“People have to be very cautious here in chasing this dip, especially as these economic impacts and fears start affecting our economy as well through consumer confidence,” said Jerry Braakman, President and Chief Investment Officer of First American Tr... Read More›

UC Irvine Professor Christopher Schwarz, Ph.D. and First American Trust President and CIO, Jerry Braakman discuss a wide range of topics regarding the factors that are shaping our financial world today. Some of the topics include:

“As we continue to isolate Russia because of their actions, there will be some turmoil in the markets,” said President and Chief Investment Officer, Jerry Braakman. The increasing tensions over the invasion of Ukraine is influencing the economy in many... Read More›

Join us for a CE course for estate planning attorneys and CPAs. The federal government has overarching powers to collect tax debts that far surpass the collection mechanisms available to ordinary creditors. Knowing what these powers are an... Read More›

“We had an incredible 2021 when we look at U.S. domestic equity market returns, and as we head into the first part of the year it has not been as fun or exciting,” stated Jerry Braakman. “We'll talk through that and explain what is going on, why the ma... Read More›

Experienced trust and estate practitioners have all faced situations involving an aging settlor with diminished capacity. Many of us have also experienced the scenario where a settlor's capacity is so diminished that they can no longer effectively mana... Read More›

Many individuals hold concentrated positions in volatile assets, such as closely held businesses, some publicly traded securities, precious metals, commodities, cryptocurrencies, etc. These individuals frequently ask, “What -- if any – estate planning ... Read More›

Equity markets rounded out a strong 2021 with an impressive fourth-quarter move. All three major market indices had gains of at least 8%, led by the S&P 500. The market move was even more impressive considering the environment. The fourth quarter s... Read More›

Join us for a CE course for estate planning attorneys and CPAs. The heart of trust administration is the Trustee’s thoughtful exercise of discretion. Clients and their estate planners rely heavily on the core co... Read More›

The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates even more throughout 2022 and consumer stocks are showing disappointing results. As the stock market declined Friday afternoon, “all risk premium assets—crypto, high leverage, growth names—are bei... Read More›

Jerry Braakman, Chief Investment Officer and President, stated “what we’ve seen in the past when rates move up either through Fed rate-hike expectations being pulled forward or the 10-year moving up, it seems that tech and some of the growth models get... Read More›

Join us for a CE course for estate planning attorneys and CPAs. Life insurance is an enigma, and much misunderstood, in the estate planning world. Some clients (and their advisors) love it; others hate it. In any event, the thoughtfu... Read More›