What to Do After Winning the Lottery
Winning the lottery, a cash award or other prize is exciting, but it is important to know your obligations and to protect your interests with strategic planning. At Michigan Estate Lawyers, our attorneys have experience in advising clients on how to reduce tax obligations on lottery winnings as well as any tax burden on heirs. We represent clients who have collected lottery winnings, inheritance, civil lawsuit awards or civil dispute settlements.
Our law firm is dedicated to a Christian model of service with a mission to protect clients as they make the best decisions for their family and future. Let us guide you with dignity and discretion.
Call 866-473-5636 or contact us by e-mail for a consultation with our Michigan asset protection lawyers.
What to Do After Winning the Lottery
There are significant writings on the Internet related to blind trusts for lottery winners. Most are misguided. If the intention of the lottery winner is to remain anonymous, a trust (whether blind or otherwise) is just one way to accomplish this goal. Lottery winners will not generally want to establish a true blind trust, as the creator of such a trust loses control over investment of the trust assets.
Protecting Cash Awards
After winning the lottery or collecting a cash award, you want to make sure your rights are protected and that you take appropriate steps to minimize tax consequences. Our lottery lawyers advise you on how to protect the value of cash awards during your lifetime, and to preserve their value for your heirs. Some solutions include:
- Gifting cash or other assets before your death
- Transfer on death (TOD) or payable on death (POD) bank accounts
- Holding assets by joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTROS)
- Holding assets through a tenancy in common
- Retirement plans and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs)
- Revocable living trusts
High Net Worth Estates and Asset Protection
We advise high net worth clients on estate and generation-skipping tax planning. Their goal is to lower your taxable estate and therefore reduce your transfer taxes. Some of the planning techniques that the firm employs include the following:
- Irrevocable life insurance trusts
- Annual gifting programs
- Use of the unified credit exemption equivalent for lifetime gifts
- Asset protection trusts (APTs) both domestic and foreign
- Sophisticated gifting to various types of trusts for children or others
- Sophisticated gifting to charitable trusts such charitable remainder trusts
"Thank you for your excellent advice concerning our estate planning. From the time we walked into your office, we were met with smiling faces and expert help. God bless all of you." — Paul & Lorraine, April 2009
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For a free consultation, please call our Grand Rapids, Michigan, lawyers toll free at 866-473-5636 or contact us by e-mail to submit a question about your case.
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