Note From the Editor: December 2019

I recently moderated a panel in New York City on women and wealth and was impressed with the range and importance of the issues covered by the presenters, which included long-term care (LTC), planning for divorce and the challenges of being a woman in this industry. In terms of helping women who are contemplating or have been through a divorce, I was particularly struck by how this topic goes hand-in-hand with proper estate planning. This inspired me to ask the presenters to cover some of these issues in more depth for Trusts & Estates. The result is our “Wonder Women” Special Report. The articles cover the personal perspective of a female practitioner as well as discuss issues faced by women in various stages of divorce proceedings. In “Starting a New Law Firm While Young and Female,” p. 44, Elizabeth Forspan discusses her journey from a tax manager to the founder of her own trusts and estates/elder law firm. “Post-Divorce Checklist,” p. 41, by Lara M. Sass provides a list of estate-planning documents that you should encourage your female clients to update on divorce and explains why each one is necessary. And, in “Planning Tips for Women Tackling Divorce,” p. 48, Rebecca A. Provder delves into how prenuptial and postnuptial agreements can be critical in protecting a woman’s marital assets. 

Connected to this Report, we also recently conducted a survey of our subscribers on the traits and needs of their female clients. We plan to release the results soon, but a sneak peek of some interesting findings: 71.2% report that their female clients get their wealth by inheriting it from a spouse, and 75.8% report that female clients start planning for LTC between ages 50 and 75. 

Wishing all our subscribers a very happy New Year!