Combining Trusts to Reduce Complexity and Costs Can Be Harder Than You Think

Complicated clients need complicated planning.  And as years go by, those complications may have led to the creation of multiple trusts for the next generation.  Children and grandchildren who benefit from those multiple trusts often come to their attorneys and ask, “What can we do to simplify?”  The top-of-mind answer for many planners is to find a way to combine these trusts.  In this episode of Trust Me!, our guests, Andrew Katzenstein and Cary Robbins of Proskauer Los Angeles, discuss what to consider when combining trusts. 

 About Our Guests:

Andrew Katzenstein is a partner in the Private Client Services Department of Proskauer Los Angeles where he assists high net worth individuals, companies and charitable organizations with all aspects of tax and estate planning. He focuses his practice on tax planning matters, which include estate, gift and generation-skipping tax planning, as well as income tax of trust planning, probate and trust administration matters, resolving disputes between fiduciaries and beneficiaries, and charitable planning. Andrew can be reached at: [e-mail]

 Cary Robbins is a partner in the Private Client Services Department of Proskauer Los Angeles.  Cary provides sophisticated estate and tax planning advice to individuals and families, with an emphasis on the multigenerational transfer of wealth.  She works with clients from a variety of backgrounds, including real estate investors, entrepreneurs, business owners, private equity principals, and individuals with inherited wealth.  She also routinely counsels clients on their charitable giving and assists clients with the formation and administration of private foundations to meet their charitable goals. Cary can be reached at: [e-mail]

About Our Host:
Host Anna Soliman is Trust Counsel and Chief Fiduciary Officer of Fiduciary Trust International of California. Prior to joining Fiduciary Trust International, Anna was an estate tax attorney for the Internal Revenue Service and also worked in private practice, specializing in estate planning and trust administration for ultrahigh net worth individuals.  She is also a TEXCOM member and the Vice-Chair of the Fiduciary Income Tax Section of the American Bar Association. 

Thank you for listening to Trust Me!

Trust Me is Produced by Foley Marra Studios
Edited by Cat Hammons and Todd Gajdusek