With more people investing more money in art and fine collectibles, whether for purely aesthetic or for strategic financial purposes, awareness of the risks associated with these investments and the ways to protect these assets is vital. Collectors should pay particular atte...
This case study, coauthored by Pitcairn and Oakbrook Solutions, discusses the value proposition of data architecture to the Pitcairn family office. With many family offices striving to provide better quality client reporting experiences, this study will provide lessons learned and some insight on the value of client data and its stewardship a...
Many families have significant wealth tied up in the publicly traded shares of a single firm. Concentrated exposure to a single stock—often the family’s original source of wealth—represents a significant risk to the family’s wealth and its future spending and charitable-gifting power. Emotional ties to the company that may have made the f...
The historic June 2013 Windsor decision clarified the financial and legal status of some legally married same-sex couples, while leaving others in an ambiguous status—legally married for purposes of federal law, but still considered single in many states. For those in a same-sex relationship or for families with children or grandchildren in a same-...
The validity of a corporation’s S election is a primary consideration with respect to federal and state tax return compliance and due diligence efforts. For an S election to be valid, a corporation must satisfy strict eligibility requirements. Among these requirements, a corporation must (1) have no more than 100 shareholders, (2) have only p...
The phenomenal success of Yale's endowment has been an inspiration to many investors. However, if Yale’s endowment had to pay the same taxes as individual investors, its portfolio would be constructed very differently. This paper presents a simple model for incorporating tax considerations into a pretax asset allo...
The phenomenal success of Yale's endowment has been an inspiration to many investors. However, if Yale’s endowment had to pay the same taxes as individual investors, its portfolio would be constructed very differently. This paper presents a simple model for incorporating tax considerations into a pretax asset allo...
Periods of economic boom and bust have been a fixture in academia. Many credit Arthur Burns and Wesley Mitchell for formulizing our present day construct of the business cycle in their 1946 book, Measuring Business Cycles. In most teachings, the economy is neatly categorized into trough and peak, expansion and contraction. The dates of such periods...
Throughout our history, investors have utilized a combination of both “active” and “passive” investment solutions to solve for client needs. This paper provides a perspective on the ongoing debate over the advantages and shortcomings of these vehicles and details the importance for each client to have the right mix in order to position them to achi...
As couples enter into matrimony, they confront challenging questions and must make difficult decisions often associated with complex, emotionally charged issues.
It is not uncommon for wealth transfer planning to focus solely on the amount of money to be transferred and potential strategies for minimizing taxes. However, one of the most lasting gifts that a grantor can provide family members is an understanding of their long-term goals for the family and how this is shaped by shared history and values.This ...
For family members working in the business, the area of compensation overlaps with contentious considerations of fairness, equality, performance-management and long term engagement. This artcle itemises how families have approached this issue, and advocates some pathways to avoid disharmony.
The process of developing long-term strategies to manage family wealth requires careful thought and well-coordinated tactics focused on achieving far-reaching wealth planning objectives.All too often, plans are established that are focused primarily on minimizing the tax burden. Individuals and families need to be careful that the tax “tail&r...
Despite extraordinary measures by global central banks to re-inflate economies, inflation has remained tame. The reasons for subdued inflation have been deleveraging, excess capacity and high unemployment levels.The author believes that:These factors are unlikely to provide the same anti-inflationary pressures going forward and the Federal Reserve ...
The US Supreme Court, in a unanimous opinion issued June 19, 2014, implemented a new standard for courts to employ in determining if a taxpayer may challenge whether the Internal Revenue Service has issued a summons in good faith. In light of the Service’s new procedures for administering Information Document Requests, including the potential...