Tim and Janice were married for 30 years. Like many couples, they always kept things simple: their brokerage account was joint, their bank accounts were joint, their home was jointly owned, and their investment accounts named the survivor as beneficiary.
They had accumulated substantial wealth, and their estate plan relied on a credit shelter trust to protect assets from estate tax.
Then Tim passed away, and Janice and her advisor learned that the estate plan could not be funded as expected. Why?
Because the assets were not owned in a way that allowed the credit shelter trust to be funded.