February 2018 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Charitable Remainder Trusts: An Old Tool to Fix A New Problem

The Tax Cut and Jobs Act (the 2017 Tax Act) provided several surprises, although I am not sure that it actually delivered that much simplification to a complex tax code as was promised. One big surprise was to make alimony or spousal support no longer tax deductible by the payer or taxable to the recipient. […]

Read More

Community Property Agreements and Trusts: Old and New Planning Tools

Structuring an estate to obtain an income tax basis ‘step-up’ upon the death of a client continues to be a significant goal of many estate plans. New planning strategies try to exploit old estate tax rules to intentionally cause an asset to be included in a decedent’s taxable estate. This approach attempts to create rights […]

Read More

January 2018 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

December 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

November 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

October 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Greenleaf Trust named one of Michigan’s Best and Brightest in Wellness®

September 8, 2017 Kalamazoo, Michigan – Greenleaf Trust has been named one of Michigan’s Best and Brightest in Wellness® companies to work for. The Best and Brightest in Wellness award recognizes and celebrates quality and excellence in health and wellness. The Best and Brightest in Wellness winners were evaluated by SynBella, the nation’s leading wellness […]

Read More

September 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Trust Modifications: The Material Purpose Limitation

Modern trust statutes provide several ways in which to modify an irrevocable trust. For example, in Michigan an irrevocable trust can be decanted to move its assets to a new trust that is created by the trustee. MCL 700.7820a. Additionally, Michigan’s version of the Uniform Trust Code also offers several other procedures that can be […]

Read More

Equifax Has Been Hacked…Now What?

By now you have probably heard that Equifax, one of the three national credit reporting agencies, was hacked and the personal information for 143 million individuals was compromised. Please be assured the Equifax breach is in no way associated with your Greenleaf Trust accounts. The Equifax breach exposed information including names, social security numbers, birth […]

Read More

Greenleaf Trust is #3 (out of 100) Coolest Place to Work in Michigan: Crain’s Detroit Business

August 29, 2017 Kalamazoo, Michigan – Wealth management firm, Greenleaf Trust, has been named the #3 (out of 100) Cool(est) Places to Work in Michigan. The annual list is compiled by Crain’s Detroit Business and Best Companies Group. “Just being in the top 100 Cool Places to Work is, in itself, an accolade we welcome,” […]

Read More

August 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Regina Jaeger

Personable and bright, Regina Jaeger, CTFA, is the ideal trust relationship officer to bring extraordinary client service back to Northern Michigan. But how? For clients of Greenleaf Trust, you see, extraordinary client service never went away. So Regina will set her sights on raising a high bar even higher by advising, serving, and meeting the […]

Read More

July 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Greenleaf Trust welcomes new trust relationship officer, Regina Jaeger

Traverse City, MI, July 1, 2017 – Wealth management firm, Greenleaf Trust, announced today the hiring of Regina Jaeger, who is joining the firm’s Northern Michigan team. As Vice President and Trust Relationship Officer, Regina will be responsible for providing trust services to individuals and nonprofit organizations. She has over 29 years of experience in […]

Read More

Alter Ego: An Asset Protection Trust’s Achilles Heel?

Much has been written lately about Michigan’s recent venture into the asset protection trust waters with its adoption of the Qualified Dispositions in Trust Act (the Act) effective in March of this year. The Act clearly indicates that a transfer of assets into the Qualified Dispositions Trust can only be set aside following by the […]

Read More

Decanting a Trust: Are There Public Policy Limits?

Decanting a trust is one way to eliminate or change provisions in an existing trust that are viewed as undesirable, or which are no longer workable due to changes in the law or the beneficiary’s circumstances. While there are some statutory limitations imposed on the trustee’s decanting power (e.g. the inability to decant-away the beneficiary’s […]

Read More

June 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

An Overview of Michigan’s Qualified Dispositions In Trust Act

Why it is relevant: The draft persons of the proposed bill, which ultimately became the Michigan Qualified Dispositions in Trust Act [MCL 700.1041 et. seq.] thought that the Act could possibly result in a business boom for estate planning attorneys and trust companies in northern and western Michigan. Their reasoning was based on the notion […]

Read More

Greenleaf Trust recognized as Michigan Economic Bright Spot

Kalamazoo, Michigan, May 23, 2017 – Wealth management firm Greenleaf Trust has been named by Corp! Magazine as a Michigan Economic Bright Spot. Of the 250 companies nominated for the award, only 85 made the cut. Companies were reviewed and selected based on 2015/2016 increases in revenue, number of employees, locations, etc. Greenleaf Trust competed […]

Read More

May 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Allard: What Exactly is Michigan’s Public Policy?

No one really seems to know these days what Michigan’s public policy is when it comes to prenuptial agreements or for that matter, postnuptial agreements. We are told that if a married couple enters into a postnuptial agreement while living together and with divorce not imminent, their agreement is against Michigan’s public policy and thus […]

Read More

April 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Greenleaf Trust Marks President’s Day with Second Annual Day of Caring

Kalamazoo, Michigan, February 20, 2017 – The recent President’s Day marked Greenleaf Trust’s second annual Day of Caring. With banks and capital markets officially closed for the holiday, team members were given the option of going to work or volunteering for a community organization of their choice. More than 80 percent of the Greenleaf Trust […]

Read More

2016 Annual Report

Read More

March 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Wait and See Planning: Fine Tune a QTIP Trust

With the uncertainty that surrounds the possibility of tax law changes by Congress this year, what advice can an advisor provide to their clients when it comes to estate planning? We are left wondering if there will be a federal estate tax, a federal generation skipping transfer tax, a federal gift tax, a ‘step-up’ (or […]

Read More

February 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

January 2017 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Unsigned Wills: Really!

Just when you think you know what the law requires, along comes a court decision that throws water on that conventional thinking. Such was the situation last fall when the Michigan Court of Appeals in In re Estate of Sabry Mohamed Attia (October 10, 2016) surprised many estate planners with a decision that permits an […]

Read More

December 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Divorce Settlements: Using Trusts to Deal with Distrust

I had the dubious opportunity to serve both as a divorce attorney and an estate planning attorney for over 42 years. One lesson that I learned is that many divorce attorneys are not always cognizant of the income tax implications that arise in a divorce settlement. Many divorce attorneys even go so far as to […]

Read More

November 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Greenleaf Trust Named One of the Country’s Best Small and Medium Workplaces

October 12, 2016, Kalamazoo, Michigan – At Greenleaf Trust, we don’t just stand behind our work—we stand behind the people who make it all possible. Our belief that a positive work environment is essential to a healthy business has been a central component to our success. Today, we’re proud to announce that Greenleaf Trust was […]

Read More

October 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Unique Assets: Purpose Trusts

While most trusts are established to make distributions to either individuals who are the named trust beneficiaries or to a charity, a purpose trust normally exists to hold or to dispose of specific assets, meaning the trust exists to carry out a specific purpose rather than to provide a benefit to particular individuals. Purpose trusts […]

Read More

September 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Greenleaf Trust named 2016 Cool Place to Work in Michigan by Crain’s Detroit Business

August 29, 2016, Kalamazoo, Michigan Greenleaf Trust was selected as one of the 2016 Cool Places to Work in Michigan. The annual list of “Cool Places to Work” was created by Crain’s Detroit Business and Best Companies Group. “Most wealth management firms probably don’t think of themselves as cool,” said Michael F. Odar, President of […]

Read More

August 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Oliver Krings Earns Certified Information Systems Security Professional Credential

August 2016, Kalamazoo, MI Greenleaf Trust is proud to announce that Oliver Krings has successfully completed the requirements in earning the (ISC)² Certified Information Systems Security Professional credential. Oliver passed the extensive examination, completed the endorsement process, and by possessing several years of professional experience in the Information Security field.  (ISC)² is an international nonprofit membership association […]

Read More

Greenleaf Trust Opening Grand Rapids Office; Appoints New Team

Thomas DeMeester and John Grzybek Bring Nearly 50 Collective Years of Local Experience July 2016, Grand Rapids, Michigan – Kalamazoo-based Greenleaf Trust, the privately-held wealth management firm with over $8B in assets, announces the appointment of two long-time, local wealth management leaders, Thomas A. DeMeester and John G. Grzybek, to head its new office in […]

Read More

July 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

June 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

May 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

Greenleaf Trust named one of the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For® in West Michigan

April 27, 2016, Kalamazoo, MI The Michigan Business and Professional Association (MBPA) has recognized Greenleaf Trust as one of the Best and Brightest Companies To Work For® in West Michigan. “Our talented employees, and their commitment to the clients of Greenleaf Trust, are at the heart of our success,” said Michael F. Odar, President of […]

Read More

April 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

March 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF

2015 Annual Report

Read More

February 2016 Perspectives Newsletter

View PDF