50th Annual Course on Estate Planning

Overview

Co-chaired by Santo Bisignano, Jr. (Bisignano Harrison Neuhoff LLP) and Michael V. Bourland (Bourland, Wall & Wenzel, P.C.), this annual program is for new and experienced lawyers (and other professionals) who want to include Estate Planning in their practices or who want a comprehensive overview. The 2014 course features Professor Stanley M. Johanson (The University of Texas School of Law), Darin N. Digby (Schoenbaum, Curphy & Scanlan, P.C.) and Stephen R. Akers (Bessemer Trust Company). (Click on the name in blue to read a note from the faculty member.)

Download the Brochure (pdf)

For more details, download the online brochure.

Tuition

Registration includes the Conference, course materials, continental breakfasts, lunches, and a reception.

• $1175 / $1225 - Regular Tuition
• $1025 / $1075 - CAIL Member
• $1075 / $1125 - Government/Non-profit/Academic Employee
• $275 / $325 - U.S. Law Student (J.D.)
• $625 / $675 - I cannot attend, but want to order the materials

Schedule and Faculty

Wednesday, May 28

8:30 am

Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00 am

Basic Principles And Strategies In Estate Planning

Impact on your clients (and you) of what Congress has done with respect of the estate and gift tax. Overview of basic planning techniques, valuation issues, gross estate inclusion rules, lifetime gifts, basic estate planning for spouses, community property considerations. Trusts as important planning tools in non-taxable estates.

Professor Stanley M. Johanson, James A. Elkins Centennial Chair in Law, University Distinguished Teaching Professor, The University of Texas School of Law, Austin, Texas

10:15 am

Break

10:30 am

A Visit To Stanley’s Estate Planning Toolbox (Time includes a 15 minute break)

Review of basic planning techniques that should be used more often by clients (a) in good health or (b) in rapidly declining health – techniques that are (i) inexpensive to implement and (ii) easy for clients to understand: fractional interest gifts of vacation properties and ranches. Rev. Rul. 93-12 and why lifetime gifts are cheaper than testamentary gifts, valuation issues in funding marital and charitable gifts – of control premiums and minority discounts, gifts that move from “control” to minority – avoiding Estate of Murphy and buying into Estate of Frank, gifts of life insurance policies and the Silverman gambit, prepaying grandchildren’s tuitions, why you shouldn’t have deleted your Grantor Retained Income Trust and Split Interest Purchase forms from your computer.

Professor Johanson

12:15 pm

Lunch Provided

1:15 pm

Qualified Plan Benefits And Ira’s In Estate Planning

What the estate planner needs to know about qualified plans and individual retirement accounts, analysis of minimum distribution rules, review of strategies for commonly encountered planning situations, spousal rollover issues; coordination of qualified plan benefits and IRAs with QTIP marital deduction trusts.

Professor Johanson

2:45 pm

Break

3:00 pm

Life Insurance Planning (With An Emphasis On Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts With “Crummey” Withdrawal Right Provisions)

Review of income, gift, and estate taxation of life insurance, use of irrevocable life insurance trusts to provide estate liquidity and to solve other common (and not so common) problems, Crummey clauses and the advantages and disadvantages of each, problems with poorly administered “Crummey” trusts and solutions to those trusts.

Santo Bisignano, Jr., Bisignano Harrison Neuhoff LLP, Dallas, Texas

5:00 pm

Recess & Hosted Networking Reception

Thursday, May 29

9:00 am

Estate Planning Ethics

Ethical issues and conflict of interest concerns in estate planning for multiple members of the same family, as well as for the family’s business interests; conflict of interest and confidentiality problems in planning for spouses, siblings, and other family members; client conflict letters and other documentation; malpractice concerns; quality control procedures; privity issues.

• Michael V. Bourland, Bourland, Wall & Wenzel, P.C., Fort Worth, Texas
• Darin N. Digby, Schoenbaum, Curphy & Scanlan, P.C., San Antonio, Texas

10:00 am

Break

10:15 am

Marital Deduction Planning

Basic Strategies and current problem areas in estate planning for spouses, QTIP trusts and the QTIP election, drafting problems and their solutions. Analysis of types of marital deduction formula clauses (true worth, minimum worth, fairly representative) and advantages and disadvantages of each, discussion of fractional share clauses and comparison with pecuniary formulas.

Mr. Bisignano

12:15 pm

Lunch Provided

1:00 pm

Planning For The Family Business, Including Family Limited Partnerships (FLPS); Working With A Client Closing A Business Entity

Estate and succession planning for a family business and its owners; ascertaining family attitudes toward wealth and the family business; development of planning objectives; determining whether a business should be sold or kept in the family; advantages of a charitable organization as a planning partner; tax and non-tax advantages of family limited partnerships; checklist of planning alternatives; case studies.

Mr. Bourland

2:00 pm

Break

2:15 pm

Transfer Planning (Time includes a 15 minute break)

Lifetime estate planning transfers, especially transfers of property over which the donor wishes to maintain some control, including points to consider in designing donor-trusteed irrevocable trusts; practical planning ideas for removing appreciation from the estate by using GRATs and Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts.

Mr. Digby

5:00 pm

Recess

Friday, May 30

9:00 am

Hot Topics in Estate Planning (Time includes a 15 minute break)

Stephen R. Akers, Bessemer Trust Company, Dallas, Texas

12:00 pm

Lunch Provided

12:30 pm

Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax

What you need to know about the GST tax; how to make efficient use of GST exemption allocations; application and implementation of the various GST severance rules and late allocation rules; and an overview of some basic GST tax planning considerations and strategies.

Mr. Digby

2:30 pm

Break

2:45 pm

Generation-Skipping, continued

3:30 pm

Post-Mortem Planning

Various tax planning issues in administering estates, covering disclaimers and selected income tax and estate tax issues.

Mr. Digby

4:30 pm

Adjourn

Testimonials

"The speakers were all very knowledgeable & helpful."

"Very easy-to-understand lectures & building block style of program. I got what I came for – good explanations of tax basics"

"Enjoyed all the speakers and learned a lot. It was clear all the speakers were very qualified."

-- 2013 Participants 

Overnight Accommodations

CLE Credits

MCLE Credit

This program is approved by the State Bar of Texas for 19.25 hours, including 1 hour of ethics. Course ID Number: 901284912. Sign-in sheets and/or certificates of attendance will be available for ALL states.

Specialization Credit

This program is approved by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization for 19.25 hours in the following areas: Estate Planning and Probate Law and Tax Law

CPA Credit

CPA’s will receive 23 hours of CPE credit, no ethics. Fill out the green sheet asking for CPE credit. Certificates will be mailed.

Other Information

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