Estate Planning

"Anyone may arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which best pays the treasury. There is not even a patriotic duty to increase one's taxes. Over and over again the Courts have said that there is nothing sinister in so arranging affairs as to keep taxes as low as possible. Everyone does it, rich and poor alike and all do right, for nobody owes any public duty to pay more than the law demands."  Judge Learned Hand

Our clients spend their lives working hard, raising families, educating their children and paying income taxes and capital gains taxes along the way.

They save money for retirement and for health issues that may appear later in life.  Then, these same families, if they were financially successful, have to address estate taxes, sometimes giving up half of what it took them fifty years to create.

At Daniel M. Smith & Associates, we work in tandem with our clients legal and financial advisors to help families transfer as much of their estates as possible to the next generation, often using life insurance in Trusts to help pay the largest potential tax.

It is up to the family and their attorney to determine what strategies will work best.  After the legal game plan is executed, we help provide the liquidity in the form of a life insurance death benefit to pay this liability.

The current estate tax system is confiscatory. We feel that proper planning with a team of financial professionals can dramatically assist in the preservation of family assets.