Final arguments were heard in the NPS civil trial this past Friday.  With the SDR having presented evidence through the prior Friday, the defendant trustees presented their case in less than a week.  This may reflect that the NPS trustees had viewed their duties as having been defined by Chapter 436 as relatively low.  As

 Over the past few years, preneed trust administrators have been wondering whether a Section 685 qualified funeral trust could look to each individual trust’s income and apply the lower tax rates for long term capital gains and qualified dividends.  The issue has taken on more relevance as preneed trusts look to diversify out of

When news of the indictment of 6 National Prearranged Service officers was reported last November, many newspapers picked up the AP version that included a quote from the Internal Revenue Service criminal investigator. The fact is that the Federal investigation of NPS involves investigators from the IRS, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

The 2010 calendar year proved a welcomed change for many trust funded preneed programs. The 2008 collapse of the home mortgage market triggered a melt down of bonds that lingered well into 2009. The press provided extensive coverage of how the situation impacted our 401k accounts. Stories about value declines of 25% to 33% were

Many preneed trusts either experienced significant capital losses last year or are sitting on assets that have unrealized losses. For those trusts that have taken a Section 685 election, these losses may be carried into future years as a capital loss carryover. While everyone would prefer to avoid realizing those losses, that loss can be