New Tax Laws Preempt Existing Trusts Tax

/PRNewswire/ -- Late Friday afternoon, Congress enacted the most sweeping change in the estate tax law in 29 years. The new law contains some good news for the very wealthy, but it also makes most estate plans obsolete. Everyone who has a living trust (family trust) should update it promptly.

Tax lawyer and estate planning expert Robert F. Klueger notes that, "At a minimum, the new law requires every married couple who wrote an estate planning trust to have that trust reviewed, and perhaps modified. If not, many people will learn that their trust doesn't reduce their taxes but can indeed increase their tax liability."

Klueger & Stein, LLP has prepared a short video featuring Robert F. Klueger that reviews the changes to the estate tax law and how it impacts existing estate plans, with suggestions as to how these plans can be modified. The video can be viewed free of charge at http://www.maximumassetprotection.com or http://www.lataxlawyers.com.

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Fiduciary Obligations Related to Estate Planning and Administration

/24-7/ -- When an individual dies, his or her estate has to be administered, debts settled and assets distributed. Often these duties fall to a fiduciary such as an attorney, a trustee, a personal representative, an administrator or an executor. In the context of wills and trusts, a fiduciary holds a position of trust and is responsible for holding and managing property that belongs to the beneficiaries.

Fiduciaries have certain legal obligations to the estate's beneficiaries, including a duty of care and duty of loyalty. If a fiduciary violates these duties, he or she may face civil or disciplinary action. If you are a beneficiary of a trust or will, you should know what obligations a fiduciary owes you and what constitutes breaches of those duties under Michigan law.

If a will appoints a personal representative, that personal representative has a fiduciary obligation to the decedent's devisees (often referred to as beneficiaries). The personal representative's basic duties are to distribute the assets and pay any debts. Often, the personal representative will open a checking account in the name of the estate to better effectuate distributions and payments, as well as to keep an accurate accounting record. The personal representative has to assess the fair market value of the assets in case of an estate sale. Also, the personal representative should file any required tax returns on behalf of the estate.

Personal representatives must maintain reasonable communication with the beneficiaries regarding estate issues. If the personal representative mismanages the estate through failure to timely settle debts, self-dealing or failure to assess and receive fair market value for estate assets, the beneficiaries may be able to have a court legally discharge the personal representative and go after the personal representative's personal assets to cover any losses to the estate's value.

In the cases of trusts, trustees must manage the trust assets according to the trust's terms and for the benefit of the beneficiaries. A trustee owes the duties of loyalty and impartiality to all beneficiaries. An individual or a trust company can act as trustee, and the fiduciary obligations may vary depending upon the size and extent of the estate. Trust assets may be tangible property, financial holdings or real estate, but just as in the case of an estate executor, the trustee is obligated to assess the overall value of these assets. Usually, the trustee obtains a tax identification number for the estate and files the requisite tax returns.

The trust administrator must also make prudent investments with trust funds to avoid loss and increase income to cover expenses and taxes. Whereas the execution of an estate may continue for a certain length of time, trust administration may be terminated based on a specified termination date or when a beneficiary reaches a certain age. During the tenure of the trust, the trustee must provide an annual income statement (Schedule K-1) to each beneficiary who receives taxable income from the trust. Also, each beneficiary is due a trust accounting. If the trustee neglects any of his prescribed duties, or causes a loss of trust value, he or she may be liable for breach of fiduciary duties. The trust beneficiaries can attempt to hold the trustee liable and go after his or her personal assets to satisfy any loss.

Attorneys are subject to codes of ethics and professional conduct, and if they violate these codes, they may face disciplinary actions, including possible disbarment. Generally speaking, estate planning attorneys must be reasonably competent enough to handle entrusted legal matters such as drafting testamentary and estate documents (including wills and trusts) and providing the requisite preparedness and administration to carry out the goals of their clients as well as to protect the rights of the beneficiaries. Falling short of these minimum competencies may amount to malpractice. Estate attorneys are obligated to keep the estate assets safe.

Additionally, in most cases, an estate lawyer has to divulge any conflict of interest that adversely affects the beneficiary, particularly if the attorney will receive any gifts or remunerations under the decedent's instrument. Fraud or other illegal acts such as commingling estate assets with the attorney's own assets amount to misconduct which can subject the attorney to disbarment. A beneficiary can request an accounting of assets and how these assets are to be distributed. If the beneficiary believes that the attorney has violated any professional or ethical code, he or she can generally file an ethics complaint against the attorney. In addition, it may be possible to sue the attorney for legal malpractice.

Article provided by the Prince Law Firm. Please visit us at www.probateprince.com.

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Citizens Trust Bank Announces Purchase Agreement for a Full Service Branch in Lithonia, Georgia

/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Citizens Trust Bank, the banking subsidiary of Citizens Bancshares Corporation, is pleased to announce the signing of a definitive agreement for its purchase of The Peoples Bank branch in Lithonia, Georgia. The agreement with The Peoples Bank provides for Citizens Trust Bank's purchase of approximately $51.5 million in deposits. Upon consummation of the purchase, which is subject to regulatory approvals, the Lithonia branch will become Citizens Trust Bank's 11th financial center and will be located at 3065 Stone Mountain Street. The acquisition of the branch is expected to be completed in the first half of 2009.

"We are looking forward to expanding our full banking services in the Lithonia market and welcome the opportunity to service the customers, who are currently banking at that location," stated James E. Young, President and CEO of Citizens Trust Bank. "We believe the purchase of this branch will add significantly to our already strong presence in DeKalb County."

Citizens Bancshares Corporation is a holding company that provides a full range of commercial and personal banking services to individual and corporate customers. Citizens Trust Bank, formed in 1921, is committed to enabling their customers and the community to realize dreams of economic empowerment. As a leader in the financial services industry, Citizens Trust Bank operates under a state charter and currently serves Georgia and Alabama with ten financial centers. As of September 30, 2008, Citizens Bancshares Corporation had total consolidated assets of approximately $335 million, net loans of approximately $212 million, total deposits of approximately $287 million, and shareholders' equity of approximately $33 million. For more information on Citizens Trust Bank please visit www.CTBconnect.com.

Sandler O'Neill + Partners L.P. served as financial advisor to Citizens Trust Bank in the acquisition and Hunton & Williams LLP served as legal advisor to Citizens Trust Bank.

Statements concerning future performance, events, expectations for growth and market forecasts, and any other guidance on future periods, constitute forward-looking statements that are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that might cause actual results to differ materially from stated expectations. Specific factors include, but are not limited to, the ability to continue to grow Citizens Trust Bank and the services it provides, the ability to successfully integrate new business lines and expand into new markets, competition in the marketplace and general economic conditions. The information contained in this release should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes included in Citizens Bancshares Corporation's most recent reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as they may be amended from time to time. Results of operations for the most recent quarter are not necessarily indicative of operating results for any future periods. Any projections in this release are based on limited information currently available to management, which is subject to change. Although any such projections and the factors influencing them will likely change, the bank will not necessarily update the information, since management will only provide guidance at certain points during the year. Such information speaks only as of the date of this release. Additional information on these and other factors that could affect our financial results are included in filings by Citizens Bancshares Corporation with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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Citizens Trust Bank Will Be Awarded the MBDA's National Director's Access to Capital Award

PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The United States Department of Commerce's Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) will award Citizens Trust Bank (CTB) with the National Director's Access to Capital Award of the Year during their 26th Annual National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week on September 5, 2008. The National Director's Access to Capital Award is presented to an individual or organization who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the financial communities by providing, supporting or advocating access to capital for minority businesses.

Out of the many organizations that were applicable for this celebrated award, Citizens Trust Bank, the third largest African-American owned bank in the Southeast, has truly demonstrated excellence in financial leadership, whether providing millions in commercial loans contributing to the growth and development of the surrounding community, or with its Financial Empowerment Series that offered enlightening and educating seminars that provided tools for personal and financial success. With a foundation of constructing "a relationship that you can bank on," CTB has always been committed to aiding in the creation of wealth for its customers through its wide variety of financial products and services.

This prestigious award will be presented to CTB during the MBDA's annual MED Week 2008 Awards Gala. As a part of the U.S. Department of Commerce the MBDA is the only federal agency created to cultivate the growth and establishment of minority-owned businesses. The annual MED Week events leading up to the ceremony are designed to bring together the nation's foremost business leaders to offer advice, counsel and insight to help minority businesses continue to be competitive within the marketplace.

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