Park Ridge, Niles & Cook County Asset Protection Attorney Our assets are what hold our financial worth. They are an important part of securing our comfort in the present and the future. When making plans for your assets, you should consider how they are going to be used in your lifetime and how they will be secured for other people who depend on you such as minor or adult children. To secure your assets for your children and yourself, you should consider asset protection. Asset protection allows you to put legal tools in place that will help protect your assets from lawsuits. The lawsuit protection can cover everything from a judgment against you as a result of a car accident lawsuit or a civil action related to property foreclosure. Asset protection will allow you to shield assets from creditor claims. In order to put an asset protection plan in place, you need to ask: - Who are you as the person seeking asset protection? Are you an individual? A spouse? A business?
- Is there a specific claim or lawsuit that you are concerned about? Is this proactive asset protection just in case?
- Who is the creditor?
- What are the assets you are looking to protect?
An attorney experienced in asset protection planning can help you work through these questions and put a plan in place to provide you and your loved ones with peace of mind. At the Law Office of Thomas J. Hansen, you will receive the benefit of unrivaled client support and sound legal advice. Attorney Thomas Hansen is here to work with you to develop an asset protection plan that you can feel confident in securing a solid financial future for you and your family. Asset Protection for ChildrenA big part of asset protection planning is ensuring that your children will be properly provided for after you are gone. Leaving a lump sum to your kids carries many risks. The assets you left to them can be quickly depleted as a result of things like an unsuccessful marriage or tort liability. Putting a revocable living trust in place will allow you to financially provide for your children without these pitfalls. A revocable living trust contains property managed by the trustee for the benefit of the beneficiary. You create a trust where you are both the trustee and the beneficiary which means you retain control over your property and can still buy, sell, and invest it as you see fit. Nothing really changes as far as your interaction with your property. After you pass, a successor trustee of your choosing will take over and manage the trust for the named beneficiaries, which would be your children. You can make provisions for how you want the assets distributed. If you are concerned about the spending habits of your children, you can choose to make sporadic distributions instead of a lump sum distribution. There are substantial benefits of putting a revocable living trust in place. You can protect assets from your children’s potential creditors, including a former spouse or a lawsuit judgment. You need not be concerned with the level of financial responsibility or spending habits of your children. Another huge benefit is that you can avoid probate of the assets held in trust. Probate can be a lengthy and expensive process. The ability to circumvent probate is a great thing to consider whenever it can be accomplished. Asset Protection for YourselfIt is also important to put an asset protection plan in place for yourself in order to secure your own financial situation. One of the best ways to protect your assets from creditors is to make use of state exemptions to the fullest extent available. Illinois makes certain assets exempt, meaning creditors may not go after them in order to satisfy a debt. These exemptions include: - Pensions
- Life insurance
- Annuities
The proceeds from these assets are exempt to the extent reasonably necessary for the support of you, the debtor, and your dependents. Be sure to maximize these exemptions in order to increase the extent of your protection for your assets. You may also want to consider creating entities that make it more challenging for judgment creditors to actually get to your assets. For example, a limited liability company can provide protection from creditors. A creditor may not be able to take business assets in order to pay off your personal debts. Secure the Financial Future of You and Your Loved OnesDon’t leave your family’s continued financial security to chance. The Law Office of Thomas J. Hansen is here to put an asset protection plan in place that ensures you and your family will be provided for under the toughest of circumstances. Contact the Cook County estate planning lawyer of the Law Office of Thomas J. Hansen today. |