Litigation attorney Shannon Knorr is the newest member of Frazer Ryan’s trust and estate group. Her practice focuses on estate litigation, probate and trust administration, and estate planning, and she is licensed to practice in Arizona and California. A Phoenix native, Shannon graduated from Xavier College Prep.
Continue Reading Welcome, new associate attorney Shannon Knorr

Forbes magazine has added Frazer Ryan senior partner Jonathon Morrison to its talent bank of contributing authors. Jonathon is a planning pioneer and published author concerning the use of the “optimized CLAT” (OCLAT) strategy, which further optimizes for the philanthropic contributor the tax and economic benefits of a charitable lead annuity trust.
Continue Reading Jonathon Morrison is selected as a Forbes contributor

Frazer Ryan, a Best Law Firms selectee and, for seven straight years, a ”

Top Companies to Work For

” honoree, has immediate openings for attorneys with at least five years of experience in one or more of the following practice areas:

• Probate and Trust Administration

• Estate Planning

• Estate and Trust Controversy

A book of business is not required for the above positions.

For our estate planning practice, we value significant experience in drafting and implementing estate planning and business strategies for high-net-worth clients.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Frazer Ryan offers a competitive salary, production-based bonuses, and a full benefit package…
Continue Reading Attorney Openings: Frazer Ryan Goldberg & Arnold (Phoenix) seeks to expand trust and estate practice

Frazer Ryan, a Best Law Firms selectee and, for seven straight years, a ”

Top Companies to Work For

” honoree, seeks a full-time experienced Paralegal. Five years of estate planning, probate, and administration experience preferred.

The person chosen for this position will be responsible for assisting the Managing Partner with an extensive, high-end estate planning practice.

The successful candidate must have impeccable attention to detail, strong administrative and communication skills, the ability to exercise initiative with good judgment, manage multiple priorities, work in a team-oriented environment, and contribute to the team effort by assisting with other tasks and projects,…
Continue Reading Paralegal Wanted, Trusts and Estates: Frazer Ryan Goldberg & Arnold (Phoenix)

To fill a void left by 20 years of state government inaction, Frazer Ryan and the Association for the Chronically Mentally Ill facilitated the production of a “private-sector Olmstead Plan.”

See also:

• The

  latest updates

  in Arizona’s pursuit to produce an Olmstead Plan

• More information about the

  Association for the Chronically Mentally Ill

…
Continue Reading Olmstead Plan: Frazer Ryan partners with mental health advocacy group to assess the state of public health in Arizona

Frazer Ryan, a Best Law Firms selectee and, for seven straight years, a ”

Top Companies to Work For

” honoree, seeks a partner-caliber attorney, with extensive experience in real estate transactions, to:

• help meet the real estate-related legal needs of our clients; and

• expand the firm’s capacity to attract and serve clients in the real estate industry.

For non-equity attorneys, Frazer Ryan offers a competitive salary, production-based bonuses, and a full benefit package that includes health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, long term disability insurance, paid parking, and 401(k) and profit sharing plans.

Frazer Ryan Goldberg & Arnold LLP…
Continue Reading Attorney Opening: Frazer Ryan Goldberg & Arnold (Phoenix) seeks to add a partner-level real estate attorney

We are pleased to welcome Teresie Zmyslinski, CP, to Frazer Ryan as Administrator. She is the 2021-2022 president of the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA) Arizona chapter.
Continue Reading Teresie Zmyslinski joins Frazer Ryan’s administrative leadership team

On March 11, 2022, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge struck down the tax-hike provision of Proposition 208, which Arizona voters approved in 2020.

The Prop. 208 saga continues with the

March 11 ruling

by a Maricopa County Superior Court judge in

Fann v. Arizona,

permanently enjoining the voter-approved law’s tax-hike provisions.

On March 15, 2022, the Arizona Department of Revenue issued

guidance

to taxpayers on the Maricopa County Superior Court ruling, including the following:

• Taxpayers that have already filed their income tax returns do not need to amend them because there will be no impact to the overall income

…
Continue Reading Court strikes down Proposition 208 tax

FAQ Index

1.

The Basics

2.

IRS Approval and the Upfront Tax Deduction

3. The Charitable Lock-Up Period

4.

Remainder Assets, Tax Filings, Logistics, Fees

THE CHARITABLE LOCK-UP PERIOD: ADMINISTRATION

Who invests the OCLAT funds?

You are the trustee, and you have total control of the investments.

Are there investment restrictions?

Virtually none, except (i) you cannot use the OCLAT funds for your business operations, and (ii) there are tax penalties if you take extreme risks with the funds (the OCLAT is essentially subject to a “gross negligence” standard).

How much does the OCLAT pay to charity?

This depends on…
Continue Reading Optimized CLAT FAQs, Part 3: The Charitable Lock-Up Period

FAQ Index

1.

The Basics

2. IRS Approval and the Upfront Tax Deduction

3.

The Charitable Lock-Up Period

4.

Remainder Assets, Tax Filings, Logistics, Fees

IS THIS IRS-APPROVED? HOW MUCH RISK IS INVOLVED?

Has the OCLAT been approved by the Tax Code?

The CLAT has been in the Tax Code since 1969. (In fact, the IRS published a very basic CLAT legal form for use in 2007, and the former IRS Commissioner John Koskinen set up a CLAT in 1998 for Duke University.) The “Optimized CLAT” is a special variant of a CLAT and all aspects are firmly-supported by the…
Continue Reading Optimized CLAT FAQs, Part 2: IRS Approval and the Upfront Tax Deduction

FAQ Index

1.

The Basics

2.

IRS Approval and the Upfront Tax Deduction

3.

The Charitable Lock-Up Period

4. Remainder Assets, Tax Filings, Logistics, Fees

RETURN OF OCLAT REMAINDER ASSETS AT END OF CHARITABLE TERM

How much can my family expect to receive back from the OCLAT?

This depends to what extent the OCLAT investments outperform the IRS benchmark rate (which is fixed upon funding). For CLATs funded in February 2022, the benchmark rate is very low (1.6%) such that a 30-year $1 million OCLAT returning 7% per year could expect to return ~$5 million to the family at year…
Continue Reading Optimized CLAT FAQs, Part 4: Remainder Assets, Tax Filings, Logistics, Fees

Basic FAQs

What is the ideal client profile?

The ideal OCLAT client (i) is philanthropic, (ii) has a high income or is selling a highly-appreciated asset, (iii) has sufficient savings outside the OCLAT, (iv) lives in a high tax state, and/or (v) wants to minimize inheritance taxes paid by children.

Why should I fund an OCLAT?

With the OCLAT, the Tax Code rewards your philanthropic and family wealth legacy goals by giving you immediate tax benefits. Upon funding the OCLAT, you enjoy an income tax deduction (reducing your taxes this year)

and

you remove the OCLAT assets from your estate…
Continue Reading The "Optimized CLAT": Frequently Asked Questions

The Optimized CLAT is a special version of a charitable lead annuity trust (CLAT) that has been designed to optimize the tax and economic benefits to the contributor.

The Optimized CLAT is the only tax planning vehicle in existence that:

• generates a dollar-for-dollar tax deduction in the year of funding (providing immediate tax savings)

• returns an expected 1-5x of the initial contribution back to the contributor

• immediately exempts the contributed assets from the 40% federal gift and estate tax, and



• exempts the transferred assets from the contributor’s personal creditors.

The Optimized CLAT must be funded by December 31 to…
Continue Reading Optimized CLAT: "Opt out" of immediate income taxes by promising to make charitable gifts in the future