Day 1
– Monday, June 6, 2011
7:00 – 7:55 a.m.
REGISTRATION & CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST
Sponsored by Northern Trust
7:55 – 8:00 a.m.
WELCOME & INTRODUCTION
– Susan J. Link, Probate & Trust Law
Section Chair
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
The Federal Estate Tax Law: Six Months
of Reflection and Two More Years of Uncertainty
Six months after President Obama
announced "the framework of a deal" that gave us the 2010 and
2011–2012 estate tax law, this presentation will look at what the
Tax Act of 2010 settled and what it stirred up, and the challenges
and opportunities for both estate planning and trust and estate
administration as we face still another sunset and the prospects of
the Tax Act of 2010+2.
– Ronald D. Aucutt
9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
The Minnesota Estate Tax Going Forward –
"Putting Humpty Together Again" (continued)
Issues will include: Filing Minnesota
estate tax returns for decedents, including latest developments,
filing forms, obtaining extensions for filing and for paying
Minnesota estate taxes, and (if applicable) whether any federal law
changes will affect 2010 Minnesota filings; Handling QTIP elections
in Minnesota, given the 2010 legislative changes to Minn. Stat.
291.03 subd 1b; Minnesota estate taxes for decedents dying in 2011
and after. How federal law changes affect interpretation of existing
Minnesota estate tax statutes.
– Terry L. Slye
10:00 – 10:25 a.m.
NETWORKING BREAK & EXHIBITOR BINGO
10:25 – 11:25 a.m.
Hey Bubbie, Can You Spare $5 Million?
GST Tax Exemptions, Allocations and Elections
Recent legislation has expanded GST tax
provisions... but only for 2 years. This program will provide an
overview of prospective GST tax planning opportunities and open
questions under the new law, common pitfalls in GST tax planning and
compliance, possible means of addressing prior mistakes, and the
potential effects of the sunset of GST tax relief provisions as of
12/31/12.
– Julie K. Kwon
11:25 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.
Little Known Facts About Social Security
That Attorneys Ought to Know (For Ourselves as Well as Our Clients)
The basic structure of social security;
retirement, disability and survivor’s benefits; the three different
retirement ages; early, full and delayed; consequences of choice;
strategies for optimizing retirement benefits for individual
circumstances; and why social security disability can be important
for your client’s special needs children.
– Deborah Tedford
12:25 – 1:30 p.m.
INSTITUTE LUNCHEON (provided)
Sponsored by First Lawyers Trust Company
1:30 – 2:30 p.m.
BREAKOUT SESSION A
1. Cohabitation Considerations –
Generations Under One Roof
Issues (legal and non-legal) arising
from cohabitation; review potential risks in the context of estate
and medicaid planning; explore current caselaw; and potential
planning options for attorney to review with clients contemplating
these arrangements.
– Mary Frances Price
2. Partnership Income Tax
What trusts and estates practitioners
should know about the Code §754 election – the authority to make it,
how it’s made, when it’s filed, what it does, and why it matters
under Code §§743(b) and 734(b).
– Robert F. Collins
3. Advising Clients Regarding Regarding
Residency Changes
How to advise clients regarding
residency changes; strategies for getting clients to understand the
differences between physical presence residency and domicile. What
to do in the event a client’s residency status is audited. Includes
analysis of Minn. Stat. 290, R 8001.0300 and Sanchez.
– Thomas R. Muck & Masha M. Yevzelman
4. Personal Decisions Made By a Guardian
for the Ward
Can the guardian stop a marriage or
start a divorce? Can a guardian restrict visitation with a spouse?
What is supervisory power? These questions and other may be
answered. Scope of powers; legal tests and criteria when exercising
supervisory powers.
– Robert A. McLeod
5. Dealing with Creditor Claims and the
Insolvent Estate
Commonly found issues relating to
insolvent estates; technical requirements of administering an
insolvent estate; review of submission, allowance/disallowance of
creditor’s claims; the need and process related to Court approval of
claims; through closing.
– George E. Warner, Jr.
6. The Top 10 Things Every Estate
Planning Attorney Should Know About Family Law
What you need to know about: property
division and nonmarital tracing issues; spousal maintenance; child
support; obligations of the divorce decree that survive the death of
the obligor; and the divorce process and settlement options for
clients.
– Cathy E. Gorlin
7. Decanting Irrevocable Trusts: State
Law and Tax Considerations
Due to changed circumstances, estate
planners are often faced with the problem that irrevocable trusts no
longer meet their clients’ objectives and the beneficiary’s needs. A
growing number of states now explicitly allow a trustee to appoint
the assets of an irrevocable trust (referred to as "decanting").
This session will explore some of the state law considerations and
options for decanting irrevocable trusts and highlight some of the
underlying tax considerations.
– Dana M. Neu & Karen N. Sandler
Steinert
8. Special Assets Held Inside Trusts
Special assets defined; issues special
assts held in trusts present for trustees; due diligence required
when holding special assets in trusts; issues for endowments and
foundations that hold special assets and whether dynasty trusts are
good candidates for holding special assets.
– Denver S. Gilliand
9. Representing Estates in Tax Disputes
– Death and Taxes...Where’s the Certainty?
Appraisal issues; overview of the audit
process – the do’s and don’ts; the administrative appeals process;
benefits of protective refund claims; and tax court
litigation/refund litigation forums.
– Sue Ann Nelson & Robert J. Stuart
2:30 – 2:45 p.m.
BREAK
2:45 – 3:45 p.m.
BREAKOUT SESSION B
10. 10 (or More) Sections of the Probate
Code Every Scrivener Must Be Familiar With
Sections of the Minnesota Probate Code
that affect construction of wills; the statutory meaning of words
and phrases frequently used in wills; the statutory default rules
that may influence the construction of wills, a review of sample
terms and phrases. (Minn. Stats 524.2 – 712 and 291.03)
– James T. McNary
11. Elder Law Mediation: Possibilities
and Pitfalls
There is growing interest in the field
of elder law mediation. When disputes arise involving elders’ living
situation, medical care, assistance with activities of daily living,
and/or finances, it is often in everyone’s interest to resolve these
issues without resort to the courts. On the other hand, for the
elders involved, their lives, rights, and well-being are at stake.
How can elders’ interests be protected, family and caregiver
relationships be preserved, and communications be improved, while
conserving elders’ resources? Elder law mediation may provide a
welcome alternative to elders, families, and care providers
struggling with these issues. In this session, we will describe the
growing need for elder law mediation, the crucial training,
expertise and resources that elder law mediators must have, and
important ways to ensure that the well-being of elders involved in
elder law mediation is protected.
– Jessie S. Ware & Jennifer L. Wright
12. Estate Tax Primer
This breakout session is designed to
introduce the basics in preparation and filing of the federal estate
tax return based on a 2009 tax filing. Topics covered will include:
an in-depth discussion of asset identification and valuation; income
in respect of a decedent; valuation of partnership interests, LLC’s
and other non-marketable assets; use of appraisers and appraisals;
alternate valuation; identification of deductible expenses and
determination of whether to take them on estate or fiduciary income
tax return. If time permits, this breakout session will include the
assembly and filing of the return, both with the IRS and Minnesota
Revenue.
– Kathi A. Kodadek
13. The Importance of Trust Situs
Situs tax benefits; the need for court
supervision or involvement, asset protection, beneficiary
accountings; and trust modification, including unitrust conversions.
– P. Daniel Donohue
14. Antenuptial Agreements in Depth –
Practical Tips and a Review of a Form Agreement
The legal issues surrounding antenuptial
agreements; practical advice regarding negotiating and drafting.
– Cameron R. Seybolt
15. Beneficiary Designation
Naming minors as beneficiaries, naming a
trust as a beneficiary of qualified plan assets, creditors rights
for beneficiary designated assets, revocation in the event of
divorce, using a POA in connection with beneficiary designations,
factors to consider when naming an estate as a beneficiary, naming
minors as beneficiaries.
– Jennifer A. Lammers
16. The Hurt Locker: Defusing the
Retirement Account Bomb with a Charitable Gift
IRAs and qualified plan accounts afford
special opportunities for charitable giving –
both during life and at death. Qualified Charitable Distributions of
IRAs are the best way to make a lifetime charitable gift in some
cases, but not all. We will discuss several profiles. Because
tax-favored retirement accounts carry potential income tax liability
at the owner’s death, they are typically the best asset to leave to
charity. This session will discuss implementation of outright
charitable gifts of these accounts at death. We will also compare
ways the owner can use such an account to provide for a surviving
spouse, and make a gift to charity.
– Robert E. Harding & Sheryl G. Morrison
17. Portability for the Estate Tax
Exemption – Maybe You Can Take It with You When You Die (At Least
for Two Years)
The new rules relating to the
portability of the estate tax exemption; how to approach estate
planning situations given the new portability rules; uncertainties
and unresolved issues regarding the portability rules.
– Barry J. Newman
18. Clawbacks, Porting & Planning: Your
Large Estate Panel’s Ponderings
2-hour session
The Panel poses positions, predicts and
pontificates on perplexing planning and practice problems. Is the
potential clawback probable and how do we prepare clients for that
possibility? To what extent is portability planning preferred? How
do we prepare for the portending uncertainty in 2012? Pose your
questions to the panel in advance to Alan Yanowitz at
Alan@mnestateplanning.com.
– John R. Bedosky, Mark W. Greiner, E.
Burke Hinds, Charles (Chip) T. Parks, Jr. & Alan J. Yanowitz
3:45 – 4:00 p.m.
BREAK
4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
BREAKOUT SESSION C
Clawbacks, Porting & Planning: Your
Large Estate Panel’s Ponderings (continued)
19. Medical Assistance Update 2011
To close a budget deficit expected to
exceed $6 billion for the biennium, the 2011 Legislature began the
year looking for substantial savings in the Health and Human
Services budget. Since July 1, 2008, federal law has frozen the
"standards, methodologies and procedures" used to determine
eligibility for medical assistance benefits. In the midst of the
projected budget deficit, Minnesota has committed to expansion of
medical assistance benefits to include 98,000 adults with no
children and income no greater than 75% of federal poverty
guidelines. This presentation will discuss the Legislature’s
solutions to this dilemma and provide the usual updating of medical
assistance eligibility standards and estate recovery developments.
– Julian J. Zweber
20. Working Through a Scenario in
Completing a 706 Tax Return
This breakout session is designed to put
into practice the topics discussed in the previous session or for
those who have some knowledge of the estate tax return and are
looking for a refresher course. This session will take a case
scenario, based on a 2009 tax filing, and walk you through the
actual preparation and filing of an estate tax return in the
following scenarios: a fully maritalized estate; an estate with tax
due; and an estate subject to disclaimer. Also included in this
session is the preparation of the Exhibit Schedule which provides
the required back-up for filing of the federal estate tax return. If
time permits, there will be some discussion of the preparation and
filing of the Minnesota estate tax return.
– Kathi A. Kodadek
21. Local Efforts in Advance Care
Planning
Kent Wilson, MD, Medical Director of
Honoring Choices Minnesota (HCM) will talk about Honoring Choices
Minnesota and it collaborative, community-wide public health
initiative led by the Twin Cities Medical Society. The goal of
Honoring Choices Minnesota (HCM) is to assist health care
organizations and community partners with the installation of a
comprehensive advance care planning program. Edward Ratner, MD,
Medical Director, Heartland Health Care and Hospice, Roseville, MN
will discuss POLST, "Provider Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment",
which is a signed medical order form for patients diagnosed with
serious illness, that communicates the patient’s end-of-life
healthcare wishes to other health care providers during an
emergency. Dr. Ratner will also present his thoughts on Minnesota’s
need for POLST.
– Edward Ratner, MD & Kent Wilson, MD
– Kristine E. Mullmann, moderator
22. Cemetery/Life Estate/Burial
Issues/Cemetery Issues
– Jane F. Godfrey & Robert W. Mairs
23. Domestic Violence: the Skeleton in
the Client’s Closet – How to Find Out and Why It Matters to Your
Practice
Domestic violence continues to pervade
families, and creates acute concerns for attorneys engaged in estate
planning and probate administration. Through the use of hypothetical
scenarios and group discussion participants will develop the ability
to identify coercive controlling violence between couples and
understand how devastating it is to their clients in this legal
context. Specific tools and strategies will be explored in this
largely unchartered area of discussion.
– Shuree Arett, Mary Louise Fellows,
Jerry Krause & Kristine A. Lizdas
24. Working With and Selecting Trustees:
Insights From the Trenches
Factors to consider in selecting a
trustee; advantages and disadvantages of individuals and corporate
trustees; analyzing the costs and benefits of various alternatives –
the best of both worlds.
– Michael P. Sampson
25. Raiders of the Life Insurance Trust:
Holy Grail or Temple of Doom? Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts, Tax
and Administration Considerations
With the current uncertainty in the
economy and in the federal tax laws, explore the possibility of an
irrevocable life insurance trust to provide estate liquidity and to
hedge against a possible 2013 estate tax increase. This program will
dig through gift, estate, and GST tax issues, uncover tips and traps
for drafting trust provisions, sift through trust administration
issues, and unearth recent rulings impacting planning options.
– Christopher J. Burns & James D. Lamm
5:00 – 6:15 p.m.
INSTITUTE Reception
Sponsored by Lowry Hill
Day 2 – Tuesday, June 7, 2011
7:30 – 7:50 a.m.
CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST
7:50 – 8:00 a.m.
ANNUAL SECTION MEETING
8:00 – 8:30 a.m.
An Overview of Legislation Past in the
2011 Session, and 2012 Legislative Projects and Proposals
– Andrew M. Baese & Peter S. Hatinen
8:30 – 9:10 a.m.
Non-Tax Case Law Update
– Bridget A. Logstrom-Koci & James D.
Linnett
9:10 – 9:30 a.m.
Update and Overview of Potential Changes
to Minnesota Trust Law in the Work of the Committee
– Christopher B. Hunt
9:30 – 10:30 a.m.
2011 Economic and Investment Outlook –
Mid Year Update
Key economic drivers and trends; recent
investment market performance and drivers; factors likely to
influence investments going forward; and what we can expect from the
markets over the remainder of the calendar year.
– John M. De Clue & Timothy J. Leach
10:30 – 10:45 a.m.
BREAK
10:45 – 11:45 a.m.
BREAKOUT SESSION D
26. Wills and Domestic Partner
Agreements for Non-Traditional Families
Learn about public policy trending
toward protecting rights of unmarried cohabitating persons to
recover their own investments into a non-marital relationship and
how to enforce unwritten agreements on how to divide assets acquired
during the relationship. Can unwritten agreements be enforceable
between cohabitating non-married couples despite the Cohabitation
Statute? Are Domestic Partnership Agreements useful to avoid
conflicts of persons dissolving their domestic partnership? Use of
the Domestic Partnership Agreement to reflect the intent of the
contracting parties to avoid questions about the division of assets
upon the death of one domestic partner, by family members.
– Rebecca J. Heltzer & Melissa J.
Houghtaling
27. Death, Taxes and CEOs: Planning
Perils, Pratfalls and Pointers in Executive Compensation
The current environment in executive
compensation for publicly held and private companies, the impact
Dodd-Frank – changes in governance, public disclosures, reporting
and taxes; wealth management challenges – including stock options,
other awards/plans; diversification strategies; and SERPs plus other
specialized retirement programs, and much, much more.
– John W. Provo & Martin R. Rosenbaum
28. Informed Charitable Giving – Helping
your Clients Give with Confidence
Tools available for advisors and their
clients to assess charities; how to help clients select trustworthy
and effective charities for financial support; and how to find
nonprofits they can trust to effectively carry out their legacy.
Important new cases, statues, regulations, etc. Will include
discussion of the reinstatement of the IRA Charitable Rollover
federal legislation.
– Richard Cowles
29. Disclaimers – Planning and
Administration
I.R.C. §2518 requirements compared to
Minnesota requirements; use of disclaimers for planning under
current tax laws; administration considerations with disclaimers
under new law; tax laws and tips and traps.
– Marya P. Robben
30. Family Limited Partnerships Case Law
Update – FLPs are Alive and Well After the 2010 Tax Act
Recent family limited partnership (FLP)
gift and estate tax court cases; 2011 and 2012 gifting opportunities
in light of the 2010 Tax Act and the $5 million federal gift tax
exemption; how to structure FLPs and assignments of FLP interests in
light of recent court cases; the need for a "gap in time" between
FLP funding and gifting of FLP interests. Forsberg’s "30/60/90 day
rule"; FLP gifting and the annual exclusion – is it or is it not a
gift of a present interest?; and the single member LLC and asset
protection issues – the Olmstead problem.
– William S. Forsberg & David B. Gollin
31. Supplemental & Special Needs Trusts:
Just Beyond the Basics
There isn’t much that’s "basic" about
Supplemental and Special Needs Trusts; you have to know more than
just what words to include on the form. This session will get at the
shifting policies and regulations that manipulate the drafting and
(especially) the administration of these invaluable tools for people
with disabilities and explore when and how to use them.
– Jeffrey W. Schmidt
32. Small Estates Panel – Planning,
Administration and Drafting Issues
A discussion of topics affecting those
estates with a value of $500,000 – $5,000,000. Some of the topics to
be addressed will be the practical implications of the new federal
estate, gift and GST taxes upon the "small estate"; exemption
planning and inter vivos gift strategies; life insurance planning;
planning for disability; probate avoidance; and probate
administration issues.
– Elizabeth A. Garvey, James T. McNary &
Trisha A. Vicario
33. Planning Concepts with Insurance
Products – "Have It Both Ways" Insurance Planning
Take back control of their benefits from
insurance companies; how to pass desired amount of a client’s estate
without reducing cash flow for personal use/lifestyle; eliminate the
"use it or lose it" and "die to win" mindset of insurance products;
multiple purpose insurance vehicles; the dynamic and evolutionary
nature of the life insurance industry.
– Robert Cohen
11:45 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
BREAKOUT SESSION E
34. Cryptic Tales – A Probate
Practitioner’s Panel
This panel of experienced probate
practitioners will discuss basic questions that arise for attorneys
and paralegals during the administration of a decedent’s estate
about: issues with the will; probate and non-probate assets;
creditor’s claims; opening and closing issues; and what to do when
the family is misbehaving. If you have specific questions that you
would like the panel to address or discuss, please e-mail them to
vobrien@minncle.org.
– Andrea S. Breckner, Cynthia R.
Costello, Daniel R. Donovan, Jane F. Godfrey, Kathi A. Kodadek,
Michael P. Sampson & Mary E. Shearen
– Susan J. Link, moderator
35. Who’s Your Daddy? Perspectives on
Creative Conception and the Law
The new definition of children under
Minnesota’s law, and what it covers versus what it doesn’t; the
impact of the new law on inheritance rights and relationships as
raised by the new variety of ways in which children can come into
the world including surrogacy and assisted reproduction; and how to
draft estate plans that appropriately address the issues raised by
creative conception methods.
– Sonny F. Miller, Sheryl G. Morrison &
Steven H. Snyder
36. Techn-ethics
1.0 ethics credit applied for
Technology is changing so fast that it
can make your head spin and advancements create new ethical
complications. Trends like cloud computing and smartphones have made
the practice easier, but they’re also creating headaches. This
seminar evaluates the ethical concerns in today’s hottest
techno-trends. Issues "In the Clouds" will include: cloud computing,
open source software, sharing and collaboration, on-line data
storage, Software as a Service (SaaS), internet-based e-mail with a
description of each and an explanation of they are applied in the
practice of law citing appropriate Rules, Opinions, Case-law and
unresolved issues.
– Stuart I. Teicher
37. "Bleak House" Revisited or How Much
Justice Can Your Client Afford?
Uniqueness of probate litigation
proceedings (Remember "The rule in Shelley’s case"?); importance of
family history and dynamics in the litigation; many parts of
litigation under the UPC; creative use of ADR and compensation for
the attorney (or "Aren’t you doing this for free?").
– William G. Peterson
38. Family Governance and Leadership:
Transitioning Family Wealth in Challenging Times
This session introduces an innovative
approach to wealth transition planning and outlines a series of
practical steps that affluent families can take to ensure that they
become and remain resilient, flexible, adaptable and productive, by
applying disciplines from organizational communication, family
governance, adult learning methodologies and behavioral finance.
– John R. Bedosky
39. Florida Real Estate Planning Update
and Notable Real Property Issues
Overview of Florida tax system; steps to
establish Florida domicile; Florida homesteads and related real
estate issues, including documentary tax on real property transfers
and save-our-homes assessed value reductions, and an update on
Florida probate and trust laws.
– Ronald A. Eisenberg
40. Obtaining Clearance Certificates to
Resolve Medical Assistance Estate Recovery Claims
This presentation will discuss the
different situations in which a medical assistance clearance
certificate must be obtained from a county or state agency to
satisfy a medical assistance claim or potential claim against real
property or satisfy a third party that no claim exists. Forms,
procedures and practical advice for each situation will be
presented.
– Julian J. Zweber
41. The Corporate Trustee Isn’t Coming
to Dinner: Examining This and Other Advantages to Utilizing
Corporate Trustees in Estate Planning
There are several reasons to consider
using corporate trustees when drafting estate planning documents. As
the title of this presentation suggests, they won’t be coming to
dinner – meaning they can make hard, unpopular decisions without the
risk of introducing strain into the family. The presentation will
focus on this and other advantages to naming a corporate trustee as
well as items to consider when selecting a corporate trustee.
– Adam D. Cox & Robin R. Tutt
12:45 p.m.
ADJOURN
Free Optional Bonus Seminar:
If registering online for the Institute,
please
email our
registrar and let us know if you also
will be attending this free optional bonus seminar:
Tuesday, June 7
1:00 – 3:15 p.m.
The Ethical Dangers of Social Media
2-hour session (includes
one 15-minute break)
2.0 ethics credits applied
for
Social networking is all the rage and
attorneys are participating in record numbers. But our activities in
social networking have both professional and ethical repercussions.
This two-hour seminar evaluates the professional and ethical
pitfalls that await attorneys while involved in social networking
and provides some advice for keeping on the right side of the
professional and ethical divide. Analysis will include: cultivating
knowledge of the law, and referencing ethics Rules: 1.1, 1.3, 5.1,
5.3. The second hour will address specific ethical issues in social
networking including Rules: 1.6, 7 and address tips for safe
surfing.
– Stuart I. Teicher