On this episode of “Splitting Heirs,” Warren K. Racusin welcomes back Sharon L. Klein, President of Family Wealth for the Eastern US Region of Wilmington Trust Company and member of the Estate Planning Hall of Fame, to continue their discussion of Lovey and Hubby, two clients who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary and then became embroiled in an extremely contentious divorce. The discussion centers on whether irrevocable trusts, into which marital assets were transferred during the course of the marriage, can be considered part of the marital balance sheet during a divorce. Warren and Sharon also address spousal limited access trusts, the concept of the “floating spouse,” tax liability for grantor trusts, and how estate planning attorneys guide clients through the most difficult periods in their lives.

Speakers:

Warren K. Racusin, Partner and Chair, Trusts & Estates
Sharon L. Klein, EVP, President - Family Wealth, Eastern U.S. Region & Head of National Divorce Advisory Practice, Wilmington Trust, N.A.

On this episode of “Splitting Heirs,” Warren K. Racusin talks with Lowenstein partner Nick San Filippo, Chair of the firm’s Business Divorce practice, and Jeff Savlov, a partner in the family business and wealth consulting firm Blum & Savlov, about the challenges facing family-owned businesses when disputes arise between parents and children, siblings, or other relatives. Observing that an unwillingness to address uncomfortable issues about succession planning and the future of the business often leads to conflict when the matriarch or the patriarch passes away, San Filippo emphasizes the need for a clearly constructed shareholders’ agreement so that all parties are clear on governance, documentation, and succession issues: who will lead the business, how will owners get paid, how should distributions should be made out of the business to cover taxes or distribute profits? The lawyers also encourage families to review these documents periodically as life circumstances and priorities may evolve over time.

Speakers:

Warren K. Racusin, Partner and Chair, Trusts & Estates
Nicholas San Filippo IV, Partner Co-chair, Business Divorce
Jeff Savlov, Partner, Blum & Savlov

Today on “Splitting Heirs,” host Warren Racusin speaks with Molefi McIntosh and Mavis Gragg about the “heirs’ property problem--” or what happens to real estate when it is passed down within families without benefit of a will. The guests address the historical and legal impact as well as the economic and racial inequities that resulted from the fractionalization of real estate down through multiple generations, as well as recent efforts to right the injustices of the past through such legislation as the Uniform Partition of Heirs’ Property Act, and new technology that leverages data to clear title.

Speakers:

Warren K. Racusin, Partner and Chair, Trusts & Estates
Molefi McIntosh, Associate, Private Client Services
Mavis Gragg, Co-Founder, HeirShares