The Importance of Estate Planning for High-Risk Professionals
- Posted on: Aug 16 2019
No matter who you are and what you do for a living; you can always be exposed to lawsuits. But while everyone has the potential to defend against a claim, some professionals are more likely to do so than others. Individuals such as doctors, lawyers, business owners, and financial advisors are more inherently exposed to liability. So while it is very important that each of us has a well-thought-out estate plan, it is extremely important that high-risk professionals do so in order to minimize the risk to which they and their families are exposed.
Individuals who work as attorneys and physicians often face legal and medical malpractice respectively. But while these types of malpractice lawsuits can be extremely inconvenient and often without merit, high-risk individuals are more at risk from factors such as divorce, bad investments, automobile accidents, and poor tax and business planning.
Incorporating Within the Proper Business Entity
One of the most important things that you can do to protect yourself and your family as well as all of your personal assets is to select the proper business entity for you. By doing so you will be able to maximize both short- and long-term success.
It is common for many professionals to operate as sole proprietors or general partnerships when working with a co-owner, but many at-risk professionals often choose to incorporate their business. They do so for various reasons. One of the most important reasons is that it provides them protection from liability. The same can be said for corporations, limited liability companies (LLC) and limited liability partnerships (LLP).
Other Protective Tools
Trusts are also commonly used by at-risk professionals, who combine them with other tools in order to protect assets over the course of their lifetime in addition to protecting their assets after they pass as well as those of their heirs. These asset-protective tools include a Domestic Asset Protection Trust or a Third Party Settled Spendthrift Trust. By legally moving one’s assets to one of these types of trusts, such assets will be protected in the event that someone brings a claim against the individual or his or her business.
Foreign LLCs, Foreign Insurance, Foreign Annuities, Foreign Integrated Estate Planning Trusts, Civil Law Foundations, and Hybrid Companies are all foreign tools that help to protect assets.
Remember that in order for asset protection to be effective it must have been established prior to the issue.
The Law Offices of Brian L. Fox, APLC Help High-Risk Professionals to Protect their Business Assets Through an Estate Plan
Considering the work that you have put in to attain the assets that you currently own, you deserve to protect them. In order to do so, it is helpful to consult with a knowledgeable and experienced California Estate Planning Attorney as soon as possible.
At the Law Offices of Brian L. Fox, APLC, we know how important it is to protect what should be rightfully yours. We will help you to build an estate plan that meets your needs and keeps you protected. To learn more or to schedule a free consultation, call us at 805-658-9204 today!
Posted in: Estate Planning
