Revocable and Irrevocable Trust Essentials

Agenda / Content Covered

1. Revocable vs. Irrevocable: Pros and Cons and Common Uses
   10:00 — 10:45, Debra Scott
   1. Trust Law Basics: Main Terms, Parties, Concepts
   2. Laws Governing Trusts
   3. Understanding Revocability: Grantor Control, Asset Protection, etc.
   4. Clarifying the Needs of the Client and Reasons for Drafting the Trust
   5. Trusts vs. Wills
2. Drafting Revocable Trusts: Key Provisions
   10:45 — 11:45, John Bedosky
   1. When is a Revocable Trust the Best Option?
   2. Top Revocable Trust Structures
   3. Grantor Powers
   4. Trustee Powers and Duties
   5. Sample Trust Review and Analysis
   6. Pour-Over Will Language
   7. Common Mistakes and Problems
3. Irrevocable Trust Provisions (With Sample Language)
   12:00 — 1:00, John Bedosky
   1. Common Uses and Special Purpose Trusts
   2. Beneficiary Designations
   3. Trustee Powers and Duties
   4. Flexibility Issues
   5. Sample Trust Language Review and Analysis
4. Trust Execution, Administration, and Modification
   1:30 — 2:15, Debra Scott
5. When a Trust Turns from Revocable to Irrevocable: Opportunities and Mistakes
   2:15 — 3:00, Debra Scott
6. Tax Planning and Reporting Basics
   3:00 — 3:45, Leslie Levin
7. Legal Ethics in Trusts and Estates Practice
   4:00 — 5:00, Leslie Levin
   1. Guarding Confidentiality
   2. Duty of Competence: A Moving Target in Estate Planning
   3. Joint Representation of Spouses
   4. Client Capacity
   5. Attorney Fees, Agreements, Client Trust Accounts
   6. Client Communication

Accreditation Details:

John R Bedosky is of counsel to Hinman, fHoward & Kattell, LLP, active in its estate planning practice group, and is a senior consultant with The Lustig Group, LLC. He has extensive experience representing individual and business clients in a variety of estate planning matters, including business succession planning; family wealth accumulation, preservation and transfer planning; estate and trust administration; fiduciary litigation; and related taxation matters. Mr. Bedosky has been an adjunct professor of law at the University of Minnesota Law School, the University of St. Thomas, and William Mitchell College of Law; an adjunct business taxation professor at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management; and a visiting professor of law at William Mitchell College of Law. He earned his B.S. degree, magna cum laude, from Villanova University, and his J.D. degree, magna cum laude, Syracuse Law Review, from Syracuse University College of Law. Mr. Bedosky earned his L.L.M. (estate planning) from the University of Miami School of Law.

 

Leslie E Levin is special counsel to the firm Cuddy & Feder LLP, in White Plains, New York, where she practices in estate planning, probate, estate and trust administration, gift and generation-skipping tax transfer planning, asset protection, IRA distribution planning, not-for-profit organizations, charitable planning, special needs and disability planning, Medicaid planning, and elder law. Ms. Levin earned her B.A. degree, summa cum laude, high honors, from Brandeis University, and her J.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. She is admitted to practice in both New York and Connecticut.

Debra L Scott is the sole practitioner with The Scott Practice, LLC, where she represents clients concerning estates and trusts matters and fiduciary disputes. With more than 19 years of experience handling fiduciary matters, Ms. Scott introduced a new nonprofit consulting division to the law firm called SP Consulting. She has a law, public health and accounting background. Ms. Scott earned her bachelor's degree from the University of California, Riverside, her J.D. degree from Syracuse University College of Law, and her master's degree from Emory University.