Practice Areas & Industries: Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP

If an individual becomes incapacitated (for example, as a result of a stroke or an accident), who will be legally authorized to sign all necessary papers and take all necessary actions to make sure that the individual's property will be effectively managed? What has been done to eliminate the need for a court-supervised Guardianship if this occurs? Has the individual executed an up-to-date Durable General Power of Attorney authorizing another to sign documents and undertake other legal and financial tasks on behalf of the individual, if necessary.

It is very important not to let the tax-saving tail wag the "non-tax" dog when doing estate planning. Everyone wants to reduce taxes, but it is even more important to make sure that assets pass in a manner that fits within the individual's "comfort level." The best tax plan in the world is useless for an individual who is extremely uncomfortable with its operation. Part of the solution is educational. We pride ourselves on making the effort to explain transactions and documents in "plain English," even when the items themselves are complicated.

Without effective tax planning, applicable death taxes can consume as much as 60 cents of each new dollar an individual earns. To the extent that an individual can take estate planning steps that will reduce the amount exposed to tax, it is possible to leave up to 60 cents more to the next generation for every dollar protected from tax exposure.

Once an individual has taken all possible steps to reduce taxes, it is critically important to make sure that adequate arrangements are in place to pay those taxes when they become due. Ohio and Federal Estate taxes are due nine months after the death of the taxpayer. With the exception of very limited provisions which permit taxes to be paid on a deferred basis if an individual meets specified benchmarks, this is an absolute rule. It does not matter to the IRS or the State of Ohio that one's assets are illiquid and would take more than nine months to sell on something other than a sacrifice basis.

The tools that we utilize in meeting the above goals include wills, revocable living trusts, irrevocable life insurance trusts, irrevocable "gift" trusts for children and grandchildren, stock "cross-purchase" agreements for shareholders in closely held corporations, "stock redemption" agreements, close corporation agreements, voting trust agreements, financial and health care powers of attorney, and a wide variety of explanatory materials and diagrams designed to translate those documents into language that our clients can both understand and use. We realize that our clients' time is precious, and accordingly make every effort not waste it. When drawing a picture will save a thousand words, we'll draw the picture.

We realize that the business owner's schedule may not make it easy for him or her to come to our offices, and we believe that this should not pose a barrier to securing the benefits of face-to-face consultation. Our lawyers make a special effort to meet their clients on the client's "home turf."

TRUST AND ESTATE ADMINISTRATION

Service does not end with the signing of the plan documents. Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP is actively involved in all aspects of estate and business succession planning implementation (including probate and trust administration). The law firm effectively utilizes a "team approach" to ensure that those services will be delivered in the most efficient fashion. We maintain superior expertise while utilizing paralegals, in-house accountants and support staff to keep the cost of the services on a level that is competitive with the charges made by firms offering significantly less experience.

Regular dealings with the Internal Revenue Service on behalf of our clients provide a familiarity and an expertise that can be extremely helpful in the settlement of a business owner's affairs. Particular attention is given to issues involving the valuation of closely held business interests, with an emphasis on obtaining valuation-based tax discounts wherever possible.

Attention is also given to reducing the nuisance and complexity of the probate process. Wherever possible, advice is provided to clients during their lifetimes to enable them (at reasonable cost) to structure their asset holdings in a manner designed to minimize, if not eliminate, probate proceedings at death. Business succession plans are designed with an eye toward ensuring that the smooth functioning of the business and its continued management within a particular management group continue unhindered, despite the death of a key player.

A familiarity with life insurance products and their use in the business succession context provides us with the ability to evaluate the usefulness of life insurance in various business succession contexts and to help interpret and evaluate the sometimes daunting collections of materials and illustrations generated by insurance professionals.

TEAM PLAYERS

While we recognize our capabilities, we also recognize the critical importance of being part of a planning team. In that regard, we work with accountants, financial planners, insurance professionals, and other lawyers with an eye toward assembling the best plan for the client. We recognize that such a plan will most likely come about by making the most effective use of the talents that the various professionals bring to the table.