Advanced Estate Planning Strategies: Avoid the step transaction doctrine, enhance spouse trust strategies, create non-grantor trusts, and crucial considerations on basis step-up and community property trusts

Joy Elizabeth Matak | Avelino Law, LLP

Joy Matak, Esq. is a Partner at Avelino Law, LLP in the firm’s Private Client Services practice group. With over two decades of diversified experience as a wealth transfer strategist, Joy has an extensive background in recommending and implementing advantageous tax strategies for multigenerational wealth families, owners of closely held businesses, and high net worth individuals. Adept at navigating the intricate landscape of estate and business succession, Joy crafts customized wealth transfer strategy plans to accomplish even the most complicated estate and business succession goals. She also performs tax compliance work including gift tax, estate tax, and income tax returns for trusts and estates as well as consulting services related to transfer tax planning, asset protection, life insurance structuring, and post- mortem planning.

A sought-after resource in her field, Joy frequently shares her insights through speaking engagements for the ABA Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section; Wealth Management Magazine; the Estate Planning Council of Northern New Jersey; and the Society of Financial Service Professionals. Joy is a regular, monthly contributor to Trusts & Estates magazine and has authored and co-authored articles for the Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trusts (BNA) Journal; Leimberg Information Services, Inc. (LISI); and Estate Planning Review The CCH Journal, among others, on a variety of topics including wealth transfer strategies, income taxation of trusts and estates, and business succession planning. Joy co-authored a book on the 2017 tax reforms entitled Estate Planning: Estate, Tax and Other Planning after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.

Sahri D. Zeger | CohnReznick

Sahri D. Zeger, JD leads CohnReznick’s Trust & Estates group. She has more than 20 years of experience as a tax attorney and trusted advisor to high-net-worth individuals and successful business owners. In this role, she provides expertise in address the wealth preservation, estate planning, and business succession goals of our private clients, developing sophisticated tax strategies and multi generational estate plans to meet their business, family, and charitable goals.

Sahri has comprehensive technical knowledge of estate and gift reporting rules, as well as extensive experience in identifying exposure points. She is based in the Boston office.

Before joining CohnReznick, Sahri practiced as an attorney in Chicago-based boutique tax practice, which focused on tax compliance for closely held business owners and family groups, fiduciary planning, estate, trust, private foundations, and gift tax services.

I. Planning in 2024 and 2025 to avoid the step transaction doctrine | 11:00am – 11:30am

II. New twists on spousal lifetime access trust strategies to preserve maximum flexibility for married clients | 11:30am –12:00pm

Break | 12:00pm – 12:10pm

III. creating non-grantor trusts for the benefit of a spouse – without tainting non-grantor trust status | 12:10pm –12:40pm

IV. Discussion about basis step-up considerations and community property trusts | 12:40pm – 1:10pm