“Grandpa in the Garden”
Under Arizona’s new “Grandpa in the Garden” bill, human remains may be turned into fertile soil that can be used in a loved one’s backyard or garden instead of traditional burial or cremation. The process is said to be cheaper than traditional burial or cremation methods and takes around 45 days to complete. Your loved ones will have the alternative to retain some of the soil created after scattering or planting a portion of the soil.  Our guess is this is more for trees than vegetables, but who knows.
The new law permits the eco-friendly alternative…
Continue Reading Arizona’s New Human Composting Law – Grandpa in the Garden

In two separate matters, a new client’s spouse unexpectedly died, leaving behind a will and trust that was outdated and adversely impacted the surviving spouse upon the death of the first spouse. In both instances, the decedent failed to review or update their estate plan with legal counsel. DeAngelis Legal discussed potential solutions with the surviving spouse and implemented strategies to address the issues.
In the first matter, DeAngelis Legal prepared a Non-judicial Settlement Agreement to rectify certain provisions of the trust. In the second matter, DeAngelis Legal proposed and issued a notice regarding the interpretation of an ambiguous amendment…
Continue Reading May 2024 Trust Administration

Despite elevated interest rates, real estate acquisitions in Arizona continue to dominate our transaction practice.  DeAngelis Legal created several new limited liability companies (LLCs) for new and current clients, to acquire and hold real estate.  In addition to forming holding companies, DeAngelis Legal advised the clients with respect to the preparation of leases to third parties and complied with the new Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) requirements. LLCs continue to be the entity of choice for real estate transactions because they provide a balance of flexibility, liability protection and tax benefits.
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Long-time Scottsdale client started a new venture and desired to grant key employees with equity incentive compensation based on the growth of the business.  DeAngelis Legal assisted the client with evaluating alternative compensation plans, including bonus plans, phantom ownership and direct ownership.  DeAngelis Legal also prepared a sample grant of interest with vesting provisions and an operating agreement to implement the client’s desired plan.
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On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission issued its final rule banning noncompetition (noncompete) provisions for all workers as an unfair method of competition.   The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has vowed to challenge the ruling, but employers need to start understanding the law and how it will impact their documents and their worker’s rights.
What is the New Rule?
Under the new rule, any provision which prevents a worker from accepting similar work, or starting a business, after the conclusion of the employment (noncompete) will no longer be enforceable.  In fact, the rule requires that after the effective date,…
Continue Reading FTC Bans Noncompete Provisions

Four months into complying with the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), we have picked up a few tips that we thought would be helpful to pass along.
Background.
The CTA is a federal registration program for business owners administered by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Compliance began January 1, 2024 and involves several disclosure requirements for entity and its beneficial owners and decision makers.  Businesses formed prior to January 1st have until the end of the year to comply, while businesses formed in 2024 have 90 days.  For more information on the CTA see CTA Background Information.
Tip 1.
Continue Reading CTA Compliance Update – Seven Tips

A closely held corporate client had previously established a sophisticated shareholders agreement that provided for the purchase and sale of the entity’s shares upon certain triggering events. The purchase price was funded with large insurance policies on the lives of the shareholders.  Unfortunately, instead of naming the third-party trustee as the owner, the insurance agent named the entity as the owner of the policies, which caused a myriad of tax and valuation issues for the entity and its owners.  DeAngelis Legal created a new limited liability company to hold the policies and provide liquidity to the surviving shareholder upon the…
Continue Reading March 2024 Insurance Holding Company

Spring training was back in full swing this year, which meant agents were working hard and players were setting up their entities to hold endorsement deals and updating their estate plans before the season started.  DeAngelis Legal created several new entities for players to assist them with managing their endorsements and drafted new estate plans for a couple young players.  Proper estate, business and career planning will provide them and their loved ones with peace of mind and security while preventing unnecessary headache and expense later.  Go Diamondbacks!
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Continue Reading March 2024 Corporate Formations

New Scottsdale husband and wife clients updated their estate plan documents with DeAngelis Legal.  During the review and preparation of the revised plan, DeAngelis Legal identified several discrepancies and inconsistencies with the titling of their assets and corporate records.  DeAngelis Legal worked with the clients to clean up and update the Arizona Corporation Commission filings and the client’s corporate records.
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Garren W. Carroll, Esq. has joined DeAngelis Legal as an attorney.  Garren has been practicing general business and estate planning law since 2005.  Prior to joining DeAngelis Legal he worked in private practice and as in-house counsel at a small start-up.
Garren regularly represents clients with their estate planning and probate matters, including simple wills, revocable trusts, powers of attorney and title issues. Over the course of his career he has also assisted small and medium-sized businesses with formation documents, corporate contracts and mergers and acquisitions.  Garren is a licensed attorney and a member of the State Bar of Arizona.
Continue Reading Welcome Garren Carroll!

Several clients had entities with little or no purpose, so we began the dissolution and termination process. In addition to starting the statute of limitations on potential claims and limiting the potential for fraud, cleaning up your corporate structure will make it easier to administer of your affairs upon a death or disability and avoids the necessity of filing under the new Corporate Transparency Act. Now is a great time to dig out those old entities and formally merge, dissolve or terminate them.
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High net worth Chandler couple asked for a review of their estate plan and associated estate taxes. DeAngelis Legal performed a comprehensive review of their finances and estate plan, including financial statements, trusts, and beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance. DeAngelis Legal identified several options for reducing their estate tax obligations by several million dollars, regardless of whether the Federal Estate Tax exemption is reduced at the end of 2025. DeAngelis Legal also prepared or reviewed the documents necessary to implement the revised plan.
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Continue Reading February 2024 High Net Worth Estate Plan Review

High net worth second marriage couple from Phoenix desired to review and update their estate plan, which included bequests of sole and separate property to each spouse’s children.    DeAngelis Legal reviewed the couple’s current estate plan, worked with their investment advisor and accountant to identify and resolve a variety of income tax, estate tax and logistical issues and prepared updated estate plan documents.
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