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STANDARD JOURNAL v WWW.UVSJ.COM
Business & Money
9A
Saturday, MarCh 9, 2013
F
ifth-grade girls basketball
is more intense than most
of my courtroom battles.
In a recent game my daughter,
the point guard for her team,
got into foul trouble. One more
foul and she would be gone. Her
teams seemingly insurmount-
able lead of seven had dwindled
to two points with about three
minutes left in the game. My
daughter tried to make a steal,
got the ball, and then was whis-
tled for a reach-in foul (the moral
never trust a referee who looks
older than Yoda and is wearing
protective goggles to officiate a
basketball game of 11 year-olds).
I felt powerless as she was shown
her seat on the bench after foul-
ing out. She sat there with tears
running down her face as the
other team won and advanced to
the championship.
Any parent whose child
participates in sporting events
knows that once their kid is on
the court the parent is no longer
in control. Watching my daugh-
ter learn through adversity on
the basketball court without
stepping in is difficult but neces-
sary for her development as a
player and person. Giving up
control may be a hard choice to
make but undoubtedly is the
right choice.
As part of the estate planning
process, families need to decide
who will be in charge of taking
care of their estate after they are
gone. If you are forming a trust
this person is known as the suc-
cessor trustee. If you are form-
ing a will this person is known
as the personal representative.
For simplicitys sake I will refer
to such person as the trustee in
this article. Most people appoint
another family member as the
trustee. Perhaps, this is because
they want to keep control of the
estate in the family or because
they believe it is the privilege of
their oldest child.
While there are some benefits
to appointing a family member
as trustee, such as understand-
ing family dynamics, there are
disadvantages. Most family
member trustees are inexpe-
rienced with the legal and
financial implications of dealing
with a trust or estate. Errors
in judgment or mismanagement
of trust property can leave a
trustee personally liable to the
other beneficiaries of the trust.
Inadvertent mistakes can lead
to litigation and unnecessary
stress. Litigation will deplete the
assets of the trust. Other family
members may perceive that the
trustee is acting on his or her
own behalf, leading to family
strife and conflict that could last
many years. Being the trustee of
a trust is a difficult job.
Fortunately, there are inde-
pendent trustees such as finan-
cial institutions who are capable
of acting as trustees. A com-
petent estate planning attorney
can recommend a good indepen-
dent trustee. Good independent
trustees are professionals who
understand the process of being
a trustee. They know how and
under what circumstances to
make investments. A good inde-
pendent trustee is skilled at deal-
ing with the legal process and
beneficiaries who do not always
see eye to eye. Appointing an
independent trustee gives the
trust maker the best opportunity
to make sure his or her intent is
carried out in an impartial fash-
ion. Appointing an independent
trustee removes the risk of a
cherished family member getting
sued when all he or she is trying
to do is carry out the intent of
the trust maker.
Just as I give up some control
over my daughter every time I
allow her to walk on the bas-
ketball court, families give up
some control when they appoint
independent trustees. Giving
up control may lead to tears and
thoughts of did she not trust me
enough to appoint me as trust-
ee? Just as my daughter will
be better off from participating
in sports, in most circumstances
your family members will be bet-
ter off not carrying the weight of
a trustees obligations.
One of the main purposes
of estate planning is to protect
your family. Appointing an inde-
pendent trustee provides that
protection and grants your fam-
ily freedom from unnecessary
strife. If only there were a way
to protect unsuspecting fifth-
graders from goggle-wearing
octogenarians.
Jeff Brunson is an attorney and
shareholder at Beard St. Clair
Gaffney PA. The opinions con-
tained are his own and noth-
ing written should be construed
as legal advice. Jeffs practice
involves litigation, business dis-
putes, and estate disputes. He
can be reached at his Rexburg
office, 520 First American Circle,
(208) 359-5883, jeff@beardstclair.
com or follow him on Twitter @
jeffbrunson.
Attorney gives tips on estate planning independence
JEFF BRUNSON
LEGAL NOTES
LAUREN GRANGE
Standard Journal
REXBURG Interwest Cabinet
is a home-grown business that keeps
on growing. Opened in 1986 by Clint
and Janeene Galbraith, Interwest
Cabinet gives customers quality wood
cabinets for any room in their homes,
even after 25 years. The Galbraiths
say they have installed cabinets in
every room possible from kitchens,
entertainment centers and bath-
rooms, to garages and access doors to
hiding rooms and they love their
business.
When asked about their favorite
parts of the business, Janeene said
she loves to travel with her husband
to visit clients. Clint said, The most
satisfying part is working with peo-
ple and giving them what they want
but that can also be a challenge.
He explained that sometimes cus-
tomers who are remodeling rooms
in their homes dont know what
they want to do with their spaces.
Representatives will go to their home
and look at the space with them and
customers will say this is kind of
what we want. Other times custom-
ers get too set on things that wont fit
or work in their space and they end
up being disappointed because their
vision isnt possible.
Most often, though, Interwest
Cabinets clients rave about their new
cabinets. The Galbraiths showed off
an email from a very happy client
who had just had cabinets installed
in her sewing room.
Good reviews like that are impor-
tant to Interwest Cabinet because
they rely on word-of-mouth advertis-
ing for their company. The quality of
their work has provided a good repu-
tation and has given them more busi-
ness. It also gave them a feature story
in a recent issue of Woodshop News
magazine. They have worked on proj-
ects in Montana, Utah, Washington,
Wyoming and all over Idaho on the
recommendations of past clients who
have loved Interwest Cabinets work.
But they know they wouldnt be
anywhere without their support sys-
tem. The Galbraiths praised the good
support system of the community,
accountants, banks, and employees
that have worked with them since the
beginning of Interwest Cabinet.
Our employees make everything
happen, Clint said. That statement
is true considering their employees
are frequently gone for days at a time
doing installations. Their employees
families have to be supportive of
the business too, to allow their hus-
bands and fathers to be gone so often.
All of the employees have worked at
Interwest Cabinet for at least five
years which shows their loyalty to
and support of the company.
The Galbraiths said they chose to
open in Rexburg over other cities for
the people in the area. Clint said, I
grew up here and I already had estab-
lished relationships. Janeene added,
We considered other places, but this
is where we raised our family.
The future for Interwest Cabinet
is likely an increased demand for
cabinets. The growth is slow, but
it should pick up over the next few
years, Clint said. For now he is
focusing on purchasing safer equip-
ment and design software that can
take a design and make it reality by
sending it straight to a machine so
that they will be able to keep up with
increased demands.
Interwest Cabinet is located at 64
S. 3rd West in Rexburg.
Interwest Cabinet
continues to grow
after 25 years
CABINET MAKERS
Standard Journal/lauren GranGe
Finished knotty alder cabinets are on display in the Interwest Cabinet store front in Rexburg.
Clint Galbraith (right) and Brandon
Carlson (left) work on a cabinet in their
workshop.
Beth Wright and helpers have opened the
Chocolate Moose Royale in the historic
Royal Hotel 406 Main in Ashton, making it
the third food service business to oper-
ate in the space since it was remodeled.
The Chocolate Moose features specialty
beverages such as espresso, hot chocolate,
steamers and tea and treats. The treats are
handmade by some of Ashtons best-known
cooks. Because the caf doesnt serve
meals, it welcomes brown bag lunches. It
also invites people to set up shop tempo-
rarily in a fundraising booth. Wright said
the space is too beautiful to be empty,
and she promises more consistent hours to
serve customers. The cafe also has set up a
Facebook page that features specials.
Standard Journal/JoYCe edleFSen
Chocolate Moose opens in Ashton Business plan competition set
Standard Journal staff
BOISE Start-up companies
from around the state of Idaho
are vying for 20 spots in the
Entrepreneurial Idol Competition
at TechLaunch 10.0 to be held
June 13-14 at the WaterCooler
in Boise.
In its tenth year, TechLaunch
is designed to educate and pro-
vide a stage for entrepreneurs
and innovators to practice and
hone their pitches in front of
the business/investment commu-
nity. Over the past nine years,
TechLaunch has introduced
many companies to the intrica-
cies of early stage financing.
According to a news release,
of the 72 companies that have
participated, 55 are still in busi-
ness and continue to grow and
receive research, development,
and investment capital.
This years format will consist
of semifinal and final rounds
with prize money totaling
$50,000.
Attendees have the option
of registering for the reception,
the competitions, or both. For
more information, please contact
Shaun Shannon at (208) 908-
0625 or shaun.shannon@idaho-
techconnect.com.