At Bernhardt Law Firm LC we have mostly a general civil practice, with an emphasis on Probate, Comprehensive Estate Planning legal needs, and Wills & Trusts, throughout the entire State of Missouri whom we proudly serve. The firm practices mostly in Saint Louis County, Saint Louis City, and Saint Charles, and their surrounding areas. Roger P. Bernhardt, J.D. has an enormous seasoned wealth of knowledge, and vast comprehensive background in complex legal issues, he can tackle all your questions, concerns, and legal work with confidence while being dedicated to protecting your rights, when seeking a favorable final disposition of your case and legal matters for you and your family. At Bernhardt Law Firm LC, Roger P. Bernhardt will represent you and your legal service needs zealously and tenaciously! Roger P. Bernhardt, J.D. has over 40+ years experience, along with a remarkable history of success. The Missouri Bar Association prohibits attorneys and lawyers from specifying any “specialty,” and wants attorneys and lawyers to declare areas of practice, focus, and concentration. Roger P. Bernhardt likes to concentrate and focus in these practice areas:
- Probate & Estate Planning
- Our typical Estate Planning Package or scenario and client would have these documents created: A Will, a Trust, a Durable Power of Attorney, a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare Decisions, Authorization for Protected Healthcare Information Under HIPAA, and Advance Medical Directive; And depending on your circumstances, possibly more documents.
- Probate & Guardianship
- Business Law
- Business Consulting
- Business Formation (“Emerging Businesses”)
- Involving the creation and formation of many organizational types including INC, LC, LLC, Series-LLC, LP, LLP, S-Corp, C-Corp, Cooperatives (Co-Op, Collective, Group), Trust, Corporate Trust, and Non-Profit Corporations such as a 501(c) Organization in Compliance with USC 26 § 501).
- Related Taxation Issues
- Litigation Involving the Validity of Trusts and Wills
- Wills & Trusts
- Advanced Estate Planning Strategies such as including:
- (1) Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts [ILIT], with and without Premium Financing. These are awesome, and have “Seven Characters of the Play” including: The Grantor, the Insured, the Beneficiary, the Trustee, the Agent, the Insurance Arm, and the Bank for Premium Financing. We like to recommend a large, reputable, multinational U.S. based insurance company and its affiliate for the Universal Life Insurance and for their Premium Financing, because the company we recommend will view the Universal Life Insurance Policy (in the ILIT) as collateral for the premium financing, lent to the trust at LIBOR + 150 basis points, which is usually well under the Prime rate, to pay for the premiums. This way no other collateral has to be pledged for the premium financing. Other bank & trust companies may require you to post collateral for the premium financing, and we believe this is totally unnecessary. Contact us about which insurance company we recommend for ILITs and premium financing. ILITs can be used for many reasons including Estate Creation, Estate Conservation, and Estate Preservation. Everyone wants compensation for loss of a loved one. There are many benefits to ILITs, some say “they’re too good to be true.” Click here for more information about ILITs from FindLaw.com.
- And (2) Corporate Trusts, including Self Directed Defined Benefit and/or Defined Contribution (Roth or Traditional) 401(K) Qualified Retirement Plans [Self Directed 401K QRP]. These get deep into ERISA law, a branch of law involving tax deferred trusts. These 401k QRP accounts are similar to IRAs, but we believe they have major advantages and are better. These 401k QRP accounts can trade stocks, options, and fixed income, etc. on a tax deferred basis (like IRAs), but these 401K QRP accounts can also trade Real Estate, making both capital gains and/or rental income tax deferred, while also allowing for the use of Secondary Commercial Equity Line of Credit Loans, for leverage, while also having significantly higher annual contribution limits ($50,000 annually for singles, and $100,000 annually for married couples). We believe these 401K QRP accounts have major advantages to Traditional and Roth IRA accounts.
- Trust Administration & Management
- Family Law
- Elder Law
- Prenuptials
- Child Custody Determinations
- Adoptions
- Dissolution
- Real Estate
- Criminal Defense
- Social Security Claims & Appeals
- Traffic
Please don’t hesitate to contact us. Call Roger P. Bernhardt at (314) 727-2899, and/or email us: RPBLawMan@aol.com today.
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