"You can never plan the future by the past."
Edmund Burke, 1729-1797, British Political Writer, Statesman.
"Before beginning, plan carefully."
Marcus T. Cicero, c. 106-43 BC, Great Roman Orator, Politician.
"A man who does not think and plan long ahead will find trouble right at his door."
Confucius, BC 571-449, Chinese Ethical Teacher and Philosopher.
As suggested by Cicero and Confucius, asset protection planning is most effective when undertaken before beginning (on an enterprise or course of action) and long ahead when it will be needed. It is unwise to wait until the judgment creditor is "at your door." By that time there may be no planning available. In this day and age, in our community, the civil lawsuit to recover money damages is quite common. Philosophically speaking, asset protection planning can be compared somewhat to tax planning. Just because you have to pay taxes, this does not mean you should pay one penny more than the lawful minimum. So it is with asset protection planning. Just because we are all vulnerable to lawsuits, this does not mean we should pay a judgment creditor one penny more than the lawful minimum. By carefully and skillfully arranging your personal and business affairs, when that day comes that the judgment creditor arrives at your door, you can maximize the protection of your assets and often the judgment creditor will get only a fraction of his claim.
Asset protection is one of the most important considerations for any business. To better assist our clients with this important step in business planning, the law firm has made asset protection a primary area of focus within the practice. This is so important that we generally recommend to all business and estate planning clients creating a plan for asset protection.
It used to be that only rich people needed to concern themselves with asset protection. Nowadays, with the large number of attorneys in California, and the large number of lawsuits filed each year, it's a good idea for even individuals with modest assets or wealth to consider asset protection.
A good asset protection plan requires balancing financial, business, estate planning and tax planning goals. The sooner a client comes to the law firm for help developing protection from creditors, the better. If started early, an asset protection plan can be an effective and important part of protecting your wealth from creditors.
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