Law for Sale: Alaska and Delaware Compete for the Asset Protection Trust Market and the Wealth that Follows

For years, U.S. citizens have looked to offshore jurisdictions to create trusts that protect a settlor\u27s assets from the claims of creditors, yet allow the settlor to be named as a beneficiary. United States law and public policy have long been against the idea of allowing a person to enjoy benefits from assets that are simultaneously shielded from creditors\u27 claims. However, despite this existing public policy, Alaska and Delaware have enacted statutes that attempt to do just that. Essentially, these statutes claim to make what used to be possible only offshore, now possible in the United States. This Note seeks to show that regardless of whether the new legislation is effective in protecting assets from creditors, its mere passage seems to mark a break from long-standing U.S. public policy against self-settled spendthrift trusts. This well-established policy, reflecting ideas of equity and fairness, dictates that debtors should use available resources to pay their debts. This policy is most pronounced in situations where people are able to successfully shield their trust assets from such involuntary creditors as spouses, children, and tort victims. It seems that the Alaska and Delaware legislators may be willing to ignore what is fair to creditors in order to bring money into their states. In fact, these legislators may be putting the interests of their respective states, as well as the interests of wealthy asset protectors, before the rights of creditors, previously held concepts of fairness, and what has been the prevailing law in this country. If estate planners and asset protectors elect to utilize trusts under these new statutes, Alaska and Delaware stand to be the depositories of massive amounts of wealth. This will translate into financial growth in each state through increased business among banks, attorneys, accountants, financial advisors, and any other professions that will assist clients in establishing and managing these trusts, the benefits of which will trickle down throughout each state\u27s economy. Since asset protection is the primary reason U.S. citizens create offshore trusts, Part II of this Note explains the goals behind asset protection and how the self-settled spendthrift trust works to achieve these goals. The policy implications of self-settled spendthrift trusts will be discussed, as well as the differences between U.S. law and that of foreign jurisdictions. Part III examines the background and the structure of the Alaska and Delaware statutes. Part IV discusses the effectiveness of the new Alaska and Delaware trusts as asset protectors. This Note concludes with an analysis of the significance of the shift in U.S. public policy and a determination that the Alaska and Delaware statutes do not represent good policy

Identification of a novel functional deletion variant in the 5'-UTR of the DJ-1 gene

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>DJ-1 forms part of the neuronal cellular defence mechanism against oxidative insults, due to its ability to undergo self-oxidation. Oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis of central nervous system damage in different neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease (PD). Various mutations in the <it>DJ-1 </it>(<it>PARK7</it>) gene have been shown to cause the autosomal recessive form of PD. In the present study South African PD patients were screened for mutations in <it>DJ-1 </it>and we aimed to investigate the functional significance of a novel 16 bp deletion variant identified in one patient.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The possible effect of the deletion on promoter activity was investigated using a Dual-Luciferase Reporter assay. The <it>DJ-1 </it>5'-UTR region containing the sequence flanking the 16 bp deletion was cloned into a pGL4.10-Basic luciferase-reporter vector and transfected into HEK293 and BE(2)-M17 neuroblastoma cells. Promoter activity under hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress conditions was also investigated. Computational (<it>in silico</it>) <it>cis</it>-regulatory analysis of <it>DJ-1 </it>promoter sequence was performed using the transcription factor-binding site database, TRANSFAC via the PATCH™ and rVISTA platforms.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A novel 16 bp deletion variant (g.-6_+10del) was identified in <it>DJ-1 </it>which spans the transcription start site and is situated 93 bp 3' from a Sp1 site. The deletion caused a reduction in luciferase activity of approximately 47% in HEK293 cells and 60% in BE(2)-M17 cells compared to the wild-type (<it>P </it>< 0.0001), indicating the importance of the 16 bp sequence in transcription regulation. The activity of both constructs was up-regulated during oxidative stress. Bioinformatic analysis revealed putative binding sites for three transcription factors AhR, ARNT, HIF-1 within the 16 bp sequence. The frequency of the g.-6_+10del variant was determined to be 0.7% in South African PD patients (2 heterozygotes in 148 individuals).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This is the first report of a functional <it>DJ-1 </it>promoter variant, which has the potential to influence transcript stability or translation efficiency. Further work is necessary to determine the extent to which the g.-6_+10del variant affects the normal function of the <it>DJ-1 </it>promoter and whether this variant confers a risk for PD.</p

Pretend play and parents\u27 view of social competence: the construct validity of the Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment.

Background and Aims: Play is the primary means through which children develop skills and socially interact with other children. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between pretend play and social competence in 4&ndash;5-year-old typically developing children, thereby adding further knowledge to the construct validity of the Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment (ChIPPA). Procedure: The pretend play ability of 35 preschool children aged 4&ndash;5 years was assessed using the ChIPPA. Parent/guardians of the children were interviewed regarding their child\u27s social competence using the Vineland Social&ndash;Emotional Early Childhood Scales (Vineland SEEC Scales). Main Findings: No significant correlations were found between the children\u27s play scores and their Vineland SEEC Scales scores. A significant and negative relationship was found between cooperation and sharing and elaborate play scores, suggesting that children who scored poorly on the play assessment were rated as cooperative by parents. Principal Conclusions: Parent report of social competence cannot be inferred from play scores. Reasons for the negative and significant finding are put forward and clinical implications of the findings are discussed. Additional investigations are necessary to further explore the construct validity of inferring social competence using the ChIPPA. <br /

Neun Stahlstiche zu Wagenfelds Vieharzneibuch

Elektronische Reproduktion von: Neun Stahlstiche zu Wagenfelds Vieharzneibuch / L. Wagenfeld. - [4. Aufl.]. - Königsberg Bornträger [u.a.], 1839. - Standort: Universität Marburg, Universitätsbibliothek. - Signatur: 085 8 2022/00352. - Bemerkungen: Provenienz: Bünger, Christian Heinrich [1782-1842]. - (Sammlung Bünger) Digitalisiert 202

Die Lungenseuche des Rindviehes

von L. WagenfeldExlibrisstempel: "Landw.-Sammlung der Eidg. Techn. Hochschule" 002186013_0001 Exemplar der ETH-BIBGeschenkexlibris-Stempel: "Geschenk von Herrn Prof. Dr A. Nowacki" 002186013_0002 Exemplar der ETH-BI

Encyklopädie der gesammten Thierheilkunde : zunächst für gebildete Landwirthe

von Dr. L. WagenfeldExlibrisstempel: "Landw.-Sammlung der Eidg. Techn. Hochschule" 002186013_0001 Exemplar der ETH-BIBGeschenkexlibris-Stempel: "Geschenk von Herrn Prof. Dr A. Nowacki" 002186013_0002 Exemplar der ETH-BI