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Subscriber Drafting Webinar: Which Trust Form Should I Use?

One of our most frequently asked questions is some version of "which form should I use?"  Drafters who are new to InterActive Legal, or those who are drafting documents that are new to them, can sometimes find the menu selections confusing.  Plus, the possibility of choosing the "wrong form" can cause anxiety.  This subscriber drafting webinar will focus on helping with this initial selection - where to start.

Stuck in the Middle: The Ethics of Representing Couples in Estate Planning

It is not uncommon for an estate planning attorney to represent both spouses in the preparation of their estate plan. In fact, it’s a routine part of the practice. Most estate planning attorneys are aware that representing a married couple requires having a provision about the joint representation in the engagement letter; but we don’t often stop to think about the rules of legal ethics involved in representing both spouses, unless and until something goes wrong. Moreover, we don’t always consider how those same rules apply to some of the unique situations that can occur when representing unmarried couples. This webinar will look at the Model Rules of Professional Conduct implicated in representing couples, and consider their application in the context of possible scenarios that could occur when planning for married and unmarried couples.

Potential Estate Tax Changes: Bonus Exemption, Possible Repeal, and What To Do Now in Light of Great Uncertainty

Proposals have been made to extend all 2017 tax cuts, including the bonus estate, gift, and GST tax exemptions. There also has been a proposal to repeal the federal estate tax (but not the gift tax) and yet continue to permit the income tax-free step-up in basis at death. Federal estate tax repeal would radically change estate planning, but it won’t mean action is not necessary. Many wills and trusts use formulas based on tax definitions to allocate wealth to the intended heirs. Without a federal estate tax, those formulas may work in unanticipated ways that could be a disaster. And new formulas for disposition will have to be developed. Whether it is status quo (exemption reduced in 2026), extension of bonus exemption, or full federal estate tax repeal (and the scenarios for that might be quite different), practitioners need to know how to respond. Also, note that the retention of the gift tax may inhibit some from making transfers during lifetime to or for family members.

2025 Estate Planning and Elder Law Marketing Summit by Bambiz

InterActive Legal is a proud sponsor of the 2025 Elder Law & Estate Planning Marketing Summit in Orlando, Florida. This event provides a roadmap to a more efficient, profitable, and less stressful law practice. Be sure to stop by InterActive Legal's exhibit booth and let us show you why Elder Law and Estate Planning professionals turn to us as their main resource for the latest planning strategies.

Mid-Wealth Estate Planning – Planning for the Rest of Us

A hot topic for many months has been taking advantage of the currently high estate tax exemption that is scheduled to drop next year, with an appropriate message of "use it or lose it."  However, using that exemption is a strategy for clients with a significant amount of wealth - the ability to give away the full exemption of almost $14 million - and for a married couple to get the maximum benefit, the ability to give away nearly $28 million.  Most estate planning clients are not in that wealth bracket, but they do have a significant net worth to pass to their intended beneficiaries and would like to do so in the most tax-efficient manner.

17th Annual PAELA Winter Conference

InterActive Legal is a proud sponsor of  PAELA's 16th Annual Winter Conference.  Stop by our exhibit booth and let us show you why Elder Law and Estate Planning professionals turn to us as their main resource for the latest planning strategies.

Bullet Proofing an Estate Plan for Non-Traditional Married Couples

Clients in non-traditional marriages are worried about whether changes to the laws of marriage might affect their formal relationships and estate plans. While it may not be possible to preserve all tax advantages arising from one's marital status, it may be possible by contract to replicate the substantive aspects of an estate plan. Even if law changes do not "claw back" the status of clients who are validly married, these techniques may be used to advantage for clients who had not married before a change in the law occurred.

Gun Trusts: The Lethal Pitfalls in Drafting and Firearms Issues in Probate

It comes as a surprise to many people that federal law permits civilians to own machine guns, suppressors, and similar items. They can be owned by individuals, business entities such as LLC's and nonprofit corporations, and by trusts. Over the last fifteen years or so, the NFA trust has become the preferred method of ownership. This presentation will discuss the legalities of owning NFA firearms, the process of forming an NFA trust, the operation of the trust, and the legal pitfalls in drafting NFA trusts.

Heckerling Themes and Takeaways:  Reviewing the Most Important Topics Discussed at the 2025 Institute and More

The 59th Annual Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning was held in Orlando, Florida, on January 13-17, 2025. The Institute is the preeminent estate planning conference of the year and always provides a full week of valuable seminars covering a broad range of estate planning issues for all types of practitioners and all types of clients. Not only does the Institute inform planners of new developments from the past year and state of the art estate planning techniques, but it also includes an array of eclectic topics to broaden the knowledge and perspective of practitioners attending.

Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

The first Subscriber Drafting Webinar for 2025 will focus on what we feel is most important to our subscribers – answers to your questions. We will start off by covering a group of questions that we are asked most often and then take as many questions live from the audience as possible. Subscribers can also submit questions in advance by emailing them to [email protected].

Your Client Wants to Name a Trust as the Retirement Plan Beneficiary … Now What?

Laws change, but in many respects, the laws related to estate planning and taxation can change slowly, or not much at all.  Tax exemptions and rates change, of course, but the laws themselves - not so much.  One major deviation from this maxim was the SECURE Act, which came as a bit of a surprise at the end of 2019.  It was followed by SECURE 2.0, proposed regulations, and then (finally!) final regulations, all of which combine to create a new landscape for clients who want to leave their retirement plans or IRAs in trust.  For many clients, retirement assets comprise the bulk of their net worth and preserving them is a common goal.  Hence, knowing how to use trusts for these assets is an important tool for estate planners.
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