
How an Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust Protects Wealth
Sometimes it might take an IDGT, or intentionally defective grantor trust, to preserve generational wealth. But how does that work?

Sometimes it might take an IDGT, or intentionally defective grantor trust, to preserve generational wealth. But how does that work?

On March 30, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service issued Revenue Ruling 2023-2, which directly impacts a wide range of irrevocable trusts, including grantor retained annuity trusts, qualified personal residence trusts, insurance trusts and other intentionally defective ‘grantor trusts.’

Trusts can be used to hold assets for a beneficiary, and you may hear about them when carrying out estate planning or evaluating strategies to pass investments to heirs.

Part of the agency’s latest annual ‘Dirty Dozen’ scams, these potentially ‘abusive arrangements’ involve charitable remainder annuity trusts and monetized installment sales.

Although there is certainly no shortage of people with selfish or malevolent intent, a great number of estate plans that end in disaster are due to unintended consequences.

To protect assets effectively, you have to store them in the right legal entity. However, that can depend on whether you’re looking to protect business assets, avoid estate taxes, or protect personal assets from legal liability while running a business.

The primary benefits of revocable trusts only are available if a revocable trust is FUNDED during life. Unfortunately, experienced estate planning attorneys often have clients who delay the funding of their revocable trusts until it is too late and miss many of the benefits that these trusts provide.

There are certain provisions that people often forget to put in a will or estate plan that can have a big impact on a family.

Although in the past it may not have been the norm to provide for animals in our estate planning, times have changed.

If your estate plan benefits Gen Y (also known as Millennials) it’s important to design a trust that supports what makes them thrive.