Events

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Registration & Continental Breakfast

7:00am – 8:15am

Welcome & Opening Remarks

8:15am – 8:30am

The Future of the Practice of Law

8:30am – 9:45am

Jonathan G. Blattmachr, InterActive Legal

This presentation will discuss the future of the practice of law over the next ten years based upon the backdrop of changes over the past 40 years. It will explain anticipated changes in legal research, document production, litigation strategies and technology and decision making. Anticipated changes in the form and manner of the delivery of legal services will be explored. Staffing, billing, office space and communication changes also will be forecast. The presentation will change how you practice.

Break

9:45am – 10:00am

Recent Developments/Planning Under the 2010 Act (Part 1)

10:00am – 12:00pm

Practitioner Panel Discussion: Carol Cantrell, Briggs & Veselka Co., John O’Grady, McGuireWoods LLP and Howard M. Zaritsky

Moderator: Jean G. Carter, Hunton & Williams LLP

The first part of this presentation will review recent changes to the estate, gift and generation skipping tax laws, including a review of remaining 2010 issues and planning under the new law, including the impact of portability, higher exemptions and the temporary nature of the law.  The second part of the program will focus on recent developments in other areas such as gifts, valuation, family limited partnerships and limited liability companies, and fiduciary income tax.

Lunch

12:00pm – 1:00pm

Recent Developments/Planning Under the 2010 Act (Part 2)

1:00pm – 3:00pm

Practitioner Panel Discussion: Carol Cantrell, Briggs & Veselka Co., John O’Grady, McGuireWoods LLP and Howard M. Zaritsky

Moderator: Jean G. Carter, Hunton & Williams LLP

The second part of the program will focus on recent developments in areas such as gifts, valuation, family limited partnerships and limited liability companies, and fiduciary income tax.

Break

3:00pm – 3:15pm

Getting the Family Business Ready to Sell

3:15pm – 4:15pm

Myron E. Sildon, Sildon Law Group, P.C.

The uncertain status of the transfer tax system over the past few years has exposed a significant flaw in the estate planning process: we don’t often focus on what really matters to our clients.  This presentation will focus on the new psychological “science” of happiness, and what it has to say about our approaches with clients.  Looking specifically at trusts, this presentation will address whether, and the extent to which, estate planning and trusts in particular can actually make clients and their beneficiaries happier by improving the way trusts are conceived, drafted and administered.  The materials will consider the benefits of “subjective” versus “objective” drafting styles, as well as the types of goals trustees should seek to achieve in trust administration.

Exercising Discretion in Discretionary Trusts

4:15pm – 5:15pm

Susan Porter, Brown Brothers Harriman Trust Company, N.A.

How does the trustee exercise its discretion when distribution standards vary from giving the trustee access according to ascertainable standards of health, education, maintenance or support – to permitting the trustee to make distributions in its dole and absolute discretion? The presentation will address many topics, including:

(1) limitations in the governing instrument or applicable state law upon the trustee’s exercise of the discretionary power to avoid potential adverse income, gift, generation-skipping and estate tax consequences, (2) consideration of outside resources and (3) balancing the interests of multiple beneficiaries.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Continental Breakfast

7:45am – 8:15am

Income Tax Aspects of Family Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability Companies

8:15am – 9:15am

Samuel A. Donaldson, University of Washington School of Law

This session will address federal income tax aspects of forming, operating, and liquidating a family limited partnership. While FLPs are typically created with the intent to minimize exposure to federal and state wealth transfer taxes, practitioners sometimes ignore important income tax consequences that can arise with the use of this technique. This session will serve as a reminder of the income tax issues and will suggest possible strategies to address them.

Advanced Life Insurance Planning Case Studies

9:15am – 10:15am

Thomas J. Pauloski, Bernstein Global Wealth Management

This presentation will review several case studies that illustrate how life insurance should be assessed as an investment and applied in advanced wealth transfer strategies by estate planning professionals. The studies will include a comparison of life insurance and investments in the capital market over time, matching duration of coverage with discrete risks, and how insurance can be used in conjunction with grantor retained annuity trusts (GRATs) and other strategies that include an element of mortality risk. Sophisticated wealth planning software will be used to illustrate key points

Break

10:15am – 10:30am

Ethical Quandaries: What Every Professional Should Know About Diffusing Ethical Conflicts and Reducing Litigation Exposure When Acting as a Trustee or Advisor to Trustee

10:30am – 12:30pm

Sharon L. Klein, Lazard Wealth Management LLC

When acting as a trustee or advisor in the trust context, a professional faces of myriad of ethical quandaries, rooted in conflicts of interest. Failure to manage these conflicts of interest can lead to costly litigation exposure.

Against the backdrop of state Rules of Professional Conduct, the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, case law and legislative guidance, this presentation will explore conflicts of interest in the trust context inherent in the investment, distribution and taxation arenas, including utilizing the power to adjust and unitrust regimes, allocating the tax burden, and investment maneuvering when presented with conflicting objectives. With the latest judicial and legislative developments included, the presentation offers practical guidance for managing conflicts and reducing potential litigation exposure.

Lunch

12:30pm – 1:30pm

New Horizons in Fiduciary Risk

1:30pm – 2:45pm

Dana G. Fitzsimons Jr., McGuireWoods LLP

The program will present an overview of recent significant fiduciary litigation cases from across the country, with a focus on recognizing trends and developing practical solutions for identifying, managing, minimizing, and avoiding fiduciary risk.

Break

2:45pm – 3:00pm

Retirement Plans, Charitable Giving and Changing Tax Rates

3:00pm – 4:00pm

Christopher R. Hoyt, University of Missouri (Kansas City) School of Law

The Bush Tax Cuts have been extended into 2012, but taxpayers face increased income tax rates in 2013 when the Bush Tax Cuts expire and the new health care taxes take effect. What does this mean for donors who are planning gifts for the next few years?  Enjoy an overview of the big picture, with special emphasis on planning gifts of retirement assets, both in 2011 and also in 2012 when the Charitable IRA Rollover will need to be "re-extended" again.  Learn the best and simplest ways to structure charitable bequests of retirement assets.