Many people wish to include charitable giving in their overall estate and wealth planning. The interests of the donor, the donor’s family and heirs, and the charities involved can all be furthered through the benefits of planned giving. A charitable pooled income fund (PIF) is one of several tools available for those who want to incorporate charitable gifts in their wealth planning. 

As each year comes to a close, many engaging in wealth transfer planning also want to advance causes close to heart in ways that maximize tax advantages. A reminder about charitable giving comes early in the month on Giving Tuesday, the first Tuesday after Black Friday. Giving Tuesday is a day to remember the power of charitable giving and to take action in your charitable gift planning. Using the right tools, such as charitable trusts, you can maximize the benefit for the charity and secure tax advantages for yourself, preserving wealth for future charitable giving and your heirs. As you wind up the calendar year, consider how charitable trusts may be the ideal vehicle for your purposes.

Donor-advised funds (DAFs) allow a person, family, or organization to place assets into a private fund that is administered and managed by a third party for the purpose of making charitable donations. The donor or donors maintain the authority to direct the timing and placement of distributions from the fund. This blog, the fourth in a series about charitable gift planning, will discuss the structure and benefits of DAFs and how these funds can be a part of your overall estate and wealth planning in West Virginia (WV), Kentucky (KY), Ohio (OH), and elsewhere.

Various studies over the years have placed the approximate rate of failure for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) between 70 and 90 percent, according to the Harvard Business Review. Yet businesses continue to spend trillions of dollars each year on M&A. These two statistics alone convey the weight of the potential risks and rewards of M&A transactions. Using mergers and acquisitions as a growth strategy can be highly effective, but companies must enter into these deals with an abundance of caution and, preferably, with the guidance and support of a trusted, experienced business attorney. 

People often support charities that are important to them by making general monetary donations to those causes throughout their lives. In many cases, there are financial and legal vehicles that could be used when giving to charity that create a greater benefit for both the donor and recipient. This blog, the third in a series of seven on the topic of planned giving in estate plans, will broadly discuss some of the different types of charitable trusts and the specific benefits of a charitable remainder trust.