NOTICE: These FAQ pages provide informal guidance and should NOT be relied upon as legal advice. Submit a Client Intake Form or contact our office if you need legal counsel.
- Any professional with malpractice exposure, such as doctors, attorneys, dentists, or architects.
- Anyone who owns investment real estate, to protect against slip-and-fall lawsuits or other lawsuits stemming from the property.
- Any small business owner, to protect against lawsuits and civil penalties stemming from the business.
Asset protection planning involves:
- Holding your assets in specific vehicles, such as trusts, limited liability companies, or limited partnerships, to minimize risk of loss to creditors.
- Using customized contracts and agreements, such as Buy-Sell agreements or Pre-nuptial agreements, to minimize your risk of loss from civil litigation, bankruptcy, or divorce.
You should begin asset protection planning as soon as possible. Most asset protection planning methods are ineffective once a lawsuit has been initiated against you.
Your asset protection planning takes place either solely within the US (domestic) or in foreign jurisdictions (off-shore). The decision to remain domestic or to go off-shore depends on your risk tolerance, the amount of your assets at risk, and the amount you are willing to spend on your asset protection planning.
You should have asset protection planning because it may provide better protection from your risks that insurance. Insurance (such as professional malpractice insurance, premises insurance, umbrella insurance) is a satisfactory risk management tool in many cases. However, your insurances policies may have high deductibles or a high rate of non-paymentof claims. Also, your large insurance policy may be an invitation to plaintiff attorneys looking for a defendant with the ability to pay. Lastly, your insurer may not defend claims as rigorously as you would, yourself.
Submit a Will Intake Form to begin your Asset Protection Planning »
