For anyone seeking to become a lawyer specializing in asset protection, a J.D. is a must. A J.D. program requires a number of basic law courses, such as civil procedure, Constitutional law, criminal law and legal research. However, starting in their second year, students can take elective courses, obtaining expertise in a particular field of law. Therefore, students can focus their curriculum on classes that relate to asset protection, including asset protection planning, tax law, insurance law, corporate law, bankruptcy, trusts, wills and estate planning, as well as family law, which discusses the financial aspects of marriage and divorce.
LL.M. degrees consist of further education for those already holding a J.D. degree who are seeking to gain more education in their current field of law, or change their field by redirecting their legal education. An LL.M. in Taxation is one of the more common LL.M. degrees, and is often geared toward tax lawyers. This degree will provide students with an understanding of tax liabilities, giving them the tools to help clients shield their assets from tax liabilities. Programs often include a class in asset protection planning, as well as tax procedure, accounting, corporate taxation, corporate organization, estate taxation, family wealth management, real estate taxes, and acquisitions.
There are many types of finance-related LL.M. degrees, including those that focus on banking, securities, corporate governance, property and finance. Courses in all of these programs include study in asset protection, but programs are specialized according to the type of clients you will be working with. For example, if you will mostly be representing real estate investment firms, then an LL.M. in real estate law will help you learn how to organize their holdings in a way that will best protect them from legal, tax and other liabilities.
In some LL.M. programs, students can take courses that will lead to Certified Asset Protection Analyst (CAPA) Board Certification from the American Academy of Financial Management (AAFM). Courses include wealth management, tax treaties law and planning, offshore financial services and advanced international tax planning.