X-Message-Number: 14110
From: 
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 01:05:07 EDT
Subject: Trust questions for attys. 

Dear fellow Cryonauts, skeptics, and enthusiasts,

This is Rudi Hoffman writing from Daytona, FL.

It is possible some of you may be interested in this letter I am posting to 
the attorney team that is working on the prototype "Wealth Preservation 
Trust".  

Greetings to all who were at the TREMENDOUS conference in ASILOMAR, and to 
all that wanted to be there.

For me, going to the ALCOR conference was almost like being reanimated in the 
future.  A future filled with interesting, rigorous, forward looking, 
antiauthoritarian, scientific , skeptical, positive people.  

You people reading this posting tend to be the kind of people I like, 
respect, and want to be around in our glorious future.  While we definately 
have our share of "flakes", cryonicists are some of the BEST people in the 
world!  (In my humble opinion!)

There was great enthusism for the progress being made on all fronts re: 
cryonics, including the financial  part which I am personally passionate 
about.  

I made a promise to Jim Halperin at the LAST Alcor conference over two years 
ago.  The question he posed to me was "Will you get a trust developed that 
will allow us personal and individual wealth upon reanimation?"

I said I would.  

It is not done yet, but we ARE closer.

Here is the letter.  You may want to skim parts of it.

emailed to 
7/17/2000 at 12:40 am

Hello, Anthony Palma, Denise Fulton, Scott G Miller, etc.,
This is Rudi Hoffman writing from Daytona, FL

To the folks at Broad and Cassel Attorney firm., etc...

First, I apologize for the delay regarding responding to the trust draft.  I 
am glad you got it to me in time for me to take some kind of physical 
document to the ALCOR conference in California.  When I got back  from this 
conference I was swamped, and then I was out of town on a long family 
reunion, throwing me further behind.  Along with a large and complicated 
death claim on one of my clients who got shot and killed while I was away.  
This tragic shooting made me remember how important proper planning and life 
insurance is, and why I am proud to be in the financial planning and life 
insurance business.  

There was great interest in this cryonics "Wealth Preservation Trust," and I 
was glad to be able to document that something concrete and solid is in 
progress.  I gave your email address out during my presentation at the 
conference, and there may be some response from mutual prospects.


Here are my issues/questions regarding trust:

1.  There was great concern by many who had personal and anecdotal knowledge 
about corporate trustees rapidly depleting capital in the trusts they were to 
oversee.    May I ask if you or your firm are receiving any compensation or 
finders fee of any sort from Citicorp?  It may sound paranoid, but there were 
multiple "horror stories" of astonishing malfeasance.  I was asked whether 
Broad and Cassel had some kind of  nondisclosed "good old boy" arrangement 
with Citicorp, and I said I did not believe so but I would ask..  And set 
their minds at ease about this point in writing.  

2.  I have been talking to a large life insurance company I do a good amount 
of variable annuity business with.  I am getting information to both Jackson 
National Life and CNA (Both huge, solid, fixed and variable annuity 
companies) about the mission of the "Wealth Preservation Trust"( WPT).  Both 
are interested, but we would need a separate trustee WHO SIMPLY OVERSEES THE 
INVESTMENTS...NOT MAKING THE INVESTMENTS!  

 3.  This would entail a company like "Northern Trust Company"  a company 
that I understand simply "administers" the trust who would simply make sure 
my investment policies are carried out.  Additionally, while they may charge 
a fee, they serve as a separate "watchdog, adversarial, oversight" operation. 
 

4.  Is there any reason why the trust could not invest in variable annuities? 
 With individual owners, these provide outstanding growth, diversification, 
tax deferral, and are virtually creditorproof.  But trustee ownership may 
eliminate the tax deferral and credit protection normally available here.  I 
am checking with the variable annuity companies.  But you may have  knowledge 
that would be relevant here.  

5.  Does the trust *Have* to be so darn complicated?  At least in my case, I 
want the half million life insurance proceeds to be invested by spouse Dawn 
while she is alive, and then by a separate trustee I feel I can trust to 
protect and grow the asset.  

Because Dawn is the OWNER of the life insurance (and the policy is more than 
three years old) the proceeds will NOT be in my estate for estate tax 
purposes.  Please correct me if I am wrong, here, because I may be.  I know 
that normal life insurance proceeds are also not subject to income tax, and I 
would like to confirm this would still be the case with this trust named as 
direct beneficiary  for the appropriate percentage of the proceeds.

We can, perhaps, eliminate all the "Crummy letter" requirements, as well as 
the multiple other people like Uncle Glen, sister, mother, etc. being 
involved if there is no concern about estate tax reduction.   I know it needs 
to be irrevocable.  I am not trying to second guess your work...and I 
understand  how annoying the "dilettante factor" can be.  (I myself had 
bunches of well meaning but ignorant people tell me at the conference how 
insurance products and companies need to be restructured...without a clue as 
to what that entails or how impractical it would be)

Thanks for your response.  I respect and honor your expertise in this matter. 
 I hope you recognize these are serious and substantive questions, and that I 
and a growing number of others are enthused about getting the WPT established 
as a solid, realistic, and robust program.  

Sincerely Yours,

Rudi Hoffman CFP

904-788-3773
Copy to Leonard Zubkoff 

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