In This Issue:

- To preserve your wealth, consider a DAPT

- Estate planning for same-sex spouses: What the Supreme Court’s DOMA ruling means

- Using an FLP or LLC? Beware the step transaction doctrine

- Estate Planning Pitfall: A beneficiary designation or joint title overrides your will

- Excerpt from To preserve your wealth, consider a DAPT:

No matter how much effort you put into designing your estate plan, it won’t do you much good if you have no assets to share with the next generation. That’s why estate planning and asset protection planning often go hand-in-hand.

The most effective way to protect your assets is to transfer them to your children or other family members, either outright or in trust, with no strings attached. So long as the transfer isn’t a fraudulent conveyance — that is, a transfer intended to delay or defraud known creditors — creditors won’t be able to reach the assets. But if you wish to retain some control over your wealth, consider an asset protection trust...