Agenda / Content Covered

All times are shown in Eastern time.

1. Unverified Testator Capacity, Undue Influence
   10:00 - 10:30, Karl D. Warden
2. Choice of Trust Structure Mistakes
   10:30 - 11:00, Vanessa M. Terzian
3. Trying to Make One Instrument Fulfill all Disparate Client Goals
   11:00 - 11:30, Uzzell S. Branson IV
4. Jurisdiction, Situs, Choice of Law Issues
   11:45 - 12:15, Vanessa M. Terzian
5. Overlooking Beneficiaries' Benefits Eligibility Requirements
   12:15 - 12:45, Karl D. Warden
6. Problematic Distribution Provisions
   12:45 - 1:15, Karl D. Warden
7. Giving Trustee(s) too Much or too Little Power
   1:45 - 2:15, Robert E. Ward
8. Tax Planning Mistakes
   2:15 - 2:45, Robert E. Ward
9. Poor Execution and Administration
   2:45 - 3:15, Uzzell S. Branson IV
10. Modification/Termination Errors
    3:30 - 4:00, Ben Schwefel
11. Legal Ethics of Trusts Practice
    4:00 - 5:00, Ben Schwefel
    1. Who is the Client?
    2. Fee Agreements and Client Trust Accounts
    3. Guarding Confidentiality
    4. Family of the Client: Confidentiality and Conflict of Interest Issues

Accreditation Details:

UZZELL S. BRANSON IV is a partner in The Law Offices of Branson & Branson, LLP, and manages the San Diego office of the firm. He concentrates his practice in the areas of probate and trust litigation and its attendant issues such as civil business and commercial litigation involving closely held businesses. Mr. Branson also does a significant amount of estate planning and business succession planning as part of his current practice. Before founding the firm in March 2014, he was a sole practitioner. During his time as a solo attorney, Mr. Branson trained interns and paralegal students, and also administered the practical skills civil litigation course at the University of San Diego in the spring of 2012. He is admitted to practice in all California courts, the federal courts in the Southern and Central districts of California, and is a member of the Trusts and Estates Section of both the San Diego County Bar Association and the Los Angeles County Bar Association. Mr. Branson earned his B.A. degree in philosophy from the University of California, San Diego; and his J.D. degree, cum laude, from the University of San Diego School of Law.

BEN SCHWEFEL is an attorney with Murtaugh Treglia Stern & Deily LLP, where he works with individuals, families, trustees, executors, personal representatives, and small business owners, with his primary areas of practice including estate planning, asset protection, business formation, trust administration, probate, and trust litigation. Mr. Schwefel is admitted to practice in California. He earned his B.A. degree from the University of California at San Diego and his J.D. degree from the University of San Diego School of Law. Mr. Schwefel is a member of the Orange County Bar Association (Young Lawyers Division and Trust & Estates Section).

VANESSA M. TERZIAN is an attorney with Lagerof, LLP focusing her practice in estate and tax planning, asset protection, elder law, probate, and trust administration. She also draws on her real estate and business background in crafting comprehensive plans for her clients. Ms. Terzian is a skilled public speaker, having conducted countless seminars throughout her legal career on various topics of estate planning, including special needs planning, advanced tax planning, and asset protection for individuals and small businesses. She is a faculty member at the Institute for Preparing Heirs and an adjunct professor of wills and trusts at Southwestern Law School. Ms. Terzian earned her bachelor's degree, magna cum laude, from the University of California San Diego and her law degree from Loyola Law School (Dean's Honors List).

ROBERT E. WARD has practiced as a tax attorney for over 37 years. He is the founder of WardChisholm, LLP, a firm of tax attorneys with offices in Bethesda, Maryland and Vancouver, British Columbia. In addition to practicing law, Mr. Ward was an adjunct faculty member for 29 years at George Mason University School of Law in Arlington, Virginia, where he taught courses on business planning, estate and gift taxation, and estate planning. He currently is an adjunct faculty member in the graduate tax program at Allard School of Law, University of British Columbia where he teaches classes on U.S. taxation and cross-border planning. Mr. Ward has also written numerous articles on business, tax, and estate planning topics. His most recent article is "Wonderland Redux: The Meaning of 'Willful'", 47 Bloomberg BNA Tax Management International Journal 582 (September 14, 2018). He is a member of the Bloomberg BNA Tax Management Advisory Board - U.S. International and regularly contributes to its Leading Practitioner Commentary. Mr. Ward is a member of the Maryland State Bar Association (Tax Section), the Washington State Bar Association (Tax Section), the State Bar of California (Tax Section), and is licensed by the Law Society of British Columbia as a practitioner of foreign law. He earned his B.A. degree from Northwestern University, his J.D. degree from the University of Santa Clara School of Law, and his LL.M. degree in taxation from Boston University School of Law.

KARL D. WARDEN is a sole practitioner in Nashville, where he practices in the areas of elder law, estate planning, business law, business litigation, and civil law. He has been practicing law for more than 30 years and has lectured for professional groups on matters related to estate planning and elder law. Mr. Warden is admitted to practice in Tennessee. He earned his B.A. degree from Vanderbilt University, his J.D. degree from West Virginia University College of Law, and his LL.M. degree from George Washington University Law School. Mr. Warden is a member of the Nashville Bar Association, a recipient of the CLE Excellence Award and a fellow of the Nashville Bar Foundation.