Asset Protection Attorney Serving the DMV
Thienel Law builds lawful asset protection plans for families and business owners across Maryland, D.C., and Virginia, with tax counsel built in. Free consultation.
Links to outside sources open in a new tab.
Thienel Law helps individuals, families, and business owners in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia protect what they own from future lawsuits and creditors through lawful, advance planning.
You spent years building what you have. A lawsuit, a business debt you personally guaranteed, or a claim you never saw coming can put it at risk in a single stroke. Asset protection planning is the legal work of arranging how you own things now, before any of that happens, so a future creditor has far less to reach. It is not hiding money and it is not a way out of debts you already owe. It suits business owners, professionals with liability exposure, real estate investors, and families who want to keep what they have built. Because Stephen Thienel is licensed across all three DMV jurisdictions and holds an LL.M. in Taxation, one attorney can weigh the tax, estate, and business sides of every move.
What is asset protection planning, and who needs it?
Asset protection planning is the lawful, advance arrangement of how you own property so that a future creditor or lawsuit has less to take. It relies on ordinary, legitimate tools: how assets are titled, business entities, exemptions the law already grants, and trusts. It is planning for risks that have not happened yet, which is exactly what separates it from an illegal attempt to dodge a creditor who already has a claim.
It is not only for the wealthy. A physician or contractor with liability exposure, a landlord or real estate investor, an owner who signed a personal guarantee, a family with a child who could inherit while facing a divorce or creditors, and anyone whose work invites lawsuits can all benefit. The right plan depends on your facts, which is why it starts with a look at your specific exposure rather than a product.
What is at risk if you wait until a claim arrives?
The core rule of asset protection is timing. Planning done well before any claim can quietly and lawfully change what a creditor reaches. The same steps taken after a claim exists can be undone.
Courts can set aside a transfer made to put assets beyond a creditor who already has a claim against you. That is a voidable, or fraudulent, transfer, and it can leave you worse off than doing nothing. So the window to plan is now, while the sky is clear, not after the lawsuit lands. Waiting also narrows your options, because the strongest tools take time to set up and season before they hold.
What does an asset protection plan include?
Thienel Law builds a plan around the assets you actually hold, the risks you actually face, and the family or business you are trying to protect. There is no single form that fits everyone.
- A plain review of your exposure: what you own, how it is titled, and where a lawsuit or creditor could reach it.
- Titling and ownership changes, such as holding property between spouses as tenants by the entirety where that form is recognized and appropriate.
- Business entity structure, so what you own personally is separated from what a business owns and a personal creditor cannot simply reach through to company assets.
- Irrevocable trusts that move assets out of your name for the benefit of your children or other beneficiaries, beyond the reach of your future creditors.
- Guidance on assets that already carry protection under federal or state exemption law, such as many retirement accounts.
- In Virginia, a self-settled spendthrift trust, where allowed, that can hold assets you still benefit from while shielding them within statutory limits.
- Coordination with your broader estate plan and, because the tax side is handled in-house, a read on the tax consequences before you sign.
What is it like to work with Steve on a plan?
Every engagement begins with a free 30-minute consultation. It is a fit conversation for people who are ready to hire an attorney: you describe what you own and what worries you, and you and Steve decide together whether working with him makes sense. It is not a strategy session, and no plan is built inside that half hour.
From there you work directly with Stephen Thienel, not a rotating cast of staff. The practice runs online. Secure video meetings, shared document folders, and electronic signatures let you review your exposure and put a plan in place from wherever you are in the DMV.
How does asset protection differ across Maryland, D.C., and Virginia?
The sharpest difference is how each place treats a trust you set up for your own benefit. Virginia allows a self-settled spendthrift trust, so a Virginia settlor can keep a discretionary interest and still shield those assets, if the trust meets strict statutory conditions and survives a five-year window for existing claims. Maryland and Washington, D.C., follow the more common rule: a settlor’s own creditors can reach a self-settled trust up to whatever can be distributed back to the settlor. In those two, protection usually comes from giving assets to others through an irrevocable trust, from titling, and from entities, not from a trust you still benefit from yourself.
One point holds in all three: a revocable living trust does not shield assets from your creditors, because you keep full control of it during your life. Because Stephen Thienel is licensed in Maryland, D.C., and Virginia, he can match the plan to where you live and where your assets sit, rather than force one jurisdiction’s tool onto another.
Where does asset protection fit in your plan?
Asset protection rarely stands alone. It works alongside the documents that pass your property, speak for you, and settle your affairs.
What clients say about working with Steve
I have worked with Steve Thienel for more than 20 years now and the experience has been amazing. Steve and his team are very thorough, they review all sides of a situation, and are very measured in how they approach a solution. They are 100% client focused and a pleasure to work with!
Throughout years, Steve has been my go to guy for business, real estate, and legal work. Steve works fast and is highly reliable. I would recommend Steve to anyone.
Received expert advice including options when applicable. Filings were timely and I was kept informed each step of the way. First class service!!!
I have been receiving services from Mr. Thienel for over 15 years. I have found his legal services to be of exceptionally high value and quality. His services are always timely, professional and thorough!
Reviews are published as given. Thienel Law does not offer compensation for reviews.
Frequently asked questions
Is asset protection planning legal?
Yes, when it is done as advance planning before a claim arises. It uses ordinary, lawful tools such as how assets are titled, business entities, legal exemptions, and trusts. What is not legal is moving assets to defeat a creditor who already has a claim, which a court can undo as a voidable transfer.
When is it too late to protect my assets?
Once a claim, lawsuit, or judgment already exists, most steps you take can be challenged and reversed as transfers made to hinder that creditor. The strongest protection comes from planning while no claim is on the horizon, because those arrangements have time to take effect and hold. That is why the best time to plan is before you think you need to.
Does a revocable living trust protect my assets from creditors?
No. In Maryland, D.C., and Virginia, the property of a revocable trust stays reachable by your creditors during your lifetime, because you keep full control to change or revoke it. A revocable living trust is a strong tool for avoiding probate, but it is not an asset protection device. Shielding assets generally requires an irrevocable arrangement.
Can a business entity protect my personal assets?
A properly formed and maintained business entity can separate what you own personally from what the business owns, so a claim against the business does not automatically reach your home or savings. It can also make it harder for a personal creditor to reach the assets inside the business. The protection depends on setting the entity up correctly and respecting it in practice, which is part of what Thienel Law handles.
Can I set up an asset protection trust for my own benefit in the DMV?
It depends on the jurisdiction. Virginia permits a self-settled spendthrift trust that lets you keep a discretionary interest and still shield the assets, if it meets the statute's strict conditions. Maryland and Washington, D.C., do not offer that option, so a settlor's own creditors can reach a trust set up for the settlor's benefit. Because Stephen Thienel is licensed in all three, he can tell you which tools actually work where you live.
Ready to protect what you have built?
Stephen Thienel builds lawful asset protection plans for families and business owners across Maryland, D.C., and Virginia, with the tax side handled by the same attorney who designs the plan. If you are ready to hire an attorney, schedule a free 30-minute consultation and see whether the fit is right.
- Tell Steve about your matter
- Pick a time that works