The current litigation explosion in our society is forcing professionals, small business owners as well as the common homeowner to focus on ways to protect their savings, investments and other accumulated assets that have become attractive targets for hungry and unscrupulous attorneys.
The U.S. legal system stacks the deck against the defendant and is in favor of the plaintiff. This is especially true if the plaintiff has deep pockets to pursue you. Frequently it is the party with the most financial holding power that will prevail. So justice is not always done in these cases.
The average person will be sued five times in their lifetime and faces the very real prospect of being on the receiving end of a ruinous judgment. Failure to plan for that contingency can result in the instant loss of a lifetime's accumulated wealth. Once a suit has been filed or one is anticipated, the law frowns upon moving assets. Although, assets may be moved under certain conditions, it is always better to mover while the waters are still calm.
How Do They Find Your Assets?
How does a lawyer find something you have of value? Very easily. They hire one of many firms that specialize in locating assets for attorneys. They can locate bank accounts, real estate, brokerage accounts, auto, businesses etc. all in your name. In fact, many times a contingency fee attorney will do an asset search on you before he even bothers to sue you. He wants to make sure you have something of value before he spends his time and money. There is little about your personal and financial well being that cannot be found. However, if the assets are not in your name and are instead listed in the name of a corporation, trust or partnership finding them becomes much more difficult (if not impossible) and expensive for the plaintiff's lawyer.
How to Minimize Your Assets
How do you minimize the chances of losing assets? By becoming a smaller target. How do you become a smaller target? By giving the appearance that your estate is small. You do as John D. Rockefeller said "Own nothing and control everything". That is the key. You of course, do not want to give up control but you can give up ownership in such a way that a plaintiff will give up and look for greener pastures. This is done through a combination of domestic and foreign structures. Be careful not to do the "poor man's asset protection" Transferring assets to your brother, sister, mother, or friend is not a good idea. It is extremely transparent to a plaintiff attorney and it will result in serious IRS tax problems.
Are These Techniques Legal?
Absolutely! Asset protection has been practiced by the rich for decades. They use these very tools and strategies that we are discussing. They are legal, effective and can give you the peace of mind you have earned.
Why Won't My Attorney Help Me?
Asset protection is not taught in law school. Also if an attorney is not careful he or she can lose their license if it appears that they assisted a client in hiding assets. For that reason there are only a handful of attorneys that assist their clients in this area. Most attorneys have an outside firm such as ours provide the service for them.
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