees ever received any money from the settlements. In fact, the cases never went to courts. The restaurant owners paid him an average of $7,500 each to go away. He pocketed the money and moved on to the next victim.

One of our clients was sued for $1.5 Million dollars because this client sent a fax without prior authorization from the recipient. The lawyer who sued him was the lawyer who helped write the state bill that prohibited it. The actual plaintiff was a company that had used this attorney to assist them in meeting their budgetary shortfalls buy suing numerous suppliers for sending “unauthorized faxes.”

Fortunately, our client had done extensive asset protection over the prior ten years and the suit was dealt with by settling for far less than they otherwise would have to pay.

When attorneys like this go for the big numbers you can easily go out of business or lose all of your assets. This is why a solid business asset protection plan set up by a knowledgeable person is essential to success. It is like insurance. You don’t need it until you do!

With our 25 years of expertise, experience and knowledge we can assist you in protecting your business assets. Please call us at 800-710-0002.

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/business-asset-protection-planning/
306 publish Personal Asset Protection Planning ”

Presented as an FAQ format, this guide will help you understand the steps and actions you should pursue if protecting your personal assets has become a concern.

What first steps should I take toward protecting my personal assets?

  1. The first thing to do is to start planning well in advance. You want to plan before a claim against your assets occurs.
  2. Be sure to have plenty of insurance. It is a great first line defense and the insurance company pays your legal fees.
  3. Find an advisor who has experience in estate planning and asset protection.
  4. Give some thought as to whether you want just domestic planning or a combination of domestic and offshore.

What kind of structures should I use to protect my assets?

  1. This is where a planner earns his keep. Â He or she can assist you in deciding between various kinds of revocable or irrevocable trusts and limited liability companies.

How do I tie them all together?

  1. This is where the “art of asset protection planning” really comes into play.
  2. Your planner needs to be able to structure the entire set up so that it is primarily tax neutral, achieves your estate planning goals, and holds the creditors at bay.
  3. The structures can be complex or simple but the bottom line is they must discourage a future creditor from attacking your assets.

Will I lose control of my assets?

  1. his very much depends on the structure and how it is set up. Also too if you have too much control, then a creditor may gain access. If you have too little control you may not feel comfortable. This is another example of how “the art of asset protection” comes into play.

Can I just give assets away to my relatives to protect them?

  1. Do people do it all the time…” yes.” Does it work?….most likely not. Here are many different things that can go wrong with this scenario:
    1. Your relative gets sued on a separate issue and their creditor gets your assets.
    2. Your relative gets caught up in contributing to a fraudulent conveyance with your lawsuit.
    3. The IRS wants you go pay gift taxes because you transferred assets to a non-spouse.
    4. Gift taxes can be due again when the non-spouse transfers the assets back to you.
    5. In order to avoid gift taxes on a transfer you may end up using your lifetime exemption but then that means it is not available to use later in life for your children.

Is there one form a personal asset protection that is generally superior?

  1. Yes, normally personal asset protection is best done with some form of trust. Trusts have long been used for estate planning and asset protection purposes and there is a large body of law that recognizes this.
  2. There are many different types of trusts that can be set up, such as pre-inheritance trusts, where assets are transferred in advance to your heirs to other forms of hybrid irrevocable trusts.

What about hiding and concealing my assets?

  1. his is a popular misconception. However, if you are questioned by a judge or if you are in a debtors examine do you really think it makes sense to lie? Â Is a judge going to be responsive to someone who says that they just do not know what happened to their assets? Yes, there are many advisers who recommend this. Â But, it is just plain foolishness.

So, what do I say when questioned about my assets?

  1. This is where good planning comes into play. You want to be able to tell the truth, tell what you did and then depend on the structure to hold. This means that the structure must make sense.
  2. Answers such as “I lost everything in Vegas,” and “I have no idea what happened to my condo in Vale” just will not survive the believability test.
  3. However, if you have a good solid estate plan that also strongly limits a creditors ability to gain access to your assets then you can answer honestly and depend on the structure to hold.

What is the best that I can expect from asset protection planning?

  1. This is one of the most common questions we are asked. There are three likely outcomes:
    1. You do not have to pay anything because the creditor cannot break through or does not try to break through your plan.
    2. You have to pay 100% on the dollar because your plan was poorly implemented or done too late in the process and is overturned.
    3. The most likely scenario is that you will pay less than you otherwise would have to pay because you settle. Your creditor realizes that trying to break through what you have done is going to be expensive and problematic. You just want to get your life back to normal and realize that settling for less than you otherwise would have to pay is a great outcome.

What about putting friendly liens on my personal assets?

  1. Friendly liens can be done if they are done correctly. Many times the liens are put on the property with no reason for them to exist and they are controlled by others.
  2. A properly structured friendly lien with a business purpose can and does make sense. It is all in how you do it.
  3. Be careful about letting others control your liens on your property. Â If the company that sat it up goes out of business then getting control back, while not impossible, can be lengthy and expensive.
  4. Talk with us about our friendly liens, how they work and how you can be in control. With our unique Capitalization Note process, the lien “makes sense” and will work.

Additional notes and concerns:

Do you own your home free and clear? Many people do and they are rightfully proud of that fact. But, that just makes you a target for the greedy. Anyone one can search public records and find that you have no liens on your real estate. Then it is an easy matter to file a lawsuit for various bogus reasons and go after that equity. One of our prospects had a neighbor file a lawsuit against him for trimming the hedges between the properties. The neighbor won a $45,000 judgment against him. The hedges had grown back by the time the neighbor got the judgment but that did not matter.

A properly structured friendly lien may have assisted this prospect in not being sued. That way when the neighbor researched to property (which he admitted that he did before he filed the lawsuit) there would have been no equity in the property worth pursuing. Not all friendly liens are equal. Â Many of them have no basis for being and are controlled by some third party you may not even know.

Be sure to call us to find out how to structure a proper lien on your property. And, you will be able to rest assured that the real estate is safe from predatory practices.

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/personal-asset-protection-planning/
307 publish Lawsuits “[et_pb_section admin_label=””section””][et_pb_row admin_label=””row””][et_pb_column type=””4_4″”][et_pb_text admin_label=””Text”” background_layout=””light”” text_orientation=””left”” text_font_size=””14″” use_border_color=””off”” border_color=””#ffffff”” border_style=””solid””]

Law Suits

[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/lawsuits/
308 publish Specialty Concerns “[et_pb_section admin_label=””section””][et_pb_row admin_label=””row””][et_pb_column type=””4_4″”][et_pb_text admin_label=””Text”” background_layout=””light”” text_orientation=””left”” text_font_size=””14″” use_border_color=””off”” border_color=””#ffffff”” border_style=””solid””]

Specialty Concerns

[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/specialty-concerns/
409 publish Asset Protection Trust “Which type of asset protection trust is best for you?

Explore the options below and then contact us so that we can help you select and finalize the trust that’s perfect for your individual situation:

International Asset Protection Trust
Interested in an international, offshore trust? Make sure you’re well informed with our handy guide.

GUIDE – International Asset Protection Trust

Living Trust
Discover the benefits of this trust that allows assets to pass to heirs without going through probate.

GUIDE – Living Trust

Pre-Inheritance Trust
Discover the benefits of this trust that allows you to gift money to others.

GUIDE – Pre-Inheritance Trust (PIT)
FAQ – Pre-Inheritance Trust (PIT)

Private Retirement Trustâ„
Learn about how this proprietary trust offers Californians ‘true’ asset protection.

GUIDE – Private Retirement Trustâ„
FAQ – Private Retirement TrustSM

Special Power of Appointment Trust
Discover this flexible, effective domestic trust.

GUIDE – Special Power of Appointment (SPA) Trust
FAQ – Special Power of Appointment (SPA) Trust

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/
412 publish Nevada Limited Liability Company “Interested in learning more about a Nevada Limited Liability Company (LLC)? The information below is presented in FAQ format in an effort to answer the questions mostly commonly asked of us regarding this unique form of LLC:

Does Nevada have a state income tax on LLCs?
For most business there is not tax. However, on May 31, 2015 a new Commerce Tax on gross receipts in excess of $4 million in Nevada will be taxed. For limited liability companies formed for asset protection purposes this tax will not be an issue.

Do you have to be a Nevada Resident to be a member of a Nevada LLC?
No you do not need to be a resident of the state of Nevada to be a member

Is the Nevada courts system favorable to business cases?
Nevada has been putting lots of effort into their court system so that it supports the business climate and has a full understanding of issues relating the limited liability company law. Their business court is among the nation’s best.

Is a charging order the sole remedy in Nevada?
Yes, the charging order is the sole remedy. In addition, Nevada recognizes single member limited liability companies and extends the charging order as the sole remedy to single member limited liability companies. Also the charging order is the exclusive remedy of a judgment creditor against the owner of corporate shares in Nevada. This is the only state to offer charging order protection to corporate shareholders.

What about Nevada’s past “seedy” reputation?
Nevada has recently gone to great strides to clean up its reputation. Over the past 4 to 6 years the Secretary of State has made major inroads in getting rid of a lot of the disreputable business practices that were occurring in the state. Many companies were shut down or prosecuted for engaging in questionable business practices. The state has a much enhanced reputation as of late.

Does Nevada have expedited filing?
Yes, actually it is one of the few states that does. It can be very convenient because for a relatively nominal fee your company can be ready within 24 hours.

Does Nevada have a history of asset protection?
Yes, the state has been a major player since the 1980s in the formation of Family Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability companies for asset protection purposes. They continue to have excellent asset protection laws for limited liability companies, corporations. family limited partnerships and trusts.

Interested in learning more about LLCs?
Visit our Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) page to learn more about what it means to create and/or enter into an LLC.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/limited-liability-company/nevada-limited-liability-company/
413 publish Wyoming Limited Liability Company “Interested in learning more about a Wyoming Limited Liability Company (LLC)? The information below is presented in FAQ format in an effort to answer the questions mostly commonly asked of us regarding this unique form of LLC:

Does Wyoming permit “Lifetime Proxies”?
Yes, Wyoming is the only state that allows this. Not even Nevada allows a Lifetime Proxy. The Lifetime Proxy allows someone else to hold your shares as a proxy and to vote on your behalf. You control the vote by having a “Lifetime Proxy” over them.

Most States now require the Manager and/or Members to list their names and addresses in the public record. Does Wyoming do this?
No, Wyoming is still one of the states that greatly values privacy. The Manager and Members are not listed in any public data base and the state does not even have a record of who the Managers and Members are.

Does Wyoming have any state taxes?
No there are no state taxes for your Wyoming LLC

Does Wyoming have a restricted word list?
All states have a restricted word list but the Wyoming restricted list is very small. So words such as “finance” “loan” “lending” are all acceptable which can be very useful when putting our customized lien structure in place.

Does Wyoming have Superior Asset Protection Laws?
Yes, they do. Wyoming allows for a single member LLC to have the same level of protection that a multi-member LLC has. Wyoming is also a Sole Remedy state. This means that a charging order is the sole remedy available to a creditor.

Can a Wyoming LLC have a perpetual life?
Yes, a Wyoming LLC is a separate legal entity from the owner(s) and as such can have a perpetual life.

Are the assets of the Wyoming Limited Liability Company protected from the personal creditors of the members?
Yes, a creditor of a member is entitled to a charging order but cannot take the place of or vote in place of a member.

Does Wyoming allow foreclosure on a member’s interest?
No, Wyoming does not allow a creditor to foreclose or take a member’s interest. A charging order is the sole and exclusive remedy. A personal creditor cannot take the members place in the LLC structure.

Does a Wyoming LLC have to record minutes, hold meetings or have a board of directors?
No, they do not. No annual meeting or minutes are required. Also no board of directors is required.

If a creditor obtains a charging order against my Wyoming LLC am I required to make distributions?
No, in 2010 Wyoming amended their LLC Act and nowhere in the Act does it require the LLC to make any distributions. Instead it says that all distributions are discretionary.

Interested in learning more about LLCs?
Visit our Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) page to learn more about what it means to create and/or enter into an LLC.
” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/limited-liability-company/wyoming-limited-liability-company/
420 publish The Private Retirement Trust – FAQ “What is the Private Retirement TrustSM (PRTSM)?
The PRTSM is a proprietary trust created to enhance and support state exemptions for private retirement “plan” as sanctioned under California state law CCP 704.115, to enforce asset protection and maximize retirement benefits to its plan participants.

What is so unique about the PRTSM?
The PRTSM offers ‘true’ asset protection because all assets contributed into the Trust are ‘exempt’ from creditor judgments and a bankruptcy trustee.

What type of trust is a PRTSM?
This form of Trust is an irrevocable grantor trust.

Am I giving away my assets to others like an irrevocable estate trust?
No. The PRTSM is a non-gifting trust. You are simply contributing assets to your own trust where you are the primary beneficiary to receive reitrement benefits during your lifetime.

What if something happens to me?
You designate the contingent or remote beneficiary in your Plan document. If the PRTSM is properly administrated, your beneficiaries can continue to receive asset protection on survivor benefits during their lifetimes.

Can I establish my own PRTSM?
No, a PRTSM cannot be self-settled in California. A business must be the settlor or “sponsor” of the PRTSM.

What assets can I put in my PRTSM?
Any appreciating assets that can be considered legitimate for retirement are reasonable to contribute.

What assets can I UnotU put in my PRTSM?
Your personal residence, any depreciating or personal use assets, or assets UnotU proper for retirement.

Are there any contribution limits to funding my PRTSM?
No, there are no limits to funding as long as you can prove the need for additional retirement savings.

Can I just simply transfer assets to my PRTSM?
No, PRTSM assets must first be re-characterized from non-exempt to exempt in order to receive “true” asset protection.
*This is a critical process and should only be handled by an accredited PRTSM Administration firm.

Do I need to do some additional reporting?
Yes, the PRTSM requires a 1041 Trust Tax Return to identify assets owned by the trust. But the income and gains are reported on the grantor’s personal tax returns, again just as if owned directly.

Do I get any other tax benefits?
Yes, with proper administration you can receive some additional tax savings such as accumulated interest deductions, as well as substantial tax-free benefits. *please consult with a pre-approved PRTSM administration firm.

Can I manage and self-direct my own assets?
Yes, while a Trustee manages and protects your Trust assets, you can still make decisions on your own PRTSM investment strategy.

Are there any limits or rules to my funding strategy?
No, there are no “prudent-man” rules like with self-directed Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). You can fund and therefore asset-protect any commercial or private investments, including your private business stock/partnership or membership interests.

Are there any participation requirements for my PRTSM?
No, you can select whomever you want to participate in a plan, and each participant has his or her own PRTSM.

Can I participate in both a qualified plan and my PRTSM?
Yes, as a matter of fact a Qualified Retirement Plan (QRP) and a PRTSM are great compliments and can leverage and arbitrage each other for heightened values.

Does my PRTSM provide any benefits other than retirement?
Yes, a PRTSM can provide solutions and benefits for a multitude of planning needs, including business planning, estate planning, and executive compensation planning. *please consult with a pre-approved and licensed PRTSM law firm.

When can I take distributions?
You can start plan distributions as soon as 1 year and 2 days after funding your PRTSM, if as planned and scheduled.

What if my PRTSM asset values grow more than planned?
The Trustee allows for discretionary distributions on excess growth or gains above mandatory distributions.

Do I lose my asset protection of my PRTSM funds and benefits if distributed from my plan?
No, if distributions are made to a pre-designated PRTSM Distribution Account, then funds can continue to receive ongoing asset-protection from creditor attachment/judgment. However, this must be properly administrated so as not to forfeit benefits.

Are there any penalties for early or late distributions?
No, there are no pre-59 1/2 (10% penalty) or post-70 1/2 (50% penalty) excise tax penalties.

Can I take a loan from my PRT?
Yes, PRTSM loans are one of the most powerful business cash flow management techniques available, and they add an additional level of asset protection to exposed estate assets.

What are the parameters for PRTSM Loans?
There is no maximum loan from a PRTSM. Loans above $50,000 must be secured
with friendly liens on outside collateral. These secured loans offer extremely flexible terms and interest-only or accrued fair market value rates.

How much is the PRTSM cost to setup?
The PRTSM setup costs are based on type of assets funded and typically range from $4,500 – $25,000. *Setup fees are paid and deducted by the sponsoring business.

What are the annual management costs for a PRTSM?
The PRTSM annual administration depends on the complexity of the PRTSM Plan, and assets to manage. Annual administration fees range from $2,500 – $15,000. All administration costs/fees are paid for and expensed by the PRTSM Trust.

Are there any additional costs or fees associated with my PRTSM Plan assets?
No, pricing is flat-fee based and not Asset Under Management (AUM) based as with other invasive commercial trust companies. This ensures a high benefit-cost ratio that improves substantially in value over time.

What if the state law changes?
There are no guarantees; however, the legislation statute that regulates the state exemption code has been in existence since 1970 and pre-dates qualified retirement plans (401k), so it is the foundation for all other retirement planning. It would be problematic for it to be changed after 45 years, and highly unlikely.

What are my next steps to find out if the PRTSM is right for me?
Call us today to receive your free PRTSM Diagnostic & Risk Review Report. We can evaluate what can qualify for PRTSM funding and receive immediate asset protection, giving you immediate answers within 5-10 minutes.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/the-private-retirement-trust%e2%84%a0/the-private-retirement-trust-faq/
423 publish International Asset Protection Trust “Sample of an asset protection trust set up. Please see comments below.

People frequently say “I want bullet proof asset protection.”  I had an attorney friend of mine some years ago joke during seminars that the only true way to be bullet proof was to be poverty stricken and destitute.  Then he would go on to say that the next best thing to that was to form and International Asset Protection Trust (IAPT).  This was 12 years ago that he used to say this.  It was true then and it is still true today.

Many Asset Protection Trusts that are formed are actually hybrids. Â They are both in the U.S. and outside of the U.S. Â This allows for easy tax compliance and does not initially require any extra IRS or Treasury

Department reporting requirements. Â As long as an Asset Protection trust meets the Court and Control test it does not have any special reporting requirements. The Court and Control test, simplified, says that as long as the trust is controlled from within the U.S. and is subject to U.S. court jurisdiction it does not have to do any special reporting. Basically it is a U.S. Grantor Trust.

Over the past 20 to 25 years IAPTs have become the most popular trusts for U.S. citizens to set up in foreign jurisdictions. Â The ease of annual administration is simple and inexpensive and they have been proven to have highly effective asset protection benefits. Â Essentially, at the time of formation, the Asset Protection Trusts are not offshore trusts. Â They are domestic trusts with the ability to become an offshore trust, if necessary.

In reality, most trusts that are set up as hybrids never have to become true offshore trust.  The reason is that most creditors quickly back off once they find that an International Asset Protection Trust  is in the picture.  If the IAPT was set up long enough ago that there is no issue of fraudulent conveyance, then the creditor knows that an attack is futile.  In fact many creditors that could make a fraudulent conveyance argument rarely do. It is simply too expensive for them to go down that path.  In the 20 years our company

has been in business, only two trusts needed to convert to offshore status. Â In all other cases the creditor either walked away or the client was able to negotiate a satisfactory settlement.

Elements of an International Asset Protection Trust

There are various elements to a trust that make it an International Asset Protection Trust. Â Although, different people will have different definitions, these attributes are common in an IAPT.

  • 1. It has a U. S. Managing Trustee
  • 2. It has an offshore Custodian Trustee or Standby Trustee
  • 3. It has a U.S. Protector
  • 4. It has a foreign registration in an asset protection county
  • 5. It states clearly in the trust document that the trust is a U.S. Grantor Trust for tax purposes

Most clients want to be their own Managing Trustee. Â This is an absolute no no. Â This control will immediately allow a creditor to get access to the trust assets. If properly done a client can be the Protector if necessary. Â But, even this position id

eally should be someone else. Â The Custodian Trustee is a trust company in a foreign jurisdiction and normally an asset protection country such as Belize, the Cook Islands, or Nevis is used. These countries are considered asset protection jurisdictions because they have trust laws that support International Asset Protection Trusts and prevent any access to the trust or its assets.

As mentioned the International Asset Protection Trusts are set up as U.S. Grantor Trusts at inception.  However, in the face of a very aggressive creditor, the trusts can morph into a true foreign asset protection trust. Once that happens there is no longer a U.S. Managing Trustee or a U.S. Protector. Thus, there is no U.S. presence and no U.S. court can gain jurisdiction over the trust. The Asset Protected Trust is now managed in a jurisdiction that has laws and policies that are favorable to the trust, the trust Settlor and the trust assets.

Obviously the trust document for an International Asset Protection Trust is a very specialized and finely tuned instrument. This is not something that is available “off the shelf” from a foreign trust company. There are no foreign trust companies that make this document available to the general public.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/international-asset-protection-trust/
427 publish Special Power of Appointment Trust – FAQ “What is a SPA Trust?

It is a trust that includes a Special Power of Appointment that limits the ability of a creditor to get at the assets of the Settlor.

It basically is a trust that restricts the holder of the power from using the power for themselves, their creditors, their estate, or the creditors of their estates. It is basically a trust that keeps a creditor from getting what you cannot get. Since you are not the Trustee, Protector or Beneficiary the creditor cannot get access to the assets. It is also considered to be a trust where you give up “dominion and control” over the assets. Yet, through the Protector you can always get that back.

How do I get access to my assets?

Commonly in our trusts the trust owns an LLC interest and you can manage the LLC. Thus as manager, you have complete control over the asset(s). The LLC interest can also be set up as voting or non-voting depending on your needs.

Can I get my assets back?

Our trusts have a Protector. That is your most trusted person. He or she has the power to appoint you as a future income or asset beneficiary at some undetermined time in the future. The trust Protector can sign a document that refers to the appropriate paragraph in the trust and make the changes that are desired. If that change is to appoint you, the Settlor, as a beneficiary then that can be done.

Is the trust irrevocable?

Yes, it is. The grantor or settlor cannot revoke the trust. But, the grantor can give powers to others who can take actions that benefit the grantor

Can I be a beneficiary?

No, you cannot. If you are then the creditor(s) can get access to your assets. Only a few states allow a grantor of a trust to also be a beneficiary. Most states do not. But your Protector can always appoint you as a beneficiary in the future when things are safe.

Is the trust a public document?

No, the trust is not filed with any government agency. Therefor no one can easily find out that you even have the trust. If the trust is used to hold interests in corporations, LLCs or LPs there is no record of its existence. There are also no ongoing government renewal fees for the trust.

Are there limits to the kind of assets I can place in the trust?

No, you can put all kinds of assets into the trust except for retirement funds. It is recommended that you use LLCs to hold most of your assets and then the trust to own the LLCs. This way you can manage the LLCs and still have control over the assets in terms of sale, distribution and overall management. In fact, the SPA Trust Trustee would not even have to know what you were doing if the trust is just a member.

How do these trusts compare to the Domestic Asset Protection Trusts (DAPT)?

A DAPT is a trust whereby the grantor or settlor is also a beneficiary. The problem with this is that most states say that if you are a beneficiary then there is no asset protection. A few states such as Nevada have different rules. But, if you are a California resident with California based assets and you set up a DAPT in Nevada then you are unlikely to have any asset protection. California will simply ignore the Nevada DAPT. A SPA trust is recognized in all 50 states and the creditor cannot get what you cannot get. So, even is a very creditor friendly state like California the SPA Trust has been upheld.

Does the trust have separate and additional tax liability?

No, the trust is set up as a Grantor trust so all profits and losses flow to your personal return. Your taxes will stay the same.

Can I put my home in the trust?

Yes, your home can be transferred into the trust directly or your home can first be moved into an LLC and then the trust can hold the LLC interest. If you move your home into the trust, then you should make payments to the trust as rent. Since you do not own the home anymore then rent payments will show the arm’s length nature of the transaction.

Do my trustee and Protector have to live in the same state I do?

No, they can live an any state. There is no requirement that they live in the state where you reside.

Are creditor attorneys adapt at understanding the SPA Trust?

As a general rule that answer is “No.” The SPA Trust concept has been around for years but the implementation of it has been relatively limited. This is because other structures such as LLCs and LPs have been much more widely used. But, the SPA trust has such great benefits, such as being recognized in every state that it is becoming more widely use. Creditor attorneys are not yet accustomed to the trust and the ins and outs of them. Also the rock solid asset protection nature of them make them very difficult to break. And many states have case law supporting them.

Is there a specific court case you can cite?

Yes, it is Wilmington Capital LLC vs. The Big Whale Trust. Case No. 12C01113 in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles-West District. The case is from 2012. California is known to be a creditor friendly state so when something goes in the debtor’s favor it is indeed a red letter day. It is too long to put the case here but it is certainly worth a read as to why a creditor cannot attach property that is covered by a special power of appointment.

This case was won on a Demurrer. Basically that there was no legal basis to challenge the trust because California law, and other state’s laws, protect assets held by a power of appointment trust. This Special Power of Appointment Trust is a powerful domestic asset protection tool. One that very possibly will fit into your asset protection and estate planning needs. Give us a call for further information on how the trust can be structured as part of your overall plan.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/spa-trust/spa-trust-faq/
443 publish Pre-Inheritance Trust (PIT) – FAQ “What is a Pre-Inheritance Trust?

It is an irrevocable trust whereby you give assets away to a beneficiary before you pass on.

Are the assets still mine?

No, they are not. You remove the assets from your estate and place it in the trust. The assets are no longer yours.

Who pays taxes on the trust assets?

Normally the trust is set up as a Grantor trust for tax purposes so that you still pay taxes on any income from the trust. It does not have to be set up this way but this is the norm.

The trust allows for distributions to be made to you to pay any tax liabilities.

How do I move assets to the PIT?

You will need to retitle them in the name of the trust. Or, if the trust operates through an LLC or other such business entity then the trust will own all or some of that entity.

Are there limits to how much I can move into the trust?

No, you can move as much as you like. However, assets placed in the trust do count against your lifetime exemption. That amount is currently around $5.5 million. So, you can put that amount in the trust without paying gift taxes. Your spouse can place a similar amount in the trust. If you place a higher amount in the trust, then the excess amount will be subject to gift taxes. In addition, you can give away $14,000 per year. And, this amount is unlimited in duration.

Can my beneficiaries gain access to the assets?

Not unless you want them to. The trust will have a trustee who will make decisions as to who gets money and when. The trust can have an investment trustee and a distribution trustee. Your beneficiaries can be the investment trustees if you desire and a third party can be the distribution trustee in order to maintain assets protection from your beneficiary’s creditors. The distribution trustee can distribute money to the beneficiaries or make loans to them. You can provide the trustee with a Letter of Wishes which expresses your desires and intents to the trustee(s). Your beneficiaries can also be employed by one of the underlying entities and paid a salary for their contribution.

Can I control the assets in the PIT?

This is always a concern. You cannot be the trustee of the trust. But you can place the assets into an LLC or corporation and then have the trust own all or part of that entity. You then can be the manager or officer of that entity which allows you to control the assets and be paid for it in the form of salary or other non-salary compensation.

Can my beneficiaries’ creditors attach the trust assets?

No they cannot. The assets are not in the beneficiaries’ estates. They are in the trust’s estate. So no creditor of any beneficiary can attach the trust assets.

Can my creditors attach the trust assets?

No. The assets are not in your estate so the creditors cannot get what you do not own.

What about estate taxes?

This is the beauty of a PIT. There are no estate taxes on the assets of the trust. Even if the trust assets increase to a very large amount…say $20 million, there is still no estate tax. All assets pass to your heirs free of any estate taxes.

What happens if my children get a divorce. Will the ex-spouse have access to the assets?

No, they will not. Since your children do not own the assets, the trust does, then the assets are not available for an ex-spouse to gain access to should your children get a divorce.

If you currently have an asset that you know will grow greatly in value in the coming years, I PIT may be an ideal solution. Since any asset(s) that you put into the trust now (while values are low) will grow estate tax free, this could be a real home run for you and your heirs. Of course, you will want to consult with your tax advisor on any tax benefits that you may receive.” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/asset-protection-trust/pre-inheritance-trust/pre-inheritance-trust-faq/
446 publish Friendly Lien – FAQ “Find out more about a friendly lien by watching this video and reading our frequently asked questions below.

What is a friendly Lien?

It is a method whereby you use a company you control or a company someone else controls to place a lien on your assets. Liens are usually placed on real estate or UCC filings are done against business assets.

How does this work?

There are many different ways to do it. The standard way is for a company that you or someone else owns or controls will file a lien against the properties.

Is this (above) how robertmatthews.wpengine.com does it?

No, we do it a little differently. We have form a new company and capitalize it with a promissory note. In return the new company gives you 100% of the shares for the capitalization note. Then the company takes collateral for the note. This way there is a business reason for the lien on the property. And, the lien is not controlled by some third party who you do not know, as is so common with the liens that many others do.

We also form the LLC in a state that does not publish the name of the manager or owners and allows us to use words such as “finance” or “loan” that most other states prohibit. Since you control the lien you can release it at any time and do not need us to do it.

Do we have to do anything about the lien?

Yes, it is very important that you make payments on the note. The payments are to the LLC that you own and control. The note generally has some sort of negative amortization or deferred payment schedule. You must make the payments on at least an annual basis in order for the structure to hold. Since you are basically paying yourself you can take the money out of the LLC after the payments are made or leave the money there to further the business interests of the entity.

Remember if you do no honor the structure by making payments, then a judge is not likely to honor it either.

Is it safe to let a third party hold the lien?

If you actually borrow money against an asset, and a third party loans you that money then it makes sense for them to hold the lien. However, if some third party who forms a company for you tells you that they will file a lien against your property you should be cautious. If that third party disappears then you will have a difficult time releasing the lien. Or, if the third party is dishonest you may wake up one day and find out they foreclosed on your assets.

Some years back there was a company in Nevada that filed liens on hundreds if not thousands of its customers. That company went out of business and many customers had no idea how to release those liens. We helped several hundreds of them get their property back.

Are there tax ramifications with a friendly lien?

Normally there are not. If you own the LLC that places the lien, then you are basically paying yourself. So, it is a deduction on one side and income on the other. Check with your tax advisor or have them call us.

How long does it take to set this up?

We can usually set the entire structure up within 7 to 10 business days. Sometimes faster. It all depends on government filing times.

Can I do this with both business and personal assets?

Yes, you can. We can structure it according to your existing business set up. We can have the ability to take trust deeds or UCC filings against all business assets in a way that makes sense and has a business purpose.

How do I release the liens if I no longer need them or want to sell the asset?

You can contact us and we can prepare the paperwork for you or you can do it yourself. If you want we can even prepare the release paperwork at the same time we prepare the lien so that you can cancel the lien at any time of your choosing in the future.

” http://robertmatthews.wpengine.com/friendly-lien/friendly-lien-faq/