Situation
A married individual in his 40s with children is the owner of a closely-held company in significant growth mode (annual income growth to $10 million). Prior to his company’s existence, the client had executed standard estate planning documents. He was concerned about estate taxes and asset protection for his family and future generations. Being young and seeking flexibility, the client did not want to lose control over the company or the financial benefits of the company’s success. The client also did not have an estate planning attorney and wanted Cherry Bekaert to lead the process to ensure proper execution of the planning.
Cherry Bekaert’s Guidance
Cherry Bekaert’s Private Client Services team worked with the client to determine his overall personal and family goals and objectives. Options and recommendations were outlined and discussed with the client. The recommendations impacted both the client’s tax and non-tax matters. The client made decisions on the various options. We assisted in the recommendation and selection of estate planning attorney/firm. The Firm’s valuation team performed timely appraisals resulting in favorable discounts, which were utilized for gift tax reporting.
Result
The client was able move a significant portion of current net worth and future appreciation of the assets out of his estate. In addition, the executed structure provides estate tax and asset protection benefits to the family and future generations without the client losing control over his company or the associated financial benefits
