Session 1

Moderator: Steven Gurdin, Esq., Sally & Fitch LLP

Title: New Developments in Massachusetts Family Law that impact high earning individuals with sizable assets

Summary: This discussion will outline new developments in Massachusetts Family Law including alimony issues under the Massachusetts Alimony Reform Act; recent case law regarding gifted and inherited wealth; the use of Parent Coordinators in addressing child custody and parenting issues and the use of Pre-nuptial and Post nuptial Agreements.

Moderator Bio: Mr. Gurdin is a partner at the Boston law firm of Sally & Fitch LLP.   Mr. Gurdin's civil litigation practice is concentrated in the areas of Family Law and Probate Litigation. In 2012, 2013 and 2014, Mr. Gurdin was named a "Top 100 Massachusetts Super Lawyer" and a "Top 100 New England Super Lawyer". Mr. Gurdin has been named a "New England Super Lawyer" in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, and a "Massachusetts Rising Star" in 2005, 2006, and 2007, in Massachusetts Super Lawyers published by the Thomson Reuters rating service in Boston Magazine. He is ranked at the highest level of legal ability, "AV," in the benchmark Martindale-Hubble Law Directory. Mr. Gurdin is also listed in the 2013, 2014 and 2015 editions of Best Lawyers in America® a highly esteemed, national peer review guide of attorneys.  Mr. Gurdin is a Certified Financial Litigator by the American Academy of Certified Financial Litigators.

Mr. Gurdin represents clients in all aspects of family law including, divorce proceedings, paternity actions, removal actions, modification and contempt actions, child custody disputes, domestic violence, and alimony and child support issues. Mr. Gurdin regularly prepares and negotiates pre-nuptial and post-nuptial agreements. Mr. Gurdin has extensive experience in representing clients in complex financial issues relating to divorce such as business and real estate valuation, structuring alimony and child support payments to maximize income tax deductibility, and properly analyzing the tax implications when dividing sizeable marital assets. Mr. Gurdin has significant experience representing clients in child custody disputes and working closely with Court appointed Guardians Ad Litem and forensic psychologists and psychiatrists. Mr. Gurdin has experience litigating matters involving issues relating to de facto parents and same sex relationships.

Session 2

Moderator: Lawrence A. Schwartz, Managing Director, Tonneson & Co.

Title: FATCA Traps For Trustees

Summary: We will discuss the current status of FATCA: FBAR’s and other changes to reporting obligations for trustees and executors as  the laws and reporting requirements have evolved over the last few years. We will point out some traps for the unwary, and have a candid discussion of what happens in actual practice.

Moderator Bio: Mr. Schwartz is a Managing Director at tonneson + co and has more than 30 years of public accounting experience. His expertise is in working with high net worth individuals and families, and closely held businesses on sophisticated estate and business succession planning, tax compliance and IRS controversy work including offshore assets or income.
Larry’s extensive experience in tax work enables him to assist his clients with their real estate and business transactions to lessen their tax liabilities. He serves as Executor or Trustee to many of his clients, overseeing the administration of complex estates and trusts. Larry’s expertise expands across various topics, such as advisory services, estate and gift tax, IRS representation, litigation support, mergers and acquisitions, offshore compliance, Plus+ Services, privately held, real estate and tax planning. Larry received his BS in Accounting from the University of Hartford, and a MS in Taxation from Bentley University. He is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Massachusetts Society of Public Accountants. He was selected to the AICPA Tax Practice and Procedures Committee, and the Responsibilities in Tax Practice Committee.

Session 3

Moderator: Harry Margolis, Esq., Margolis & Bloom

Title: MassHealth Attacks on Irrevocable Trusts: Are They Dead?

Summary: In recent years, MassHealth has been counting assets held in irrevocable trusts which it had previously considered unavailable resulting in extensive litigation over the validity of the trusts. This presentation will cover the irrevocable trust provisions open to challenge, the status of ongoing litigation, and recommendations on steps to take with respect to existing trusts and future asset protection planning.

Moderator Bio: HARRY S. MARGOLIS founded Margolis & Bloom, LLP a six-lawyer Boston law firm, in 1987. He is a graduate of Swarthmore College and New York University School of Law.  His practice concentrates on elder law, planning for individuals with disabilities, and estate trust administration. Mr. Margolis edits The ElderLaw Report, a monthly newsletter for elder law attorneys, wrote the ElderLaw Forms Manual and served as founding editor of The ElderLaw Portfolio Series, all published by Wolters Kluwer. Mr. Margolis is a Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. He has served on the adjunct faculty of Boston College Law School, has been designated a “Super Lawyer” since 2005 and has been listed as a Best Lawyer in America. Mr. Margolis is the founder and President of ElderLawAnswers as well as a co-founder and director of the Academy of Special Needs Planners.

Session 4

Moderator: Mike Brown, JD, CPA, Boston Financial Management

Title: How to Select an Investment Advisor

Summary: Today there are endless choices when it comes to finding the right investment firm for you and your clients.   We plan to discuss the different types of Investment Advisors available and help people maneuver through this confusing maze of options in the market today.

Moderator Bio: As President and CEO, Mike is responsible for corporate management and business development. Boston Financial Management is focused on providing investment, financial, tax, and estate planning services to high net-worth individuals and charitable endowments. After working at KPMG as a Senior Tax Manager, he left to form Brown & Brown in 1982. Brown & Brown had grown to a 100-person firm when it merged in 2006 with UHY Advisors, where he became a Managing Director. Mike was also a founder of Brown & Brown Financial, a Registered Investment Advisor providing wealth management services. He was named “Estate Planner of the Year” by the Boston Estate Planning Council in 2008.
Mike graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a B. A. in Economics and received his Juris Doctor from the New England School of Law.  He is an attorney, CPA and Accredited Estate Planer. Mike is on the Board of Community Works Services, and was formerly Chairman of the Mass Society of CPAs, and Board member of The Boston Estate Planning Council, and AICPA National Council.

Title: Cross-Border Probate: A Guide for the Jet-Setting Executor

Summary: Estate planning for international families is tricky business.  The fun really begins, however, when that plan must be implemented.  This presentation focuses on cross-border probate and other related topics of interest to those administering estate for international families.

Moderator Bio: Jay Rosenbaum is a partner in Nixon Peabody's Private Clients group and the leader s International Private Clients team. Jay represents high net worth individuals and families both in the US and around the globe.

Moderator Bio: Sarah has 25 years of experience in estate planning, estate and trust administration and the administration of private charitable foundations. She represents families and professional fiduciaries in estate and gift tax matters including complex valuation,
succession and family issues; the settlement of estates; and the long-term management of trusts and private foundations.