Case Details
- Client Name: Mark and Eliza
- Age: Early 70s
- Family Dynamics: Married couple with children and grandchildren living abroad
- Concerns: Managing incapacity and post-death matters from afar, ensuring charitable goals are met, and aligning their plan with current laws
Building a Legacy Across Borders
Their Situation
Mark and Eliza, both in their early 70s, had built a comfortable life and accumulated substantial wealth. With their children and grandchildren now living abroad, they faced unique challenges in managing their legacy.
Their concerns extended beyond simple estate planning. Mark and Eliza were worried about who would step in to manage their affairs if they became incapacitated. They also needed a reliable plan for post-death administration to ensure their assets were distributed smoothly and in alignment with their wishes.
Additionally, the couple was charitably inclined, wanting to dedicate a meaningful portion of their wealth to causes they deeply valued. However, their existing estate plan was outdated, leaving them vulnerable to changing tax laws and unprepared for the logistical challenges of cross-border administration.
Key Challenges
What Mark and Eliza Needed to Solve:
- Incapacity Planning: Identifying trusted individuals or professional fiduciaries to manage their affairs during periods of incapacity, given the geographical distance of their children.
- Post-Death Administration: Ensuring a smooth and efficient transfer of assets across borders without burdening their children with logistical challenges.
- Charitable Giving: Structuring a plan that balanced family provisions with their philanthropic goals while minimizing tax liabilities.
- Current Law Compliance: Revising their outdated plan to reflect changes in tax laws and cross-border considerations.
- Trust Funding: Providing hands-on support to align their assets with their plan and avoid gaps or administrative delays.
Inspired Solutions
How Legacy Engineering™ Would Address These Challenges:
Mark and Eliza’s case highlighted the importance of addressing logistical and legal challenges in cross-border family dynamics. Their experience inspired key elements of Legacy Engineering™, including:
- Visioning: Aligning their values with their plan through a structured visioning process that sets the foundation for all decisions.
- Ongoing Support: Ensuring their legacy plan evolves to meet changing laws, family dynamics, and priorities through the proactive maintenance provided by Legacy Concierge™.
- Mandatory Trust Funding: Offering hands-on guidance to properly align all assets with their estate plan, eliminating gaps and administrative delays while safeguarding their legacy.
Why This Matters
The Legacy Engineering™ Difference:
Mark and Eliza’s story underscores the complexities of cross-border family planning and the importance of thoughtful, proactive solutions. Their challenges inspired the development of Legacy Engineering™, a comprehensive framework that addresses estate planning, incapacity planning, post-death administration, charitable giving, and tax optimization.
Disclaimer: This case study is inspired by real client experiences that shaped the development of Legacy Engineering™. While anonymized and modified to protect privacy, it illustrates how the methodology addresses challenges like those faced by this client.