THIS YEAR, WHY NOT SET A FEW
WEALTH PRESERVATION RESOLUTIONS?

It’s that time of year again. People everywhere are resolving to eat healthy, exercise, lose weight, budget better, work less, stop biting their nails, and the list goes on. While resolutions are usually about improving yourself, most are not geared towards improving your financial self-defense. This year, why not set a few wealth preservation resolutions?

Everyday people wake up, put in a hard day’s work, and aspire to build financial security for themselves and their families. These same people know about lawsuits. They’ve heard the maddening stories about “others” who were wiped out by a lawsuit or some other financial disaster. So many successful people carefully scrutinize their every business deal, demand the best business and investment advice, and even micro-plan their vacations; yet they do nothing to fortify their wealth against lawsuits and the hundreds of other financial pitfalls that everyone faces during their lifetime.

Each year brings more lawsuits and still bigger awards as juries see their role to redistribute wealth from deep pocket defendants to plaintiffs who win their sympathy. America has 1 million lawyers. With so many lawyers it’s no wonder we have so many lawsuits. The mere thought of 1 million lawyers running around looking for their next case should signal a clear and present danger to anyone who has exposed assets.

Most people don’t think much about asset protection until it’s their assets being pursued. Then they sweat. But once they are sued, they will find it much harder to protect themselves. The law provides incredible financial incentive to seek out a victim with deep pockets, drag him into court, ruin his reputation, wear him down with endless discovery demands, and then extort a settlement. This is not justice in any sense of the word. The deep pockets vulnerable defendants are the ones that litigators dream about.

Of course, a lawsuit can involve more than money. A lawsuit can attack you personally, particularly when it alleges fraud, racketeering, conspiracy or some other moral lapse. A lawsuit may unjustifiably attack your professional competence. Ask any doctor how it feels to be characterized in a malpractice lawsuit as negligent, incompetent, or reckless. Sometimes it’s not about money – it’s about your reputation.

Asset protection is essential to any comprehensive financial plan. Simply put, asset protection is the systematic use of estate planning, tax planning, and business planning strategies to title your savings, property, business and other assets in a way that shields them from lawsuits, creditors and other predatory threats. Integrating asset protection with your other financial objectives shelters your wealth from attack. You may not be able to control whether someone will chase your wealth, but you can control whether they can get it.

Some folks view asset protection as illegal or immoral, or a way to cheat creditors of their rightful due. They are wrong. The law recognizes that honest, hardworking people have no moral obligation to gamble their wealth on life’s uncertainties and risks. If you are sued and you feel morally bound to pay the claim, then negotiate a fair settlement and pay. When your assets are protected, you have that option. If your assets are exposed, you have no option.

WEALTHSAVER TIPS RESOLUTIONS:

1.    Face the reality that you can be hit with a wealth destroying crisis from any direction. Nobody is safe from the lawsuit epidemic. Anyone can get sued for anything at anytime.

2.    Design and implement an asset protection plan that is right for you. If you already have an asset protection plan (or think you do), have it reviewed to make sure it reflects your current personal and financial situation.

3.    Asset protection is legal, ethical, and smart. It’s immoral not to protect yourself when it jeopardized your family’s financial security.

4.    Asset protection isn’t only for the wealthy. It’s for anybody with any assets worth protecting.

5.    Liability insurance is never a complete solution. If you are going to gamble your entire financial security on a liability insurance policy, be sure understand precisely what your insurance will - and won’t - cover. There are many exclusions. You can only transfer some risks to your insurance company; you can’t transfer every risk.

6.    Protect what you own as vigorously as you work for it.

To schedule a complimentary teleconference with me to discuss your assets protection questions, click here.