Niche Trusts: A Chance to Collaborate

Posted by Robert L. Arone If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it is that each client is unique. Likewise, our approach to counseling these clients should be tailored to each one’s specific needs. Let’s work together to develop special plans that fit each client’s special circumstances. One key tool to consider is the niche trust. Usually, when we speak about a trust, we mean an “express trust.” An express trust is a three-way relationship between the grantor, the beneficiary or beneficiaries, and the third party, or trustee. The grantor has assets he or she wishes to distribute in a specified way to the beneficiary, and the trustee holds those assets on behalf of the beneficiary. The assets, financial needs, and wishes of each client are particular to that person, so the use of trusts needs to be part of a nuanced strategy. Enter the niche trust.

The Revocable Living Trust: Helping Clients, Growing Your Practice

Posted by Robert L. Arone Prevention Is the Greatest Cure Your clients trust you with their financial future and the legacy they want to leave behind. They rely on you to anticipate challenges, foresee trouble, and take preventative measures. When it comes to a client’s financial wellbeing, it is up to the trusted advisor to know what problems are likely to arise and to have solutions ready to help avoid conflict in the family, waste of resources, and other common pitfalls. One crucial tool to keep assets safe and to ensure they are distributed in the way your client wants is through the use of a revocable living trust. What Is a Revocable Living Trust? A revocable living trust (RLT), sometimes called a revocable trust or living trust, is an alternative to a will. It’s a document that instructs a trustee on how to manage the client’s assets during the

Portability and Married Couples: A Viable Option

Posted by Robert L. Arone For maximum benefit, estate planning should happen as a team effort, with CPAs, insurance professionals, financial advisors, and attorneys working together strategically and cooperatively. When it comes to helping married couples plan, today’s strategies need to be considerably more thoughtful than in previous years. Although the estate tax exemption is ever increasing, portability is still an important option, particularly for high net worth clients. Portability Is Here to Stay In fact, there’s really no downside to including portability in a plan, other than having to file a federal estate tax return. In the past, planners did not know whether portability was here to stay and were hesitant to rely on its benefits. However, at the beginning of 2013, portability laws became “permanent” under the American Tax Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA). It is now an essential part of estate and financial planning. Portability provides estate

What is the tax implication for a joint venture vs. a partnership?

By Eric P. Rothenberg, Esq. Partnerships and joint ventures share many similarities. However, there are significant differences business owners should be aware of when allying with another enterprise. Both are forms of legal structures used by business owners to combine resources, talents, or skills with another person or business. Business owners often mistakenly use the terms partnerships and joint ventures interchangeably. A partnership can be described as a voluntary association of two or more people who jointly own and carry on a business for profit, such as law firm partners who work together to provide legal services for gain. A joint venture, on the other hand, is typically a business undertaking by two or more people engaged in a single defined project. An expressed or implied agreement, a common purpose that the group intends to carry out, shared profits and losses, and each member’s equal voice in controlling the project

Coordinate Retirement and Estate Planning For Improved Client Relationships

Posted by Robert L. Arone Retirement accounts are designed to help make the transition between working and retiring easier. They provide a steady stream of income for retirees who are suddenly without take-home pay for the first time in their lives. These accounts require extra planning and consideration since, unlike other assets your clients may have, retirement account distributions are subject to income tax for the account owner and the designated beneficiary after the owner’s death. It is important that any plans for retirement match up with the plans a person has for their estate. Of course, planning for retirement assets is often motivated by different goals than estate planning because of income taxes. It is critical that financial advisors take the opportunity to talk with their clients about the differences when meeting for a review of their plans. By having long-standing relationships with clients, you have unique insight into

Trusted Legal Resources

Niche Trusts: A Chance to Collaborate

The Revocable Living Trust: Helping Clients, Growing Your Practice

Portability and Married Couples: A Viable Option

What is the tax implication for a joint venture vs. a partnership?

Coordinate Retirement and Estate Planning For Improved Client Relationships

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© 2025 by Orsi Arone Rothenberg Turner, LLP. All rights reserved.

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Trusted Legal Resources

Niche Trusts: A Chance to Collaborate

The Revocable Living Trust: Helping Clients, Growing Your Practice

Portability and Married Couples: A Viable Option

What is the tax implication for a joint venture vs. a partnership?

Coordinate Retirement and Estate Planning For Improved Client Relationships

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How Can We Help?

© 2025 by Orsi Arone Rothenberg Turner, LLP. All rights reserved.

Attorney Marketing by Bardorf Legal Marketing

Have A Question?