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When I heard on vacation last week that Life Partners Holdings, Inc. (LPHI) was sued by the SEC, I knew it would be my first newsletter of 2012.

What is LPHI?

LPHI is a company that buys the life insurance policies of seniors and sells them in a fractional ownership structure to accredited investors.  Yes, LPHI is part of the life settlement industry.

To explain the LPHI model in a simple manner, think of the risk of one investor buying the life insurance policy of an elderly person.  The risk for the investor is fairly significant that the insured will live longer than expected. This would harm the profitability of the purchase and increase the risk to the investor who is on the hook for the annual policy premiums each year until the insured dies.

The LPHI model looks for multiple investors to buy a fractional part of a life insurance policy to spread the risk.  An investor who has $100,000 to invest might buy a small interest in five different policies instead of buying one policy. This again spreads the risk.

Why is the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) suing LPHI for fraud?  The

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News Flash - Your IRA Could be at risk - Click Here

It is said that money makes the world go ‘round, but as we head into another new year, are you still going ‘round with questions about how to keep your money safe, what to do with it and how to invest? If so, you need to read on before another twelve months pass you by. Everywhere you look there are potential problems for investment and new business and wealth preservation strategies, so it’s time to make a plan about what to do next.

It was not that long ago you could “asset protect” your life by using trusts, buying insurance, interposing international structures and using straight forward tax planning.

For many of us, good sound business sense went a long way when it came to the goal of preservation of capital. But that was yesterday. To say it is a new day is quite an understatement in the world of wealth management and asset protection. Remember when people would talk about buying a CD from a specific bank. Today, it seems comical to be putting money into a bank CD at essentially zero percent, doesn’t

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According to Tax Notes Today

U.S. officials on December 16 offered 11 Swiss banks, including Credit Suisse, Julius Baer, HSBC Switzerland, and Basler Kantonalbank, individual deals similar to that agreed to with UBS in 2009 under which investigations and possible prosecution for tax evasion facilitation would be dropped in exchange for a fine and the sharing of U.S. client data, according to a December 18 report in SonntagsZeitung, a Swiss Sunday newspaper.  

Although individual deals would be signed with each bank, all would be required to provide full details to U.S. authorities of offshore business with U.S. clients and to pay the fine (UBS paid $ 780 million in the 2009 deal). The banks would be required to provide the names of individual bankers involved, although criminal cases would not be launched against these individuals. The information would be transmitted via the Swiss federal government.    The 11 banks are currently under U.S. investigation into allegations of facilitating tax evasion. According to the SonntagsZeitung report, Michael Ambuhl, head of the Swiss State Secretariat for International Financial Matters (SIF), sent the specifics of the offer to the banks on December 16 and they are expected to accept it.   The banks were supposed to have responded in writing

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On September 16, 2011, President Obama signed a new patent law to help inventors smooth the rocky road of launching their new ideas and bringing them to fruition. The significant affects will take hold in 2012 and 2013 and will optimize the patent filing process, which has remained the same for over 80 years. When an inventor files for a patent, they have no exclusive right to use that idea until the Unites States Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) officially grants the right. Previously, this took at least three years. Investors were losing money as patents sat waiting for approval at the busy USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office).

The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act Implementation is called the America Invents Act, or for short, the “AIA.” This act changes what can be patented, how you file for a patent and the timeline for patent filing.

A patent is not like a copyright, where a person may enjoy all of the rights of their copyright, until it is challenged in court. For copyrights, the Library of Congress is basically a registrar for

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Florida Senate - 2011 SB 1152
By Senator Simmons
22-00610B-11 20111152__
Page 1 of 5
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to limited liability companies;
3 amending s. 608.433, F.S.; providing that a charging
4 order against a member’s limited liability company
5 interest is the sole and exclusive remedy available to
6 enforce a judgment creditor’s unsatisfied judgment
7 against a member or member’s assignee; providing an
8 exception for enforcing a judgment creditor’s
9 unsatisfied judgment against a judgment debtor or
10 assignee of the judgment debtor of a single-member
11 limited liability company under certain circumstances;
12 providing legislative intent; providing for
13 retroactive application; providing an effective date.
14
15 WHEREAS, on June 24, 2010, the Florida Supreme Court held
16 in Olmstead v. Federal Trade Commission (No. SC08-1009),
17 reported at 44 So.3d 76, 2010-1 Trade Cases P 77,079, 35 Fla. L.
18 Weekly S357, that a charging order is not the exclusive remedy
19 available to a creditor holding a judgment against the sole
20

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Providing an investor is going to get what he or she feels is a great Rate of Return on Investment (ROI), then an entrepreneur might have a shot at a venture capital (VC) deal.

There are deals to be achieved although the 2010 results show that the VC market tends to run below the prerecession levels.  Three aspects are increasingly important with the first being the expected ROI balanced against risk factors.
 
Another important aspect VC investors site is the exit strategy.  Private company trends show that IPOs are not the only strategy and in some industries or in the case of government-backed deals, entrepreneurs are looking to alternatives to the standard Wall Street exit.

A third reason to encourage VC investment may be the sector.  The right sector at the right time can make a difference.  Here are some popular 2010 sectors to look forward to 2011 VC.

 1. Internet – The newest ventures are going to be technology crossover ventures.  What is that?  Combinations of technologies and software, social media sites combining digital games and other media, emailing and sales software and technologies, medical and engineering prototype software.

2.  Software Development – VCs

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Feeding Your Leg to a Crocodile
Doesn't Turn Him into a Vegetarian

The past several months have witnessed an unfortunate setback in the fight for good tax policy. Bolstered by a shift in the U.S. position from benign neglect to active support, anti-tax competition ideologues have won a somewhat significant victory. Low-tax jurisdictions, faced with direct and indirect threats of sanctions from powerful nations, have been forced to weaken their human-rights policies by agreeing that privacy laws no longer protect foreign investors. Indeed, jurisdictions are being coerced to sign agreements to provide confidential data upon request to at least 12 of their high-tax brethren.

The campaign against tax competition now moves to the next step, beginning with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Global Tax Forum in Los Cabos, Mexico, Sept 1-2. Dominated by European welfare states, the OECD has been working for more than 10 years to impose punitive international tax rules in order to prop up the inefficient policies of its member nations.

It is unclear whether high-tax nations see the meeting in Mexico as an opportunity to cement existing gains,

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January 23, 2009

Many customers have gone shopping, made a purchase, discovered something is wrong and headed back to the store for an exchange to find a sign “going out of business.”  This year, there is likely to be as many of one third of our nation’s retailers downsizing, closing stores or filing for bankruptcy.

Some majors who filed problems in 2008 include Circuit City, the electronics giant, Linens N’ Things, Sharper Image, Lane Bryant and department stores Boscov and Mervyns.  Recently Macys announced a closing of stores in association with a major lay off.

Other reported giants who filed fourth quarter difficulty were Starbucks, the Gap and Nextel, who are likely to close some locations.  A few other difficulties may come as a surprise to the public.

Eddie Bauer, Pacific Sunwear and Zales jewelry stores also suffered losses.  All three are surviving after downsizing in 2008 and their closing is not likely to occur, but more layoffs may be in the future.

Another hit on the causualty list is Sears Holdings, the operator of Sears and Kmart stores.  The merger of the two stores was thought to beat the slump in sales, but instead has resulted in around a 30% loss.

There is an

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