Protection Trust Plan
Protects Your Assets and Saves Taxes
A Protection Plan at Borchers Trust Law is centered around a living trust instrument and includes some very powerful provisions for your future needs.
Beyond the basic documentation that every estate plan should have, namely power of attorney, health care proxy and other health forms, and a last will and testament, and even beyond a Legacy Trust Plan, the Protection Plan trust is thorough in anticipating life’s complications.
The Protection Trust may be revocable or irrevocable, depending on your needs.
The Protection Plan fulfills many of the goals of clients that typically have either (a) wealth in excess of $2 million, or (b) concerns around protecting assets for themselves, their heirs, or both.
The reason that the Protection Plan stands out as a solution is because of its protection against possible losses and taxes.
Tax Savings
Federal estate taxes have been around since 1913. By the 1990s every state also implemented an estate tax and keeping track has been like watching a flock of blackbirds ever since. Some states have been more stable, others change every year.
The federal exemption from estate tax, although up in recent years, has been much lower in the past, and there is always talk about lowering or raising it significantly. Depending on who controls the purse strings in the government, it could happen again at any time. The exemption is on the move even now, scheduled to return to $5 million, plus inflation in 2026. At 40%, we need to be aware of this hovering hawk at all times.
Folks who have an estate of $2 million dollars or more, especially in a state like Massachusetts with a low estate tax threshold, would significantly benefit from provisions to save estate taxes at death. The Protection Plan anticipates this by:
- Maximizing the state and federal estate tax breaks with revocable trusts.
- Preserving favorable income tax treatment for you and your beneficiaries on capital gains, IRA distributions, and investment income.
- Allowing inheritances to skip estate taxes at the death of your children.
- Using lifetime gifting to irrevocable trusts to reduce your estate for tax purposes, in some plans.
Protecting Your Assets
The protections offered in the Protection Plan can address some of the following:
- Sheltering inheritances for beneficiaries: At the time of your passing, children will receive their inheritance sheltered from claims of creditors, divorcing spouses, government agencies that would otherwise turn off their benefits, mismanagement, and so forth.
- Remarriage of the surviving spouse: Shielding the trust from being taken by a subsequent spouse in divorce or at death
- Powerful tools known as the Trust Protector and administrative trustee
- Irrevocable trust options:
- Shelter your assets against having to be spent on long term care (to possibly qualify for Medicaid to pay instead)
- Protection of life insurance proceeds from estate taxes
Tools and Ongoing Support: Asset Trust Organizer™ and TrustSupport™
All Protection Trust Plans include our Asset Trust Organizer™ and TrustSupport™ program for the first year, helping to keep your estate plan current:
- Our Asset Trust Organizer is a user-friendly tool to keep track of your assets and insure alignment with your trust.
- TrustSupport is a program that offers regular check-ins to ensure your plan stays current and to help build a continuing relationship with you and your family.
The Protection Plan is the most popular among our clients.
All of the Baseline Plan and Legacy Plan elements are included in the Protection Plan. An Advanced Plan offers even more tools to address life’s slightly more complex problems and uncertainties.
If you’d like to learn more about our advanced plans, schedule a complimentary appointment with one of our paralegals:
