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Asset Protection Trust
Farr Law Firm’s asset protection attorneys make recommendations and implement strategies to minimize the exposure of clients’ assets to creditors, and the highest form of asset protection to date they can suggest is the Asset Protection Trust.
What is an Asset Protection Trust?
For appropriate assets, Asset Protection Trusts provide the most effective form of protection, surpassing the benefits of Family Limited Partnerships under Florida Law. A number of jurisdictions outside of the United States permit trusts to provide asset protection benefits that are not available under the trust laws of Florida and most other states.
In addition to advantageous trust laws, many of these jurisdictions do not recognize foreign judgments, have very short statutes of limitations for fraudulent transfers, and allow trustees to disregard instructions issued under duress or the compulsion of a foreign court for fraudulent transfers. Taken together, these factors (along with the psychological and financial impediment of pursuing assets overseas) make off-shore asset protection trusts one of the most effective methods of asset protection.
The Concerns of having a Foreign Trustee
Many clients are reasonably concerned about transferring assets overseas, giving up control of those assets to an unknown foreign trustee, and the potential tax scrutiny that may follow when interests in a foreign trust are reported. When properly established, an offshore trust can permit assets to remain in the United States until a significant threat develops, give the trust settlor managerial control over trust property (including the ability to move money in and out of the structure at will).
In application, off-shore asset protection can be less complicated than a domestic limited partnership and, unlike a partnership, will preserve the ability of the trust settlor to directly access the protected property—even when a judgment is in place. For these reasons, the asset protection trust provides one of the best forms of protection available.
If the Farr Law Firm can be of service to you or your business endeavor in the protection of assets, please feel free to contact the firm to schedule an appointment at (941) 639-1158 (Punta Gorda office) or (941) 460-9334 (Englewood office). It is our honor to serve you.
