Joint Trust Conversation, Doctors who receive Compensation from Pharmaceutical Companies, Estate Trek: The Next Generation, Steve Oshins’ Annual Domestic Asset Protection Trust State Rankings, Ohio – More Than Just Rock N’ Roll, Our New Tampa Office, Gassman Law Clerk Giving Keynote Speech, and Making Note of Notre Dame

A JOINT TRUST CONVERSATION WITH A MARRIED COUPLE –WE ARE NOT JESTING

 WHAT HAPPENS TO DOCTORS WHO RECEIVE MONEY FROM PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES AS COMPENSATION FOR EATING DINNER AT HOOTERS (WHY NOT KFC?) OR GOING FISHING – THE GOVERNMENT’S LAWSUIT OF THE WEEK

ESTATE TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION – BETA TEST THE LATEST AND GREATEST VERSION OF OUR NEW ESTATEVIEW PLANNING SOFTWARE

STEVE OSHINS’ 4TH ANNUAL DOMESTIC ASSET PROTECTION TRUST STATE RANKINGS –INCLUDING OHIO’S JUMP INTO THE FIRST TIER!

OH OHIO – SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST A ROCK N’ ROLL HALL OF FAME?

FAILED TO PAY THE ANNUAL REPORT FEE FOR AN LLC? – WAIT UNTIL SEPTEMBER TO REINSTATE!

 OUR NEW TAMPA OFFICE OPENS MAY 17TH –GUESS WHAT WE’LL BE SERVING AT THE GRAND OPENING!

GASSMAN LAW CLERK ERIC MOODY SELECTED TO GIVE THE KEYNOTE SPEECH AT THE 2ND DCA INDUCTION CEREMONY!

MAKING NOTE OF NOTRE DAME – OCTOBER IS FAST APPROACHING!

We welcome contributions for future Thursday Report topics. If you are interested in making a contribution as a guest writer, please email Janine Ruggiero at Janine@gassmanpa.com.

 A JOINT TRUST CONVERSATION WITH A MARRIED COUPLE –WE ARE NOT JESTING

Our recent LISI article on the Joint Exempt Step-Up Trust (JEST) has caused a significant amount of feedback, in many cases from estate planning lawyers who want to offer joint trusts to their clients for the non tax reasons described below. The JEST trust is about more than trying to get a full stepped up basis and full funding of a credit shelter trust on the death of the first dying spouse –Many married couples want their joint assets secured under an irrevocable trust system on the first death. Where married couples want to have joint assets locked up on the first death, why not set this up for the best chances of a stepped-up basis and full credit shelter trust funding. You can’t get what you don’t ask for! While many authorities point out that the full stepped-up basis and full funding of a credit shelter trust may not be approved by the IRS, how will we feel if we do not offer this to clients and it turns out that they are approved?

Our JEST trust article can be viewed by clicking here and our JEST chart can be viewed here.

Below we have suggested client letter language on how to introduce the JEST trust to your clients:

Presently you own most of your assets jointly or under your respective revocable trusts.

If one of you dies we have presently provided for the assets held by the first dying spouse and his or her revocable trust and life insurance to be held under a protective trust system for the surviving spouse.

This protective trust system helps to protect the assets from federal estate tax, creditor claims, and future spouses or individuals or organizations that might be inclined to try to endear themselves to the surviving spouse to inherit instead of your children.

Many couples elect to use a trust system that will also allow some or all of the assets held by the surviving spouse or his or her revocable trust to also be held under an irrevocable trust system that permits the surviving spouse to serve as co-trustee and receive benefits as needed for health, education and maintenance, while providing some or all of the protections described above.

In your situation are you inclined to have more than just the assets of the first dying spouse held under a protective trust arrangement?

If so, then a new joint trust may work best in your situation. This joint trust would encompass your present separate revocable trusts so that you would not need to retitle or change anything concerning those trusts, other than with respect to the language under a new joint trust that would basically encompass the separate revocable trust assets.

Under this system, the surviving spouse might be able to sell appreciated assets after the first death without paying capital gains tax, although the law is far from clear in this area and special design language needs to be included in the trust document.

This system might also enhance your estate tax planning.

Please let us know if this would be of interest.

Thanks!

We welcome any and all further questions, comments, and suggestions on the above.

WHAT HAPPENS TO DOCTORS WHO RECEIVE MONEY FROM PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES AS COMPENSATION FOR EATING DINNER AT HOOTERS (WHY NOT KFC?) OR GOING FISHING – THE GOVERNMENT’S LAWSUIT OF THE WEEK

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. apparently had a very aggressive program by which it hired doctors to lecture other doctors and arrange for dinner and speaker programs throughout the country.

As the result of this the company entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the United States Department of Health and Human Services agreeing to implement a rigorous compliance program.

Instead it apparently implemented a rigorous doctor reward program. A complaint against Novartis was filed on April 26, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York by United States Attorney Preet Bharara and Assistant United States Attorneys Heidi A. Wendel and Mara E. Trager.

Excerpts from this interesting complaint are as follows:

2. According to Novartis’s policies, speaker programs are events at which a doctor is paid to educate other doctors and health care professionals regarding the company’s drugs by presenting slides prepared by the company. In practice, Novartis held thousands of speaker programs all over the country at which few or no slides were shown and the doctors who participated spent little or no time discussing the drug at issue. Instead, Novartis simply wined and dined the doctors at high-end restaurants with astronomical costs, as well as in sports bars, on fishing trips, and at other venues not conducive to an educational program.

3. Novartis’s own internal analyses showed that speaker programs had a high return on investment in terms of the additional prescriptions for its drugs written by the doctors who participated in the programs, both as speakers and attendees, with the highest return arising from payments to doctors as “honoraria” for speaking.

4. Novartis was well aware that its speaker programs created opportunities to provide kickbacks to doctors. In September 2010, Novartis entered into a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to settle FCA lawsuits based in part on false claims arising from illegal remuneration Novartis had paid to doctors through such mechanisms as speaker programs. The company signed a Corporate Integrity Agreement (“CIA”) with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General agreeing to implement a rigorous compliance program.

5. Yet even after entering into the CIA, Novartis’s compliance program was inadequate to prevent illegal payments and other perquisites to doctors in conjunction with Novartis’s speaker programs. Novartis did not adequately review its speaker program to determine whether the programs were being used for an illegitimate purpose.

 IV. Novartis Created Incentives for Sales Representatives to Use Speaker Programs as Kickbacks Without Sufficient Controls to Prevent Kickbacks from Occurring

49. From 2001 through at least 2011, Novartis conducted speaker programs as a key component of its promotional activities aimed at increasing sales of its drugs. According to Novartis’s data, it spent over $65 million and conducted more than 38,000 speaker programs for Lotrel, Starlix and Valturna during the period from January 1, 2002 through November 2011. Of this $65 million, Novartis spent nearly $51 million for approximately 29,000 speaker programs on

Lotrel between 2002 and 2007, when a generic competitor pharmaceutical product entered the market. For Starlix, Novartis spent nearly $4 million for approximately 3,200 speaker programs between 2002 and 2007, when a generic competitor pharmaceutical product entered the market. For Valturna, Novartis spent approximately $11 million for more than 6,500 programs from its approval by the FDA in 2009, until Novartis announced in April 2012 that it would withdraw Valturna from the market in July 2012.

52. A much smaller number of speakers, usually prominent doctors known as “key opinion leaders” (“KOLs”), were chosen by the drug’s “brand team,” an interdisciplinary group of marketing, sales and scientific specialists who were in charge of the overall management of each brand.

57. Speakers were paid an average of between $750 and $1,500 for each program depending on the leveling factors, with some speakers earning as much as $3,000 per program.

77. Tallahassee, Florida. Likewise, a doctor in Tallahassee, Florida, was paid $3,750 for speaking on the same Lotrel topic five times in a nine-month period in 2006-2007 with the same four doctors repeatedly in attendance. One of these doctors attended four of the events, including two programs that were only one week apart. Another attended three events, including two programs that were only a week apart. At one event, there was only one attendee, a doctor who repeatedly attended the same program.

78. The Tallahassee doctor was also paid $3,250 for speaking repeatedly on another Lotrel topic, “Rationale for Combination Therapy in the Treatment of Hypertension” (hereinafter “Rationale for Combination Therapy”), three times in early 2005 with the same two doctors in attendance at all three programs and three other doctors in attendance at two. Despite having spoken on the topic, he also attended a program, given by one of the attendees at his programs, on the very same topic during that period. Overall, Novartis’s data shows that the same six doctors attended the same program collectively 23 times in six months (the term “collectively” is used in this complaint to indicate the total number of instances of attendance by attendees at an event, not including the speaker).

79. Specifically, regarding this Lotrel topic and this cluster of doctors:

•  On February 1, 2005, one doctor presented “Rationale for Combination Therapy,” and five other doctors attended.
• On February 8, 2005, the same speaker attended a presentation of “Rationale for Combination Therapy” by one of the attendees at his programs even though he had presented that program one week earlier, on February 1, 2005, with that doctor as an attendee. Also present at both events were three of the doctors who had attended the program on February 1, 2005.
• On March 9, 2005, the same five doctors who attended the February 1 and February 8 programs again attended “Rationale for Combination Therapy,” with the same doctor as the speaker.

80. In addition, the speaker at the February 1, 2005 program was paid to speak on a third Lotrel topic, “Using Combination Therapy and Optimizing Treatment of Hypertension,” five times in an eleven-month period in 2005 and 2006 with many of those same doctors in attendance at each of the programs.

81. One of the doctors in this cluster was paid between $50,000 and $75,000 by Novartis for speaker programs from October 2003 to May 2011.

82. At many of the speaker programs in which these Tallahassee doctors participated, no slides were presented, particularly when, as often occurred, there were only a small number of attendees at the programs. Even when slides were shown at a program, the speaker often would do a truncated version of the slides.

83. At many of the speaker programs involving this cluster, conversation about the drug was a very small part of the event. The doctors mostly talked about other things.

101. Hooters. In addition, Novartis conducted numerous events at various Hooters restaurants. These events were purportedly promotional discussions for doctors at which no one was designated or paid an honorarium as the speaker, called “round table” programs. The events occurred on the following dates in the following locations:

• March 16, 2007 at Hooters in Lexington, KY.
• October 12, 2005 at Hooters in Charleston, WV.
• January 25, 2005 at Hooters in Mobile, AL.
• September 9, 2004 at Hooters in Indianapolis, IN.
• August 25, 2004 at Hooters in Daphne, AL.
• May 30, 2004 at Hooters in Castleton, IN.
• April 25, 2004 at Hooters in Gainesville, FL.

A Novartis sales representative was present at each of these events.

106. This doctor was also paid to speak at his own office eight times. On one of those occasions, October 21, 2004, only one attendee was present for a program on a Lotrel topic, and the total amount spent on the meal was $1,000, along with a $1,000 honorarium to the doctor. On two other occasions there were no attendees present and the doctor was paid a $500 honorarium for each event.

• $2,016 for dinner for three people ($672 per person), including the speaker, at Smith & Wolensky in Washington, D.C., on July 7, 2005. The speaker was paid a $1,000 honorarium. One of the two attendees was present at the same program at The Caucus Room a few months earlier.

114. The conversation at these dinners was generally not about the drug that was the subject of the speaker program. Doctors attended the programs to have dinner together, often at high-end restaurants, and to network with colleagues. They also attended each other’s programs to ensure that they would all continue to be paid as Novartis speakers. The doctors knew that if they did not attend each other’s events the programs could not take place and none of them would continue to get paid by Novartis.

116. For example, the primary speaker in the Brooklyn cluster was seeing patients at her office during the times when Novartis claimed that she was purportedly speaking about Lotrel on March 20, 2007 and April 17, 2007. She was paid an honorarium of $1,000 for “speaking” on each of those occasions, as well as “ground transportation” expenses, even though she was purportedly speaking at her own office. The purported attendees on these occasions were the exact same attendees that purportedly attended all of her events and whose events she in turn purportedly attended.

117. Novartis also paid honoraria to doctors in West Virginia for speaker programs that did not occur.

119. Likewise, a doctor in the Cedar Knolls cluster also did not attend many of the events that Novartis’s records indicate he attended. He attended only one program given by the primary speaker in the Cedar Knolls cluster, but Novartis’s speaker program data indicates he attended 14 speaker programs given by that speaker….

147. Novartis caused many thousands of prescriptions to be written as a result of speaker programs that were kickbacks to doctors. Novartis paid at least 26,997 doctors kickbacks in the form of honoraria and/or exorbitant meals and entertainment in conjunction with speaker programs on Lotrel, Valturna, and Starlix during the period from January 2002 through November 2011. On average each of these doctors wrote many thousands of dollars worth of prescriptions for Lotrel, Valturna, and Starlix that were reimbursed or purchased by federal health care programs.

148. For example, after Novartis started paying her as a speaker on Lotrel, a doctor in the East Orange, New Jersey cluster who participated in Novartis’s speaker program fraud wrote $39,793 in prescriptions for Lotrel, Valturna, and Starlix that were reimbursed by Medicare. She also wrote $1,622 in prescriptions for Tekamlo, as well as $160,174 in prescriptions for Diovan, Tekturna, and Exforge that were reimbursed by medicare after January 1, 2010.

a. On Counts One and Two (FCA) a judgment against Novartis for treble damages and civil penalties for the maximum amount allowed by law;

b. On Count Three (common law) a judgment for damages to the extent allowed by law.

Doctors need to make very sure that when they are hired as speakers they are actually speaking to an audience that makes business sense for the company and the attendees.

The pharmaceutical representatives do not have licenses to lose and may not be following the rules that the pharmaceutical firm set up. You know the saying about a free lunch – no matter how bad the food is in the doctors lounge that is the safest place to talk about medical devices and techniques in an economic way.

ESTATE TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION – BETA TEST THE LATEST AND GREATEST VERSION OF OUR NEW ESTATEVIEW PLANNING SOFTWARE

If you have tried our software, or haven’t, you will want to join us for an upcoming webinar. We will be giving a webinar on Wednesday, May 22, 2013 at 5:00 p.m. entitled Estate Trek – The Next Generation – to show you what we have added to this software.

Please join our beta testers and receive continuing education credit and to register for the webinar, please click here.

STEVE OSHINS’ 4TH ANNUAL DOMESTIC ASSET PROTECTION TRUST STATE RANKINGS – INCLUDING OHIO’S JUMP INTO THE FIRST TIER!

Steve Oshins’ 4th annual Domestic Asset Protection Trust state rankings have just been released, and Ohio has deservedly jumped into the first tier, for reasons discussed below. If you have affluent clients with relatives or professionals they trust in Ohio then consider an Ohio irrevocable trust for descendants or others that the client might be added as a beneficiary of if and when hard economic times would ever befall him or her. Steve Oshins’ hybrid trust article from Steve Leimberg’s LISI Digest discusses the use of a Nevada trust that the client can set up and fund without being a beneficiary unless or until certain circumstances would exist and Trust Protectors would act. This should work fine in Ohio. The Leimberg article on the hybrid trust can be reviewed by clicking here.

As mentioned above, Steve Oshins just released his 4th Annual Domestic Asset Protection State Rankings Chart. The release of Steve’s rankings have become one of our favorite estate planning holidays. A copy of Steve’s DAPT Rankings can be found on his website here. While it is no surprise that Nevada and South Dakota remained on top, Ohio’s jump to a tie for fourth place was a bit of surprise. See below for our article on Ohio’s recent changes to their trust laws.

Steve also noted the following highlights of this year’s DAPT Rankings in his email announcing their release:

• Alaska, Tennessee, Wyoming, and Utah all made positive changes.
• Utah remained ranked low because of uncertainty over state income tax. At the same time, Utah became a great DAPT state for Utah residents.
• The new ranking includes an “Ease of Use” criteria, which docks states that require an Affidavit of Solvency for every new transfer. While this criteria was only 5% of this year’s formula, Steve is considering assigning it greater weight in next year’s rankings.

Make sure to congratulate Steve on another valuable addition to the estate planning field!

Steve’s contact information is as follows:

 Steven J. Oshins
Oshins & Associates
1645 Village Center Circle
Suite 170
Las Vegas, NV 89134

Phone: 702-341-6000
Fax: 702-341-6001
Email: soshins@oshins.com

He is always giving fantastic information, publishing, and advancing Nevada law for everyone’s benefit, for that we thank him sincerely and hope that you will as well.

OH OHIO – SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST A ROCK N’ ROLL HALL OF FAME?

Cleveland’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame? Sandusky’s Cedar Point Amusement Park? Ohio State? All are good reasons to pick Ohio as your next vacation destination. And a recently enacted statute may also make the state an ideal location for an asset protection trust. In 2012, the Ohio legislature passed the Ohio Legacy Trust Act, which has been codified at ORC § 5816. Click here to see Ohio’s Legacy Trust Act online at the Ohio Laws and Rules website. This statute permits the creation of self-settled spendthrift trusts with a few unique features that make Ohio an especially attractive option for potential settlors. The statute became effective a few weeks ago, on March 27, 2013, so the language of the statute is really the only guidance we have so far.

When creating an Ohio Legacy Trust for which the transferor is a beneficiary, the transferor must sign an affidavit satisfying seven statutory conditions: the assets are not the product of illegal activities, the transferor is fully empowered to transfer the assets into the trust, the transferor will not become insolvent immediately after the assets are transferred, the trust is not being created to defraud a creditor, there are no pending court actions against the transferor, there are no pending administrative proceedings involving the transferor, and when settling the trust the transferor does not anticipate filing for bankruptcy. ORC § 5816.06(b).

Perhaps the most interesting feature of an Ohio Legacy Trust is the time frame limitations it imposes on creditors seeking to invalidate the transfer of assets into the trust. To invalidate a transfer of assets, the creditor must take multiple steps. First, the creditor must establish that the transfer in question was made “with the specific intent to defraud the specific creditor bringing the action.” ORC § 5816.07(a). Second, creditors existing at the time of the trust’s settlement must bring the action within 18 months of the transfer in question or within 6 months after the transfer was or reasonably could have been discovered by the creditor (whichever date is later). ORC § 5816.07(b)(1). New creditors must bring claims within 18 months after the transfer. The statute also makes clear that these prerequisites must be established by “clear and convincing evidence” and that this heightened burden rests with creditors. ORC § 5816.07(d). Another important feature of an Ohio Legacy Trust that limits a creditor’s ability to reach trust assets is its “last in first out” provision. This provision states that a distribution made from the trust is considered to come from the assets most recently transferred into the trust. ORC § 5816.07(f)(2). This presumption can only be overcome with evidence that proves otherwise “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

While there are the customary exceptions for alimony payments and child support, the spousal support provisions are only applicable to a marriage existing at the time the trust is created. Because of this limitation, an Ohio Legacy Trust can be a sensible replacement for a prenuptial agreement in certain circumstances. As long as the trust is settled before the marriage, Ohio law prevents its assets from being reached to satisfy spousal support requirements or to be included in distribution proceedings resulting from a divorce. ORC § 5816.07(e). Thus, the only truly exposed creditors under an Ohio Legacy Trust are child support and spousal support for existing marriages.

If you believe your clients could benefit from settling an asset protection trust in Ohio, the statute does require a trustee that is either a resident of Ohio or a business with trust powers in the state. Thus the next task is clear: find some trustworthy friends in the Buckeye State. We have heard through the grapevine that you may be able to purchase one or two through Craigslist, though we cannot recommend this option!

FAILED TO PAY THE ANNUAL REPORT FEE FOR AN LLC? – WAIT UNTIL SEPTEMBER TO REINSTATE!

Florida’s Secretary of State charges a $400.00 late filing penalty (in addition to the $138.75 Annual Report filing fee) for LLCs that file their Annual Report after May 1st. For some strange reason, the late filing penalty is reduced to a $100 reinstatement fee if you wait for the LLC to be administratively dissolved by the Secretary of State for failure to file an Annual Report, which occurs on the fourth Friday of September.

For this reason, Florida LLC owners that missed the Annual Report filing deadline of May 1st may want to “wait to reinstate” later this fall to avoid paying the $400.00 late filing penalty. The cost to “wait to reinstate” only applies to LLCs. Other types of Florida entities incur costly reinstatement fees that are much higher than the late filing penalty.

We created a chart summarizing the Annual Report filing fees, late filing penalties and reinstatement fees for various types of Florida entities. A copy of the chart can be found by clicking here.

OUR NEW TAMPA OFFICE OPENS MAY 17TH – GUESS WHAT WE’LL BE SERVING AT THE GRAND OPENING!

In conjunction with adding Tom Ellwanger to our firm, we are opening a Tampa Office  at 119 S. Dakota, which is off Kennedy, about a mile west of downtown Tampa.

At the grand opening we will be serving Kentucky Fried Chicken, mashed potatoes, and KFC’s World Famous Gravy. On a related note, we are looking for a Santa Claus impersonator who can play the role of Colonel Sanders at the opening. Email us if you know anyone willing to work for chicken. In fact, we have determined that there is a very good possibility that Santa Claus and Colonel Sanders are the same person and we are sponsoring an investigation. One thing we have learned is that they have never appeared in the same photograph. And don’t expect to sit on Colonel Sanders lap at our grand opening – we are having to front the costume deposit and you may spill your World Famous Gravy!

We thank the law offices of Gomez and Morse for allowing us to share their beautiful 1921 building with them.

GASSMAN LAW ASSOCIATES LAW CLERK ERIC MOODY SELECTED TO GIVE THE KEYNOTE SPEECH AT THE 2ND DCA INDUCTION CEREMONY!

Recent Stetson Law graduate and Thursday Report contributor Eric Moody was selected to give the keynote speech at the Second DCA Induction Ceremony on May 6th in Tampa. Giving the keynote speech at a DCA Induction Ceremony is a tremendous honor, reserved for test takers who finished with the highest bar scores in the state. Eric has been with Gassman Law since August and is a frequent Thursday Report contributor. Prior to joining Gassman Law, Eric worked for two years as a clerk in the litigation department of Albertelli Law, a creditors’ rights firm.

Eric graduated from Stetson in December 2012, finishing third in his December class of fifty-three students. While at Stetson, Eric served as an Articles and Symposia Editor for the Stetson Law Review. Eric received his Bachelor of Sciences in Business Management from the University of South Florida. Prior to embarking on a second career in law, Eric spent seven years as the general manager of a successful online “e-tailer,” which sold retail furniture via the internet. Eric currently lives with his wife Angela and their two dogs and two cats in Tampa,where they spend most of their free time playing with their dogs, cooking, and gardening.

Gassman Law Associates has been very fortunate to have Eric stay on as a law clerk while he is interviewing for his first full-time lawyer position. If you need an entry-level associate who excelled in school and has common sense, a great work ethic, a super demeanor, and Thursday Report drafting experience you can contact Eric directly at ericbmoody@gmail.com or (813) 786-8322.

 APPLICABLE FEDERAL RATES

Please click here to view a chart of this month’s, last month’s, and the preceding month’s Applicable Federal Rates, because for a sale you can use the lowest of the 3.

SEMINARS AND WEBINARS

SEMINARS:

• MONDAY, MAY 13 – WEDNESDAY MAY 15, 2013.  15, 2013.
  The 2013 Florida MGMA Conference – Uncover the Hidden Treasure in Your Practice. Alan Gassman will be speaking with Fred Simmons on Wednesday, May 15 at the conference on the topic of – Keeping Your Practice Independent. The conference will take place at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida. Please click here for the brochure and to register. And let us know if you would like to have a copy of the recent article we have written for doctors called “50 Ways to Leave Your Overhead.” A lot of this applies to lawyers, accountants, and financial professionals as well. Please emailagassman@gassmanpa.com for a copy of the article.
• THURSDAY, MAY 16, 2013. 
  The Florida Bar Annual Wealth Protection Seminar: “How a Lawyer Can Protect a Client’s Wealth.” Mark your calendars for this exciting event in Miami, Florida.  Speakers include Jonathan Alper, Esq. on Where Does Florida Law Stand on Fraudulent Transfers”; Mitchell Fuerst, Esq. on Introduction to Professional Privilege in Wealth Protection Cases – Civil v Criminal; Tax v Non-Tax; When to Claim the Fifth; How to Do it Right;  Michael Markham, Esq. on Recent Asset Protection Case Decisions, Legislation, and Their Importance in Protection Planning;  Denis Kleinfeld, Esq. onWhere to Situs a Trust – An Analysis of U.S. Asset Protection States; and Alan Gassman, Esq. on Using Estate Planning Techniques to Optimize Family Wealth Preservation. For more information please click here for the brochure or emailagassman@gassmanpa.com.
• TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2013. 
  Bloomberg/BNA Webinar: Valuable Planning for Snowbirds: Tips, Traps and Tactics for Advisors with Clients in Florida: Gassman Law Associates is happy to announce our upcoming webinar with BNA on May 28. You can register byclicking here. Thursday Report Readers can use the top secret, very confidential promotional code “GASSMAN” to receive a $100 discount off the price of the webinar or the webinar and CD package. Please don’t tell anyone who attended Florida State University. Details for the webinar are as follows. We hope you can join us!

Most advisors with Florida clients are unaware of the myriad of unique rules and planning considerations that affect Florida estate, tax and business planning. It is therefore vitally important for advisors to be aware of pertinent tricks and traps for the unwary. Unlike some other states, Florida’s laws regarding limited liability companies, powers of attorney, taxation, homestead, creditor exemptions, trusts and estates, and documentary stamp taxes are not simply versions of a Uniform Act, and have been crafted by the Florida legislature to apply to various specific issues in an often counterintuitive manner.

BNA authors Alan S. Gassman and Christopher J. Denicolo have completed a 200 plus page easy to read outline with forms on major Florida law considerations, and will present this outline and powerpoint slides to share techniques and opportunities, new practical ideas, and very useful client explanation charts, sample clauses, and checklists.

In 90 minutes, Gassman and Denicolo will cover:

• Business and tax law anomalies and planning opportunities.
• Creditor protection considerations, and Florida’s statutory creditor exemptions.
• Unique aspects of the Florida Trust and Probate Codes.
• Florida medical practice rules and regulations.
• Documentary stamp taxes, sales taxes, rent taxes, property taxes and how to avoid them.
• Traps and tricks associated with Florida’s Homestead law, and Elective Share.
• The new Florida Power of Attorney Act.
• The current status of Florida charging order protection for limited partnerships and LLCs.

Educational Objectives:

• Become conversant with the primary rules, opportunities and limitations with respect to Florida creditor exemptions.
• Discuss various key considerations with respect to the design and implementation of estate plans and Trusts in Florida.
• Understand the scope and application of Florida’s tax system and primary tax avoidance techniques and issues.
• Review unique aspects of Florida law, including its new Power of Attorney Act, Homestead laws, and medical practice rules and regulations.

MAKE NOTE OF NOTRE DAME! PLAN FOR AN EXCITING OCTOBER 16 – 19 WEEKEND TO INCLUDE THE NOTRE DAME – USC GAME ON OCTOBER 19 AND FRIED CHICKEN FOR ALL THURSDAY REPORT READERS WHO ATTEND!

• WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16 to FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2013.
  Professor Jerry Hesch’s Notre Dame Tax Institute will once again emphasize the importance of income tax planning and implications in addition to estate, estate tax, and related concepts. The Institute is held in South Bend, Indiana each fall. This year the dates are Wednesday, October 16 to Friday, October 18, 2013.

Book now to get your football tickets to the Notre Dame-USC game on October 19.

We welcome questions, comments and suggestions for the presentation that we are assisting Jerry in preparing and presenting – Interesting Interest Questions, Planning with Low Interest Loans, Self-Cancelling Installment Notes, Private Annuities, Defective Grantor Trusts, and Similar Issues That Arise in a Low Interest Rate Environment.

 WEBINARS:

 · MONDAY, MAY 6, 2013, 12:30 – 1:00 p.m.  
On the first Monday of each month the Clearwater Bar Association presents Lunch Talk.  A free monthly webinar series moderated by Alan S. Gassman.  This month’s speaker is Mike Shea speaking on Your Law Firm Insurance Package.  To register for the webinar please visit www.clearwaterbar.org or email Janine@gassmanpa.com.

Alan S. Gassman, J.D., LL.M. is a practicing lawyer and author based in Clearwater, Florida. Mr. Gassman is the founder of the firm Gassman, Crotty & Denicolo, P.A., which focuses on the representation of physicians, high net worth individuals, and business owners in estate planning, taxation, and business and personal matters.  He is the lead author on Bloomberg BNA’s Estate Tax Planning and 2011 and 2012, Creditor Protection for Florida Physicians, Gassman & Markham on Florida and Federal Asset Protection Law, A Practical Guide to Kickback and Self-Referral Laws for Florida Physicians, The Florida Physician Advertising Handbook  and The Florida Guide to Prescription, Controlled Substance and Pain Medicine Laws, among others.  Mr. Gassman is a frequent speaker for continuing education programs, publishes regularly for Bloomberg BNA Tax & Accounting, Estates and Trusts Magazine, Estate Planning Magazine and Leimberg Estate Planning Network (LISI).  He holds a law degree and a Masters of Law degree (LL.M.) in Taxation from the University of Florida, and a business degree from Rollins College.  Mr. Gassman is board certified by the Florida Bar Association in Estate Planning and Trust Law, and has the Accredited Estate Planner designation for the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils.  Mr. Gassman’s email is Agassman@gassmanpa.com.

Thomas J. Ellwanger, J.D., is a lawyer practicing at the Clearwater, Florida firm of Gassman, Crotty & Denicolo, P.A.  Mr. Ellwanger received his B.A. in 1970 from Northwestern University and his J.D. with honors in 1974 from the University of Florida College of Law.  His practice areas include estate planning, trust and estate administration, personal tax planning and charitable tax planning.  Mr. Ellwanger is a Fellow of the American College of Trusts and Estates Counsel (ACTEC). His email address is tom@gassmanpa.com.

 Christopher Denicolo, J.D., LL.M. is a partner at the Clearwater, Florida law firm of Gassman, Crotty & Denicolo, P.A., where he practices in the areas of estate tax and trust planning, taxation, physician representation, and corporate and business law.  He has co-authored several handbooks that have been featured in Bloomberg BNA Tax & Accounting, Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning and Asset Protection Planning Newsletters, and the Florida Bar Journal. He is also the author of the Federal Income Taxation of the Business Entity Chapter of the Florida Bar’s Florida Small Business Practice, Seventh Edition. Mr. Denicolo received his B.A. and B.S. degrees from Florida State University, his J.D. from Stetson University College of Law, and his LL.M. (Estate Planning) from the University of Miami.  His email address is Christopher@gassmanpa.com.

 Kenneth J. Crotty, J.D., LL.M., is a partner at the Clearwater, Florida law firm of Gassman, Crotty & Denicolo, P.A., where he practices in the areas of estate tax and trust planning, taxation, physician representation, and corporate and business law. Mr. Crotty has co-authored several handbooks that have been published in BNA Tax & Accounting, Estate Planning, Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning and Asset Protection Planning Newsletters, Estate Planning magazine, and Practical Tax Strategies.  Mr. Crotty is also the author of the Limited Liability Company Chapter of the Florida Bar’s Florida Small Business Practice, Seventh Edition. He, Alan Gassman and Christopher Denicolo are the co-authors of the BNA book Estate Tax Planning in 2011 & 2012. His email address is Ken@gassmanpa.com.

 Thank you to our law clerks that assisted us in preparing this report:

Kacie Hohnadell is a third-year law student at Stetson University College of Law and is considering pursuing an LL.M. in taxation upon graduation. Kacie is also the Executive Editor of Stetson Law Review and is actively involved in Stetson’s chapter of the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund. In 2010, she received her B.A. from the University of Central Florida in Advertising and Public Relations with a minor in Marketing, and moved to St. Petersburg shortly after graduation to pursue her Juris Doctor. Her email address is Kacie@gassmanpa.com.  

 Eric Moody graduated from Stetson University College of Law in December 2012 and is currently seeking admission to the Florida Bar. He is considering pursuing an LL.M. in estate planning. While at Stetson, Eric was an Articles and Symposia Editor for the Stetson Law Review. In 2009, Eric received a B.S. in Business Management from the University of South Florida. Eric’s email address isEric@gassmanpa.com.