No one knows when an unexpected event will occur that could potentially financially cause devastation. A car accident or lawsuit can cause you to bleed money. A severe illness can lead to astronomical medical bills. If you have money saved up, you want to protect it. That’s where an asset protection lawyer comes in. They help you put measures into place so that if something does happen, your assets are protected. Learn the 5 ways an asset protection lawyer saves your money from disaster!

What Does an Asset Protection Lawyer Do?

An asset protection lawyer helps individuals and businesses protect their assets from potential creditors. They do this by creating asset protection plans and trusts, as well as by helping to structure business entities in a way that limits liability exposure.

Asset protection lawyers typically have experience in both civil and criminal law. They not only help you create an asset protection plan but also defend you if your asset protection plan faces a court challenge. Strategies to protect your assets usually involve legal frameworks such as:

• Trusts: Trusts can be used to protect your assets from creditors. Trusts can be revocable, meaning you can change them or dissolve them. They can be irrevocable or set in stone. The amount of asset protection depends on your personal level of legal control. 
• Business Restructuring: If you own a business, an asset protection lawyer can help you restructure it to limit your personal liability exposure. Asset protection could involve creating a limited liability company (LLC) or another type of business entity.

5 Ways an Asset Protection Attorney Saves Your Money From Disaster

Asset protection lawyers help you prepare for the unexpected events of life that can eat your nest egg in one fated gulp. Here are the top 5 ways your asset protection plan can keep you from the jaws of death.

1. Prevent Loss in Future Bankruptcy

If you go bankrupt, your creditors can come after your non-exempt assets. But if you have an asset protection plan in place, your lawyer can help shield your money and property from seizure. This only works if you have prepared in advance. Putting assets into a trust after you owe multiple creditors is a type of fraud.

2. Stop Lawsuits Before They Start

If you’re worried about malpractice or business lawsuits, an asset protection lawyer can help you create a liability shield by setting up an LLC or other business entity to hold your assets. For protection from personal civil lawsuits such as a reckless endangerment lawsuit for a car accident, your attorney can place assets into an irrevocable trust to shield them from pain and suffering damages in a civil suit.

3. Prevent Loss to Divorce

Some trusts can protect you from asset loss in a divorce. However, planning to protect your single assets before marriage is the best strategy for divorce. After marriage, your attorney can help you plan to hold onto your assets in the case of divorce, but you may still pay alimony and child support even if your assets are in a protected trust.

4. Plan for Long-Term Care

Long-term care costs can quickly eat away at your savings. You can plan for this eventuality by creating an irrevocable Medicaid trust to hold your assets. This type of trust allows you to qualify for Medicaid benefits to cover your future long-term care costs. In North Carolina, you can own a home worth up to$636,000. (1)

5. Protect Your Home

Asset Protection Attorneys also protect your home from Medicaid recovery in North Carolina. If you receive Medicaid benefits for long-term care, your family can lose your home to the state payback system after your death. A properly shielded home stays in the family after you pass away.

Need More Reasons to Protect Your Assets?

In addition to these 5 reasons to work with an asset protection lawyer, you can also prevent loss for your future heirs. Setting up a trust that gives monthly amounts prevents your heirs from losing their inheritance all at once to poor judgment, addictions, divorce, bad spending habits, and more.

We Can Help

At Vail Gardner Law, we work with you to create asset protection and estate planning strategies that fit your unique situation. We take action to protect your assets by creating trusts, transferring ownership of property, or making changes to your will or estate plan. Asset protection is an integral part of financial planning, so contact us today and get started planning for your future!