Through your estate planning, you may have calculated exactly how much of your assets each of your designated beneficiaries will inherit down to a science. However, what you may not have accounted for is unexpected life events that may threaten these assets and their ability to be passed down at the time of your unfortunate death. In other words, this is to say that you may not have considered asset preservation strategies within your estate plan. If so, please follow along to find out estate planning methods for asset preservation and how one of the proficient Putnam County asset preservation attorneys at the Law Office of Andres D. Gil, PLLC can help you execute them correctly.

What is the importance of considering asset preservation in my estate plan?

To reiterate, life is full of unpredictable twists and turns. For example, one day you may be riding high with a successful business venture and the next day you may struggle to pay off your business debts. Or, you may have been happy in your marriage just for your spouse to serve you with divorce papers seemingly out of nowhere. Lastly, you may have randomly gotten in the middle of a personal injury accident where the other involved party later pursued a civil lawsuit against you.

In life events such as these, your assets may become very vulnerable. That is, creditors may seize them to pay off your outstanding debts; your spouse may get them in a divorce settlement; a plaintiff may get awarded them by a civil court; or otherwise. Therefore, you must preserve your assets within your estate plan so they cannot and will not be taken in any of the aforementioned scenarios. With this, the full extent of your promised assets may be protected until it is time for your designated beneficiaries to inherit them.

What are examples of estate planning methods for asset preservation?

Now that you know the concept of asset preservation, you must better understand the methods of doing so within your estate plan. The most common strategies read as follows:

  • You should add professional liability insurance and employment practices insurance to your commercial general liability plan.
  • You should purchase an umbrella insurance policy that protects you from personal injury claims more than the standard home and auto coverage options.
  • You may sign your ownership rights over certain assets to your spouse so that they cannot be liquidated in the event of a debt collection.
  • You may set up multiple limited liability companies so that a single lawsuit cannot lead to catastrophic losses amongst your assets.
  • You may consider transferring your assets to an irrevocable trust or an offshore account.

There is a lot to consider before establishing your estate plan. To help you make the right considerations, please consult with a talented Putnam County estate planning attorney. Our team at the Law Office of Andres D. Gil, PLLC will guide you toward the best decision.