Your asset protection plan will necessarily involve those most intimately involved in your finances. Building your team is important Step #3. For example, you cannot ignore your spouse who will rightfully become alarmed when you suddenly and inexplicably re-title marital assets for unknown and suspicious reasons. Anticipate and allay those fears and uncertainties. Involve those entitled to know the reasons for changing your financial affairs. With candid explanation comes understanding and cooperation. Use close family members and trusted friends to administer your financial game plan as trustees or executors. Your business partners or key business associates are examples of potential asset protection teammates. But confine individuals narrowly involved in your financial affairs only to the financial matters that specifically involve them.

Be careful about disclosures even within your team. Your spouse may understand asset protection is a key objective, but why needlessly reveal this to friends, relatives or others who should instead believe your goals involve good tax or estate planning? While asset protection is legal, your actual intent may become an important factor if an asset transfer is later challenged by creditors. You then gain no advantage if a friend or associate testifies that asset protection was your only objective.

Your team should include only people you can unquestionably trust to faithfully implement your plan. Cautiously evaluate the extent each can be trusted, and whether they will remain trustworthy under stressful circumstances. And can they professionally handle their responsibilities? Asset protection planning requires you to objectively evaluate others, and this is as critical as selecting the right legal strategies.