Written by Allison Voge, JD, LLM

Choosing whether to use one joint trust or separate individual trusts when planning for a married couple requires careful consideration. A joint trust is established by a single trust agreement and is designed to hold nearly all of a married couple’s assets. The trust agreement includes instructions for managing the assets during the married couple’s lifetime, during the incapacity of either or both spouses, and upon each spouse’s death. 

In the past month, we have seen significant developments in estate planning, business law, elder law, and special needs planning. We have highlighted the most noteworthy developments to ensure you and your firm stay informed of any changes. From a private letter ruling addressing trustee-to-trustee transfers of funds from estate-owned individual retirement accounts to cases rejecting a cap on noneconomic damages for an injured nursing home resident and sanctioning a litigant for misuse of AI instructions and a new Corporate Transparency Act final rule, read on to learn how these developments may impact your practice.

Written by Jill Roamer, JD, CIPP/US

Attorneys receive training in many areas—legal writing, oral argument, marketing, and business operations—but they are rarely trained on how to talk to clients about death, disability, and decline. Knowing how to communicate effectively with your clients about these topics will help them feel more comfortable, increase their trust in you, and likely lead to higher client retention.