DuPont Wealth - July 2021

DuPont Wealth - July 2021

LIFESTYLE ADVOCACY FAMILY FINANCE LAFF is a publication of DuPont Wealth Solutions and The Law Offices of DuPont and Blumenstiel, blending original and curated content, and is intended to educate the general public about investing, finance, estate planning, personal injury, and small-business issues. It is not intended to be legal or financial advice. Every situation is different. The information in this newsletter may be freely copied and distributed as long as the newsletter is copied in its entirety.

21 JUL

REFLECTIONS FROM A REFORMED ‘MR. KNOW-IT-ALL’ You’ve probably known a kid like this at some point in your life, but, when I was a kid, I was Mr. Know-It-All. I always had the answer. It didn’t actually matter if I was right or wrong — I was so certain of myself that anyone who said otherwise had to be wrong! THE BENEFITS OF KNOWING WHAT I DON’T KNOW

Somewhere along the way, though, every Mr. Know-It-All kid has to realize that, no, he doesn’t know everything — and it’s only to his detriment if he’s not willing to accept that. Of course, my early belief in my omniscience served me well and reinforced my academic and personal confidence throughout my youth, from high school to my undergraduate studies of accounting, business, and finance, and ultimately, my pursuit of my law degree. But, through my practice in the diverse field of law, the world began to open up rapidly for me. My path toward enlightenment was accelerated in my early law career when I was involved in major antitrust litigation. I was putting together strategies and arguments and spent literally hundreds of hours learning about commercial roofing, of all things. Why rely on a roofing expert when the courts have me, after all? That was pride before the fall. Once you start thinking you know more than the experts, you tend to get yourself in trouble. You start becoming what I call “unconsciously incompetent.” The magic starts happening when we begin to understand that we don’t know everything and achieve conscious incompetence. Despite spending so much time learning about roofing, after I presented my arguments to a couple experts from the industry, it became immediately clear to me that their level of understanding was far, far superior to what I’d ever be able to understand. As you can imagine, the difference in our levels of knowledge was night and day. Their technical and scientific understanding of their field was far deeper than I could’ve imagined. After several years and countless hours, we went on to settle that case with results far beyond expectation. If I had not trusted the experts, this would not have happened.

how to best prepare a client case by learning enough to understand how the experts’ unique knowledge fit into the big picture, and then rely on their expertise. It’s great to go out into the world and research new things you want to learn, of course. But we also need to have a comfort level in knowing what we don’t know, so we can fill in those gaps. This couldn’t be more true for investment and financial concepts, as well. Yet, for many, the amount of information available is mind- boggling. You can put yourself in the position of control by hiring experts to navigate the details for you. So long as you know what you want, someone’s expertise can help you achieve it. It’s always a great feeling when I can help clients feel more financially secure and free — and I hope you’ll allow us to help you if you ever need an expert on your side. You can be confident that where necessary, we will bring in any outside expertise that is needed to help build your case and, perhaps, achieve results that are far beyond your expectation. Thanks so much, and I’ll catch you next month, friends.

For me, it was a learning experience that carried over into many layers of my litigation and life afterwards. This experience taught me

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STAFF SPOTLIGHT: JULIA DUPONT, CLIENT EXPERIENCE OFFICER

How long have you been working at the law firm, and what do you do here? I started working for DuPont & Blumenstiel in 2017 at the front desk. Since then, I have transitioned to working

after a tragedy has happened in their family. I’m thankful to have the opportunity to support them in whatever situation they might be in. What would you say to someone hesitant about creating an estate plan? I would say to just get it done. A lot of times, people are hesitant because they don’t want to think about what happens when they die. But, it only take a couple hours of your time to gain that relief of knowing that you have your documents in place should anything happen to you. It’s one less thing your family has to worry about. I also want to let our clients know that there are many employers these days that offer legal services as part of your employee benefits. If that is something you have, I recommend that you take advantage of it. You can usually get a whole estate plan done for very low cost to you.

more directly with the attorneys and clients on estate plans. My day usually

consists of many meetings with our clients. I help out with all aspects of the estate planning process, from the very first meeting to the signings. I’m also responsible for many back-office duties including HR, accounting, and staff training. What is the most rewarding part of your job? I find it very rewarding to be able to help families every day that are having a hard time. Sometimes people don’t like to come here because they think estate planning is scary. Other times, especially during probate litigation, people come to us

WHAT HAVE WE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IN THE PODCAST?

EPISODE 18 : “ Financial Resiliency and Being Ready for the Unexpected”

EPISODE 17: “ The Future and Taxes”

EPISODE 16 : “ Let’s Go Back to Basics — Part 4”

EPISODE 15: “ Man on a Mission —

With Guest Matt Zagula”

WE APPRECIATE YOU

We want to use this space to express our gratitude to the following members of the community who have recently left us a review or have referred someone to our care. Thank you!

Manu Shanker Marty Connell

Thomas Denegre Amber Darst

Subscribe to our show on your favorite podcast platform:

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LET’S BUST 4 COMMON ESTATE PLANNING MYTHS

MYTH 3: TRUSTS AVOID ESTATE TAX. Many people create trusts to hold assets while they’re alive in order to avoid the time and expenses of probate court — a will is “proved” in a court of law that it is truly the deceased’s last testament. Trusts will not help you avoid estate taxes, but you should still seek legal advice since certain trusts can be used as part of a strategy to reduce (or even eliminate) estate tax liability. MYTH 4: I’LL HAVE TO PAY A GIFT TAX IF I GIVE SOMEONE OVER $15,000 AYEAR. Aside from your spouse, almost anything you give someone over $15K — except money paid directly to a medical or educational institution or charity — in a single year simply reduces your lifetime gift and estate tax exclusion amount. This amount is currently $11,580,000. It’s only if you go over that amount that you’ll have to start paying. That said, you will have to keep track of how much you’ve reduced your lifetime exclusion amount by and file a gift tax return, so if you don’t want a hassle, you could stay within the $15K per year.

As we come across family wills and estate plans in the movies and news, we tend to build up certain conceptions (or myths) of what the process of estate planning actually entails. Let’s break those myths wide open and see what these various parts of estate planning truly look like. MYTH 1: I’MTOOYOUNG FOR AN ESTATE PLAN. Whenever we see a will being discussed in a movie, it’s typically because a very elderly member of the family has passed. However, you can be very young when you suddenly pass away, such as the 46-year-old Zappos founder previously featured who didn’t have a will even though he was worth nearly $1 billion. It’ll cost his family millions of tax dollars and attorney fees to laboriously resolve his assets post-mortem. MYTH 2: I DON’T NEED AN ATTORNEY AT ALL. You can’t fix what you don’t know, and that goes especially for your estate planning paperwork. You may not realize that certain terminology or promises will cause serious legal problems in the future unless you are a practiced estate planning attorney. That’s why you should always have your estate plan drawn up by an experienced lawyer to ensure your family won’t have to endure heartache and headaches.

Thanks for joining us! We hope these tips will help you and your family. Let us know at DuPont Wealth Solutions if you have any questions!

SUDOKU

THE BEST TEXAS-STYLE SMOKED BRISKET

Inspired by AllRecipes.com

INGREDIENTS

Wood chips

1/4 cup chili powder

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•

1/4 cup paprika

1/4 cup garlic powder

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•

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup onion powder

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•

1/4 cup ground cumin

1/4 cup salt

•

•

1/4 cup cayenne pepper

1/4 cup pepper

•

•

1/4 cup brown sugar

10 lbs brisket

•

•

DIRECTIONS

1. In a bowl, soak wood chips in water overnight. 2. In a large bowl, mix paprika, white sugar, cumin, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. 3. Rub spice mixture on the brisket and refrigerate for 24 hours. 4. Preheat smoker to 230 F. Drain wood chips and place them in the smoker. 5. Smoke brisket until it has an internal temperature of 165 F. 6. Remove brisket and wrap it in aluminum foil. 7. Smoke brisket further until it reaches an internal temperature of 185 F.

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INSIDE

The Benefits of Knowing What I Don’t Know PAGE 1

Staff Spotlight: Julia DuPont Podcast Episodes We Appreciate You PAGE 2

Let’s Bust 4 Estate Planning Myths The Best Texas-Style Smoked Brisket PAGE 3

5 Wacky Pizza Trends From Around the World PAGE 4

THEY EAT WHAT ON PIZZA?! Here in the U.S., pineapple is considered a wild and controversial pizza topping. Even celebrities take a stand. Justin Bieber is pro- pineapple, but Jimmy Kimmel is against it. According to a 2019 YouGov Omnibus study, only anchovies and eggplant are more hated. But in other parts of the world, the tangy yellow fruit is far from the strangest topping you’ll see! Here are five wacky pizza trends from around the globe that will either make you hungry or inspire you to sprint the other way. You may want to order a comforting cheese pie from your favorite local pizzeria before reading this, just in case. Banana-Curry Pizza (Sweden) — The Swedes first accessed bananas in 1944, and since then, they’ve put them on everything, including pizza which they top with tomato sauce, smoked cheese, banana slices, and curry powder. Ketchup and Corn Pizza (Brazil) — According to several sources, Brazilians swap pizza sauce for ketchup or tomato slices and top their pies with strange combinations of local ingredients like corn, beets, hearts of palm, and potato sticks. Haggis Pizza (Scotland) — Pizza may be the only semi-enjoyable way to eat haggis: a mix of sheep or calf offal, oatmeal, suet, and seasonings that are boiled in an animal’s stomach. Last year, Papa

John’s got in on the action when it released a limited-edition haggis pizza in honor of a Scottish poet, Robert Burns. Mockba Pizza (Russia) — This local pie comes topped with four kinds of

fish (sardines, tuna, mackerel, and salmon), onions, herbs, and occasionally fish eggs. Most troubling of all, it’s served cold!

Chickpea Pancake Pizza (Argentina) — In Buenos Aires, locals top their super-cheesy pizza slices with fainá — chickpea pancakes cooked separately from the pies and balanced on top of each slice. Keep these pizzas in mind when planning your next international vacation! They might be tastier than they sound, and if not, they’ll still make great Instagram fodder. As actor Cole Sprouse once tweeted, “You’re losing followers because you’re not relatable enough. Try mentioning that you eat pizza. If that doesn’t work, play the ukulele.”

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Announcing

As we approach uncertain times in our economy brought on by unprecedented spending, the Internal Revenue Service will need to get more aggressive than ever in its search for revenue. At the same time, most of you are getting less and less proper proactive tax guidance. This imbalance leaves you at a distinct disadvantage. We are trying to level the playing field or maybe even tilt it in your favor, legally and ethically. The Internal Revenue Service is coming after your income and your savings. Do you have a team looking for ways to protect you and your family from paying more than your fair share? Mathematically, our country must look for ways to increase future revenue. Most of you are the targets for the increased revenue necessary to fuel the federal, state, and local governments’ budgets. When the Internal Revenue Service comes looking for money, to whom will they look? They will be looking at you. Did you know …

• The top 1% of all taxpayers (those that have Adjusted Gross Income over $540,000) pay 40.1% of all federal income taxes. • The top 5% of all taxpayers (those that have Adjusted Gross Income over $217,000) pay 60.3% of all federal income taxes. • The top 10% of all taxpayers (those that have Adjusted Gross Income over $151,935) pay 71.4% of all federal income taxes. • The bottom 50% of all taxpayers (those that have Adjusted Gross Income under $43,614) pay 2.9% of all federal income taxes. When the Internal Revenue Service comes looking for more revenue, will they be looking at wage earners in the top 50% or the bottom 50%? You need to prepare now. I have learned many things over the years serving as a financially minded lawyer, and I have helped many of you make wise, proactive tax decisions. I have seen example after example where a few subtle

Can our team help you reduce your tax obligations now or in the future? I don’t know. Let’s find out. As we introduce the service to you, our family of clients, we are offering a free, no- obligation review of your tax returns to determine if we can save you any money now or in the future with your taxes. All you need to do to take advantage of this opportunity is to provide your most recent tax return and 30 minutes of your time. That’s it. Is it worth 30 minutes of your time to save potentially thousands of dollars in taxes now and in the future? If so, call us at 614-414-3616 to get started now.

shifts in your tax plan can lead to tremendous tax savings over your lifetime. As the inevitable tax changes occur in the upcoming years, these shifts are more important than ever. That is why I felt the need to step it up a notch to serve you in the future as we face these changes. One of the most important lessons I have learned from my years of preparing legal cases for trial is that an effective advocate does not need to be the expert on all areas. The effective advocates know who the experts are, and they know how to use those experts to build their client’s case. This is where Ohio Tax Advocates, Ltd. comes in. I have formed Ohio Tax Advocates, Ltd. as your portal to a carefully and meticulously vetted pool of tax-planning experts that are now part of your team, supporting a singular mission of providing you proactive tax planning services. These services may benefit you regardless of whether you are a business owner, a regular wage employee, or a retiree. I have found that there are almost always tax planning opportunities for anyone who pays tax — don’t let the fact that you get a refund hide the amount of taxes you have paid. Most people have no guidance on basic ways to manage their current and future tax liabilities. Most accountants, CPAs, and tax preparers do not have the time to spend with you on these tasks, and, in all honesty, they don’t have the time to focus on proactive tax planning due to the growing demands of tax return preparation and keeping up with the IRS changes. Furthermore, many of you do not even use a tax preparer and do it yourself. For the record, any tax planning advice built into these do-it-yourself programs is basic at best, misleading at worst. Proper proactive tax planning goes beyond such standard advice as “max out your 401(k)” and “contribute to an IRA.” Even though I have advanced training and 30 years of experience with tax planning, some of the situations that I’ve seen my selected set of experts put together have been eye-opening and have expanded my view of the possibilities.

P.S. As with all the services that we provide at DuPont Wealth Solutions and DuPont & Blumenstiel, our offers to you extend to your family and close friends as a courtesy to you. So, if you don’t think you will benefit from this offer but think you know someone who might, feel free to let us know, and we will treat them with the same level of expertise and care you have grown to expect from us.

P.P.S. Did you catch that this is a free, no‑obligation offer?

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