Specific Learning Objectives by Lesson

Overview and Purpose of Estate Planning

• Define common terminology used in estate planning discussions.
• Identify the purpose and goals of estate planning.
• Identify the purpose of a Will in estate planning.
• Identify the roles and responsibilities of estate planning team members.
• Identify the purpose and importance of each step in the Estate Planning process.
• Identify the purpose and function of common estate planning documents.

Property Rights and Property Ownership

• Identify a typical item of property according to its legal classification.
• Identify the two types of property law in the United States.
• Compare and contrast the two types of property law in the United States.
• Identify the type of property ownership from a general description.
• Distinguish the types of property ownership that are subject to probate from those that are not.

The Transfer Taxation System

• Identify the requirements of the transfer taxation system.
• Identify the types of wealth sharing that are subject to a transfer tax.
• Recognize exceptions to the transfer taxation rules.
• Identify who pays transfer taxes.
• Define what wealth is taxed by the transfer taxation system.
• Recognize exceptions to the transfer taxation rules through gifting.
• Compare and contrast the transfer taxation system with generation-skipping transfer taxation.

Estate Planning Strategies Implemented During Life

• Identify the roles of each party involved in a trust.
• Identify the characteristics of a revocable living trust that distinguish it from an irrevocable trust.
• Identify the most commonly used types of irrevocable trusts.
• Identify the distinguishing characteristics of the commonly used types of irrevocable trusts.
• Distinguish annuity interest from uni-trust interest.

Estate Planning Strategies Implemented at Death

• Identify the most commonly used estate planning strategies implemented at death.
• Define the terms unlimited marital distribution and applicable exclusion amount.
• Identify the distinguishing characteristics of the exclusion trust.
• Identify the distinguishing characteristics of the QTIP marital trust.
• Compare the use of trusts in estate planning to the tax consequences of outright distribution.
• Identify the distinguishing characteristics of generation skipping trusts.