Ep. 209 "Documents Aren't a Plan" What Estate Attorney Martin Shenkman Wants You to Know

Do you have a "simple" estate plan? That might be the most expensive mistake you make. Patti sits down with legendary estate attorney Martin Shenkman, 44 books and over 1,000 articles deep, for a no-fluff conversation on why documents are not the same thing as a plan. Here is what it may look like as a part of an estate plan: 📌 A Spousal Lifetime Access Trust, or SLAT, is one of the most powerful estate planning tools available for high-net-worth couples who want to act before the exemption window closes. 🛡️ Patti and Martin walk through how young professionals, like physicians facing malpractice risk, can build asset protection into a trust years before any lawsuit ever surfaces. 💰 A basis planning strategy can wipe out decades of capital gains by adding a simple power of appointment for an aging parent. 🤝 AI tools and online document services cannot replace a coordinated team of legal, tax, and financial advisors working from the same playbook. Because at the end of the day, a document is not a plan, and a plan is only as strong as the team behind it.