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MY STORY
I became a lawyer because I wanted to
make a difference in the world, to make a real contribution to the clients I serve. For several
years I practiced general civil law, including some estate planning, and became a
partner in a prominent Salt Lake City law firm.
Although I enjoyed the areas
of law in which I practiced, I sensed something was missing. In
most areas of my practice, I didn’t feel like I was making a real difference in my
clients' lives. The one exception was estate planning.
I had invested many years into developing
the other areas of my law practice, and at first I was reluctant to give them
up. The day came, however, that I decided to let them go and limit my practice to estate
planning. This was the best decision I’ve ever made.
Today I have a full-time
estate planning practice that focuses on creating personalized estate plans
that are of real benefit to my clients and their heirs.
My practice also extends to legacy planning, which integrates
traditional estate planning with preserving personal and family memories, passing on values
and life lessons, and assisting survivors after a loved one's passing.
For clients who ask for it, I
also prepare simple, fill-in-the-blank estate plans at a reduced cost.
If you are interested in discussing
your estate planning needs with me, or would just like to meet with me to see if
I am the kind of lawyer you’d like to work with, please feel free to schedule
an appointment by calling 801-530-7359 or emailing me at mjmorrise@cnmlaw.com.
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THE PLANNING PROCESS
Overview of the Planning Process
Sometimes people avoid planning their estate
because they don’t know what to expect. But the planning process is nothing
to worry about or fear. After completing his estate plan, one of my clients recently
commented, “That was much easier than I thought it would be. It didn’t hurt a bit.”
I use a unique, client-centered process for
planning estates that consists of four steps:
- I conduct a Comprehensive Planning Interview in which you do most of the
talking, and I listen.
- I help you identify your Planning Objectives, and then I propose Planning Solutions.
- We design your plan together.
- When you are satisfied with your plan design,
I create your plan and help you implement it.
The goal of this process
is to develop an estate plan that meets your needs and with which you are completely
satisfied. Although there are other planning methods that require less effort or cost,
this is the best method I have ever used or seen at creating personalized estate plans
that are of real worth to my clients.
This process is not
overly time consuming. Most of my clients complete it in less than four
hours. Many people spend more time than that planning a two-week
vacation.
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Team Approach
Most lawyers use a “doctor-patient” approach
to estate planning. You (the “patient") talk about your planning concerns
and needs, and then the lawyer (the “doctor”) will “prescribe” a plan he or
she believes is right for you.
Unlike most other lawyers, I use a “team”
approach to estate planning. Your role on
our team is to teach me about you and your family. My role is to teach you about
applicable estate planning concepts. When you and I have both learned what we need
to know, then we can design your plan together.
My clients say that they like
the team approach because it makes them feel more a part
of the planning process. I like it because in my experience I can design a better
plan, one that will be of real benefit to you and your heirs, with your
participation than without it.
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Comprehensive Planning Interview
If you come to see me
about planning your estate, I will
begin our first meeting with a Comprehensive Planning Interview, during which you will
be given an opportunity to:
- Share your concerns, fears, hopes, dreams, values, and goals
- Teach me about you and your loved ones
- Review your existing estate plan
- Learn about applicable estate planning concepts
- Identify your specific estate planning problems and objectives
- Hear a proposed solution for each problem and objective
In this interview,
the most important thing I
ever do is to intently listen -- to your concerns, fears, hopes, dreams, etc. and the other
critical information you provide, which will become the foundation for your
estate plan.
Because our time is valuable,
in this interview I will not ask you for personal information (such as your home
address, contact information, marital status, children’s names and ages,
etc.). Instead, a member of my staff will call you for this information
before our meeting so that I can bring it with me to our meeting.
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Identify Objectives and Solutions
The result of the Comprehensive Planning
Interview is the creation of a list of your Planning Objectives. Examples of possible
Planning Objectives include:
“Avoid probate”
“Minimize estate and related taxes”
“Promote family harmony
/ avoid family disputes over the estate”
“Protect children
from being disinherited if the surviving spouse remarries”
“Protect child’s
inheritance until he or she is financially mature”
“Protect child’s
inheritance from divorcing spouses and creditors”
The above list is just an example. Your
list of Planning Objectives will be unique to your situation and may be shorter or longer
than the above list.
For each of your Planning Objectives, I will propose a
Planning Solution, which usually will include an example or story of how that Solution
will work. For example, if one of your Planning Objectives was to protect
your child’s inheritance until he or she is financially mature, a Planning Solution
that I might offer would be to create a Financial Responsibility Trust for your child, in
which a carefully chosen Trustee would mentor your child until he or she demonstrates
sufficient financial maturity to be given control over the trust assets.
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Plan Design and Creation
The last phases of the estate planning
process are the plan design, creation, and implementation.
Plan design – My clients’
estate plans are “designed” on an erasable wallboard. A diagram is drawn of a
customized estate plan that addresses your concerns, fears, hopes, dreams, values,
and goals and that accomplishes your Planning Objectives. Although
I will begin this diagram, as we go along I will ask you
what you do and don’t like about it and will revise it
accordingly. Also, I will invite you
to draw your own ideas on the wallboard.
As the plan is designed, I will
explain its Rewards (benefits), such as survivor support, property protection,
and tax savings; its Risks, if any; and its Requirements, such as the need to fund a trust.
Plan creation – If you
approve the plan design and hire me
to complete it, then after our meeting I will create personalized plan documents
(such as customized Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Advance Health Care Directives, etc.)
and any other necessary plan items.
Plan implementation – The final
step of the planning process is plan implementation, which of course includes signing
the plan documents. Depending on the plan design, implementation may also
include funding trusts or other plan entities, re-titling property, changing beneficiary
designations, and other tasks. A list of implementation tasks will be given to
you, and my staff with assist you in completing these tasks.
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Risk-Free Fee Quote
Early in our first meeting, when
I get an idea of what your estate planning needs are, I will quote you a range
of what my fees will be to design, create and implement your plan. If you feel
comfortable with the fee range, our meeting will proceed.
Once your Planning Objectives have been
identified and Planning Solutions have been proposed that are acceptable
to you, I will give you a
Risk-Free Fee Quote of the cost to design, create, and implement a plan that
accomplishes your Planning Objectives. At that point, you may decide to not hire me
and our meeting will end with no cost or obligation to you. On the other hand,
if you are comfortable with the quoted fee, you can decide
to continue to the plan design step. If you decide to continue, then I will request
a retainer equal to 50% of the quoted fee to be paid at the close of the meeting.
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MY PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
Summary of Professional Qualifications
Sometimes people want
to see my professional qualifications to decide if I am competent to
plan their estate. To this end, here is a summary of those qualifications:
- Education. I received my law degree from the J. Reuben Clark Law School
at Brigham Young University in 1981.
- Experience. I have over
15 years experience in all areas of
estate planning, including Wills and living trusts, disability and end-of-life planning,
spendthrift and special needs trusts, tax planning, wealth preservation,
asset protection planning, business planning, and probate, estate, and trust administration.
- Seminars. In the last five years, I have spoken
at over 30 estate planning seminars.
- Publications. I have published
several articles on estate planning
and am the author of two estate planning websites.
- Leadership. I have served
as the chair of the Estate Planning Section
of the Utah State Bar and am currently a board member in the Utah Chapter of the Society
of Financial Service Professionals.
- Memberships. I am a member
of several organizations for estate planning professionals.
- Awards and Distinctions. In 2004, I was elected
a fellow in the American College of
Trust and Estate Counsel, one of the most prestigious professional organizations
for estate planning lawyers in the United States. In 2008, I received a
distinguished service award from the Utah State Bar for my instrumental role
in bringing the Wills for Heroes program to Utah.
You can see the detail of the foregoing
qualifications by clicking on its title. The detail begins immediately
after "Frequently Asked Questions" at "My Professional Qualifications (continued)."
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
"What Is Estate Planning?"
I think of "estate planning"
as planning for you and your family's greatest need. This includes not
only planning for what happens to your property after death, but also planning
for emergencies during your lifetime. A practical definition of
estate planning that I often use with my clients is:
"I want to control my property while I'm alive,
take care of me and my loved ones if I become disabled,
and give what I have to whom I want,
the way I want,
and when I want.
at the lowest cost and with the greatest tax savings possible."
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"Which Is Better, a Will or a Trust?"
To decide which is better
for you, a Will or a trust, you will want to first identify your Planning
Objectives. For example, if your objectives are to:
- Name guardians for children under 18
- Protect your child's inheritance until he or she is financially mature
- Minimize estate costs before death
you could accomplish all of those objectives with a Will. On the other
hand, if your objectives are to:
- Create an organized list of your major assets, which will be part of your estate plan
- Receive immediate assistance with your finances if your health ever fails or
you ever become incapacitated
- Simplify the task of settling your estate for your survivors
- Shield your heirs from publicity over your estate
- Avoid probate
then you will need to set up a revocable living trust to accomplish your objectives.
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"How Much Does Estate Planning
Cost?"
Paying for an estate plan
is in some ways like buying a used car. There is an upfront cost
(like what you initially pay for the car) but there can also be a hidden
cost (like the cost of repairs when the car breaks down). Just as the repair
costs for a used car can exceed its initial purchase price, so also can the
hidden costs of an estate plan exceed its upfront cost.
Upfront
cost. The upfront cost of estate planning varies widely. If you
prepare your own estate plan, then the cost can be as low as $100 to $200
to purchase do-it-yourself estate planning documents or software.
If
you have someone else prepare your estate plan, you might pay anywhere from
about $200 to $1,000 for a simple, fill-in-the-blank estate plan. This type of plan
will provide some protection but may not help much in circumstances
that are unique. For example, if you are
in a second marriage, a fill-in-the-blank plan may do nothing to avoid a
dispute between your surviving spouse and children from your first marriage over
what happens to the family home.
For a personalized estate plan,
the cost could range anywhere from about $1,000 to $3,000 for a plan with no tax planning,
and from about $2,000 to $10,000 for a plan that includes tax planning.
Hidden monetary
costs. An estate plan can have two types of hidden costs. The first
is monetary. For modest estates, the highest hidden monetary cost is usually
the litigation costs incurred by survivors fighting over the estate. Litigation
costs vary widely, from about $1,000 for a simple case that settles to over $10,000 for
a difficult case that doesn't.
For large estates, the highest
hidden monetary cost is usually taxes. For example, in 2008 a $3 million estate
could be subject to as much as $450,000 in federal estate taxes.
Examples of other hidden monetary
costs include the expense of probating the estate, or the financial loss incurred
by an heir who is unintentionally disinherited or who loses a portion of his
or her inheritance to frivolous spending, a divorcing spouse, or an unforseen
creditor.
A good estate plan will
protect against these hidden monetary costs. For example, with proper planning
the $450,000 estate tax mentioned above can be reduced to zero.
Hidden non-monetary
costs. The second type of hidden cost of an estate plan is non-monetary,
such as the hard feelings, resentment, bitterness, or hatred experienced by
an heir who feels unfairly treated or who feuds with the other heirs. These
emotional "costs" can develop in a variety of circumstances, such as when:
- A parent loans money to one child but not to the other children, and the loan
is never repaid
- A child makes personal and financial sacrifices to care for an aging parent,
and none of the other children provide or even offer any help
- A surviving spouse is a second marriage needs to continue living in the marital
home, despite objections by the children from the deceased spouse's first marriage
A well-designed
estate plan will also protect against these and other hidden non-monetary costs.
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"Do I Really Need an Estate Plan?"
Whether you really need
an estate plan depends entirely on your situation. You may be young, middle-aged,
or elderly; be single or married; be in good or poor health; have children or be
childless; be working or retired; or have modest or sizeable financial
assets. Each of these facts, and many others, will affect your need
for an estate plan.
Although I work as an
estate planning lawyer, let me be the first to admit that for certain people
having an estate plan may make little if any real difference. For example,
consider a married couple, neither of whom has children from a prior marriage,
who want to leave their property to each other and then to their children
in equal shares. Even without a Will or a trust, their property will be distributed
as they desire because of the laws of inheritance.
However, having an estate plan
would make a difference if the situation described above includes
additional relevant circumstances. For example, having an estate plan
would matter if:
- The couple has minor children
- The couple has children or other heirs who are not financially mature
- The couple has a child with special needs
- Either spouse has children from a prior marriage
- The couple has a prenuptial agreement
- The couple wants to promote family harmony and
avoid family disputes over their estate
- The couple has personal possessions of emotional value they want to pass on
- The couple wants to avoid probate on the death of the second spouse
- The couple has a taxable estate that exceeds the
current federal estate tax exemption.
- Either spouse expects to receive an inheritance that will increase the couple's
taxable estate to exceed the federal estate tax exemption
- Either spouse is a business owner
- The couple wants to protect their assets
- The couple wants to protect their children's inheritance from divorcing spouses or creditors
- Either spouse becomes incapacitated before their death
- The couple wants to plan for Medicaid
These are examples of just some of
the circumstances in which having an estate plan can really matter in your life
or the lives of your heirs.
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MY PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS (continued)
Education
- J. Reuben Clark School of Law, 1981
- Articles Editor, BYU Law Review
- Brigham Young University B.S., Statistics, magna cum laude, 1978
- Honor Program graduate, high honors; Pi Mu Epsilon, member
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Qualifications
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Employment
- Shareholder, Callister Nebeker & McCullough (2002 – present)
- Shareholder, Suitter Axland (1999 - 2002)
- Associate, Corbridge Baird & Christensen (1985 - 1999)
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Qualifications
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Experience
- Wills and Living Trusts
- Disability and end-of-life planning
- Financial and Medical Powers of Attorney
- Advance Health Care Directives
- Guardianships and conservatorships
- Spendthrift and special needs trusts
- Planning to reduce gift, estate, and generation-skipping transfer taxes
- Irrevocable life insurance trusts
- Dynasty trusts
- Sales to grantor trusts
- Grantor-retained annuity trusts
- Private foundations
- Wealth preservation and asset protection planning
- Business entity protection
- Domestic asset protection trusts
- Business planning
- Buy-sell agreements
- Formation and maintenance of corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships
- Business succession planning
- Probate, estate, and trust administration
- Small estates
- Informal and formal probates
- Determination of heirs
- Affidavits of domiciliary foreign personal representative
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Qualifications
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Seminars
I have made the following seminar speeches
and presentations. All seminars were held in Salt Lake
City, Utah unless otherwise noted.
2008
- “Corporations, Family Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability Companies”
and “Putting It All Together – A Hypothetical Case,” Advanced Asset Protection
Strategies, National Business Institute (28 Apr 2008)
- “Types of Trusts” and “Taxation of Trusts,” Trust Administration,
Lorman Education Services (18 Mar 2008)
- “Utah’s New Advance Health Care Directive Form,” Advance Health Care
Directives, Utah State Bar Spring Convention (14 Mar 2008 – St. George, Utah)
- “Basic Tax Considerations – What You Need to Know to Choose the Appropriate
Plan” and “Ethics and Estate Planning,” Drafting Effective Wills and Trusts,
National Business Institute (6 Mar 2008)
- “Manage the Decisions Involved in Post-Mortem Planning” and
“Make Ethical Decisions in Estate Planning,” Minimizing Client Estate Taxes
with Plans That Work, National Business Institute (19 Feb 2008)
- “Planning with Zeroed-Out GRATs,” presentation to Utah ACTEC Fellows
(13 February 2008)
- “Utah’s New Advance Health Care Directive Form,” Advance Health Care
Directives, Estate Planning Section, Utah State Bar (8 Jan 2008)
2007
- “Closing the Estate" and "Ethics in Probate Practice,"
Probate Practice: The Essential Basics, National Business
Institute (20 Dec 2007)
- “Plan for Your Client's Incapacity” and “Give Informed Advice
About Long-Term Care,” Estate Planning and Recovery for Elderly Clients,
National Business Institute (10 Dec 2007)
- “Plan for Your Client's Incapacity” and “Give Informed Advice
About Long-Term Care,” Estate Planning and Recovery for Elderly Clients,
National Business Institute (10 Dec 2007)
- Estate Planning Basics, National Business Institute (26 Nov 2007)
- "Practical Estate Planning Solutions fo Lawyers and Their Families,"
presentation the Utah Attorneys General (8 Nov 2007)
- “How to Plan for Incapacity” and “Understanding Long-Term Care Options,”
Estate Financial, and Health Care Planning for the Elderly, National Business
Institute (28 Sep 2007)
- “Business Entities as a Viable Asset Protection Option,”
Demystifynig Asset Protection Vehicles, National Business
Institute (14 Aug 2007)
- “Recognizing Different Types of Trusts” and “Successfully Navigating
the Tax Aspects of Trusts,” Strategies for Proper Trust Creation,
National Business Institute (25 Jul 2007)
- “Sale to a Grantor Trust and Variations” and “The Zeroed-Out GRAT,”
The 8 Greatest Estate Planning Techniques in Utah,
Lorman Education Services (11 Jul 2007)
- “Basic Tax Considerations – What You Need to Know to Choose
the Appropriate Plan” and “Ethics and Estate Planning,”
Drafting Effective Wills and Trusts, National Business Institute (13 Mar 2007)
- “Closing the Estate” and “Ethical Issues in Probate Practice,”
Fundamental Probate Procedures and Practice, National Business Institute (26 Feb 2007)
2006
- “What to Do When a Spouse Is Confronting Health Issues – The Estate Plan,”
and “Insurance to Fund All or Part of Long-Term Care Costs,”
Resolving Legal and Financial Issues in Elder Care,
National Business Institute (14 Dec 2006)
- “Sale to a Grantor Trust and Variations” and “The Zeroed-Out GRAT,”
The 8 Greatest Estate Planning Techniques in Utah, Lorman
Education Services (13 Jul 2006)
- “Preserving Wealth with Irrevocable Trusts,” “Asset-Freezing
Techniques Using Irrevocable Trusts,” and “Value-Based Estate Planning,”
All-Star Views on Estate Planning in Utah, Lorman Education Services (26 Apr 2006)
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Qualifications
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Publications
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Qualifications
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Leadership
- Board Member, Utah Chapter of Financial Service Professionals (2008)
- Chair, Estate Planning Section of Utah State Bar (2002 - 2003)
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Qualifications
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Memberships
- Estate Planning Section of Utah State Bar (1992 - present)
- Salt Lake Estate Planning Council (1993 - present)
- Society of Financial Service Professionals (2003 - present)
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Qualifications
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Awards and Distinctions
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Qualifications
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Estate Planning Glossary
To find an estate planning
term, click on the first letter of that term in the list below. All
definitions are based on either Utah or federal law. No attempt has been
made to include state law definitions from jurisdictions outside of Utah.
A
· B
· C
· D
· E
· F
· G
· H
· I
· J
· K
· L
· M
· N
· O
· P
· Q
· R
· S
· T
· U
· V
· W
· X
· Y
· Z
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- A
-
- Advance Health Care Directive - Also known as a "living
will" or "medical directive," in this document a declarant (1) names
an agent to make health care decisions on behalf of the declarant if
he or she ever loses the capacity to do so and
(2) directs under what conditions life-sustaining procedures should be withdrawn.
- E
-
- Estate - Property owned by a person at death.
- Estate Tax - A federal tax paid
by a decedent's estate on the amount by which the estate's value exceeds
the applicable estate tax exemption. In 2008, the estate
tax rate is 45%. A similar tax can also be imposed on a state
level.
- Estate Tax Exemption An
amount which an estate's value must exceed before an estate tax is due. For
example, in 2008 the federal estate tax exemption is $2,000,000.
- F
-
- Financial Power of Attorney - names
an agent to manage a person's finances; usually grants the agent power to
do anything the person could do with respect to the
person's finances. It may take effect immediately or when the person
is unable to manage their own finances because of disability or incapacity. It
is also called a "Durable Power of Attorney" because it remains effective if the
person granting the power is disabled or incapacitated.
- G
-
- Generation Skipping Transfer (GST) Tax - a
federal tax which, subject to certain exceptions, is assessed when a person
gives property, either in life or at death, to a descendant other than the
person's children, or to anyone more than one generation younger than the
person making the gift. In 2008, the tax equals 45% of the value of the property
given and is paid by the gift recipient.
- Generation Skipping Transfer (GST)
Tax Exemption - an amount which, if allocated to a
generation skipping transfer, exempts the gift recipient from
paying GST Tax. The GST Tax exemption amount may be allocated to
a single gift or cumulated through successive gifts.
- Gift Tax - a tax paid by the recipient of
a lifetime gift. Federal gift tax does not apply to gifts less than
the annual exclusion amount, which in 2008 is $12,000.
- I
-
- Irrevocable Trust - a trust that cannot
be amended or revoked by the trustmaker.
- L
-
- Living (Inter Vivos) Trust - A trust
that takes effect during the trustmaker's lifetime.
- Living Will - See Advance
Health Care Directive.
- M
-
- Medical Power of Attorney - See
Advance Health Care Directive.
- P
-
- Pourover Will - A will that sends
the willmaker's property to the willmaker's trust.
- Probate - The legal process by which a decedent's
property is collected and preserved; the decedent's debts and taxes are paid;
and the remaining property is distributed according to the decedent's will or,
if the decedent had no will, according to the laws of inheritance.
- Probate Estate - Property owned by a willmaker
that is governed by the will; excludes property that passes outside the will, such as
jointly owned property, life insurance, and retirement accounts.
- R
-
- Revocable Trust - A living trust
that can be amended or revoked by the trustmaker.
-
- T
-
- Taxable Estate - property of a decedent that is
subject to estate tax; includes property either owned or controlled by a
decedent at death.
- Testamentary Trust - A trust that takes
effect on the trustmaker's death.
- Trust -
An enforceable agreement in which
a trustee holds and manages property for the benefit of
the trust beneficiaries; governs final distribution of the trust property;
names an initial and successor trustees.
- W
-
- Will - Takes effect at death; governs distribution
of property in the willmaker's probate estate; names an executor
to be in charge of the estate; can also name guardians for minor children.
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Links to Related
Sites
Utah
Probate Solutions
Estate Planning Section of the Utah State Bar
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