High rollers stroll in and out of Las Vegas casinos every day.
But Nevada is also popular with the wealthy for a different reason, too. We live in one of a handful of states with laws that, in many cases, shield the assets of the super rich from public view.
Nevada has no state income tax, and in 1999 became the fourth state to allow domestic asset protection trusts.
Las Vegas attorney Steve Oshins specializes in estate planning and was featuredrecently in the New York Times.
Oshins told KNPR's State of Nevada that the Silver State is a top spot for estate planning and asset protection because of the laws that have been put into place like the dynasty trust for families and laws that allow people to more easily change trusts.
While some people might characterize the kind of work that Oshins and his firm does as "hiding" or "shielding" money, he strongly disagrees with that idea.
“We don’t do any hiding or shielding," he said, "What we do is legitimate tax planning and creditor protection, which the laws allow you to do."
Oshins said estate planning for the super rich doesn't just benefit the super rich. He said it creates jobs in Nevada and brings in billions of dollars to Nevada.
“It is a huge business," he said, "Unfortunately, those effects are so ancillary that people can’t put their finger on exactly what the effects are but the effects are there.”
He said trust companies and banks work with him regularly, which is just one industry that benefits.
After the release of the Panama Papers, which apparently shows how a law firm based in Panama was able to hide the assets of some of the world's richest people, some lawmakers around the country have started to question those the asset protection laws around the country. Oshins said he doesn't think one or two bad actors should change the whole industry.
"I hope they’re not going to over react. Just because there is one bad actor… that doesn’t mean we should over react,” he said.
Steve Oshins, Las Vegas attorney