I recently attended The Association of Divorce Financial Planners 2016 Divorce Catalyst Conference, held from October 27-29. There were a number of excellent speakers and interesting topics presented over the three days:
Day One
The keynote speaker was Jeff Brend. Jeff is an attorney who specializes in family law and is a fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML). The topics for the day included:
- Fundamentals of Family Law Taxation, with Brian Vertz, JD. He is the author of Frumkes and Vertz on Divorce Taxation.
- CFP Ethics, with Jim Pasztor, VP of Academic Affairs at the College for Financial Planning.
- Executive Compensation: The Ultimate CDFA Guide, with Nancy Hetrick, CDFA, MAFF, AWMA.
Day Two
The keynote address was from Mary Beth Franklin. Mary Beth spoke about Social Security and what divorce financial advisors need to know. The topics included:
- Real Estate & Divorce, presented by Andrew Samalin, CFP, EA, CDFA.
- Case Law Development in Divorce Taxation, presented by Brian Vertz, JD.
- Using Housing Wealth to Facilitate Asset Division in “Silver Divorce”: Some Surprisingly Beneficial Uses of Reverse Mortgages, presented by Barry Sacks, JD, Ph.D.
- How to Prepare a Marital Balance Sheet for a Divorce Lawyer, presented by Miles Mason and Teresa Bailey.
- The top 10 QDRO Traps Every Divorce Financial Advisor Needs to Know, presented by Jacki Roessler, CDFA.
- Attracting Attention - Effective Strategies for Marketing Your Divorce Practice, presented by Donna Cheswick and Pam Friedman.
Day Three
The third day did not include a keynote speaker; however, the topics presented were:
- College Financial Aid and Divorce: How to Maximize Aid, presented by Sandy Voit, CDFA.
- How to Ensure 100% of Divorce Settlement Payments Continue During the Disability of the Payor, presented by William Pollock, CEO of Disability Specialists.