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Whirlwind of ActivityWhirlwind of Activity

New rules, low interest rates, court cases and IRS decisions all affected the insurance industry in 2012 and will continue to have repercussions in 2013

13 Min Read
Whirlwind of Activity

The insurance industry will continue to feel the effects of various developments that took place in the past year. Low interest rates will impact insurers, in-force policies and new product pricing. Revised reserving rules on no-lapse policies may cause insurers to abandon the no-lapse market altogether. In addition, some court cases dealt with the issue of phantom income from a lapsed life insurance policy and a private letter ruling clarified what happens when an insurance policy is sold from one trust to another. Here’s an overview of this year’s significant events.


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About the Authors

Richard L. Harris

Greenberg & Rapp Financial Group

Richard L. Harris is the managing member of Richard L. Harris LLC, a life insurance sales and consulting firm devoted to helping the very wealthy and their professional advisors deal with issues regarding life insurance. He works as a back office life insurance expert for many accountants, attorneys, and trust officers. With 40 years experience, Richard is a nationally recognized expert in the very advanced areas of life insurance. He brings together expertise and cutting edge ideas in designing and implementing solutions incorporating life insurance that integrate and address the issues at hand. Apart from acting as a life insurance strategist and purchasing agent for life insurance for the very wealthy, he is often consulted about fixing or improving advanced strategies using life insurance that have become problematic because of legislation, poor performance, or change in circumstances. Richard consults on proposed advanced strategies using life insurance providing second opinions on the viability of the transactions. He also provides litigation support both forensically and strategically and serves as an expert witness regarding sophisticated life insurance transactions. Richard is a graduate of Long Island University where he majored in Accounting and Literature. He holds the professional designations of Chartered Life Underwriter, Registered Trust and Estate Practitioner, and Accredited Estate Planner. He is Chair of the Insurance Committee of Trusts & Estates Magazine, on the Editorial Advisory Board of Wealth Strategies Journal, a Contributing Editor to Private Wealth Magazine and is listed in Who's Who in Finance and Industry. He also serves on the Board of the Northern New Jersey Society of Financial Services Professionals and the Advisory Board of HighCap Financial.

Melvin A. Warshaw

Melvin A. Warshaw, Esq. is an international cross-border tax and private client lawyer based in Massachusetts. He is an ACTEC Fellow, an Academician of the International Academy of Estate and Trust Law and a member of the International Practice committee of the editorial board of Trusts and Estates.