Worried about passing your farm on to the next generation? Trying to figure out what possible tax law changes will mean to you? Need a refresher on all of the steps to complete for your estate plan?
Farmers throughout Michigan are invited to attend the Take Root Farm Succession Planning Conference, co-hosted by Michigan Milk Producers Association, Michigan Corn Growers Association, Greenstone Farm Credit Services, Michigan Farm Bureau, Michigan Pork Producers, Farm Bureau Life Insurance and other commodity groups.
Scheduled for Feb. 18, 2022 in Grand Rapids, the daylong conference will include presenters from Foster Swift Law Firm, Varnum Law Firm, Clark Hill Law Firm, Fraleigh Law, several accounting firms and others. The headline presenter will be Jolene Brown, a farm succession planning consultant from Iowa who has done a fantastic job for our farmers in the past, providing practical guidance on how to lead a farming operation through this process.
Breakout sessions include
- Estate Planning Essentials: Maximize and preserve wealth during lifetime; transfer wealth at death to intended recipients; minimize estate administration expenses; reduce or defer taxes; property ownership; avoid conflict among family members.
- Succession Planning for Ag: Farm transfer factors & strategies; distribution issues with farming and non-farming beneficiaries; buy/sell agreements; choosing the best business structure; and building a management team; communication.
- Farm Estate Tax Planning: Review of current estate tax system; structures for farm transitions; using estate tax rules to create tax benefits; structures to reduce and or eliminate estate taxes; and common pitfalls to avoid in estate and succession planning.
- Forming and Operating LLCs: Analyze the decision-making process for determining if you need an LLC to help protect your business or assets. In addition to helping you understand the use and benefits of LLC formation, this presentation will provide you with valuable information needed to form, file, and create an LLC — helping your lenders and insurance agents to easily identify new operations. Discuss and talk through the items that should be considered when operating a new LLC and get the maximum benefit from establishing the new business.
- Estate Planning and Life Insurance Options
Mark your calendar for Feb. 18, 2022 and keep watching all your usual Farm Bureau communications for more details as they develop. For more information or to reserve a spot now, contact April Cantrell in MFB’s legal department.