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Did ‘Cliff’ Prompt Luxury Lift Off? Diocese Honors Schullers, Aims for $100M

The “fiscal cliff” negotiations that frustrated so many outside of Washington look to have had some positive—albeit unintended—consequences in OC, where there’s been an amped up feeling in the markets for luxury homes and goods in just the past month. Jim Leese, a partner at the law firm of Ferruzzo & Ferruzzo in Newport Beach, says that fears that the prolonged negotiations would bring a cut to the threshold for tax-free gifts to family members from $5 million to $1 million led to a flurry of wealthy OCers handing out big checks to children and other relatives before the end of 2012. The tax hike many expected—which didn’t materialize—would have meant a bill of about $2 million on gifts of $5 million. Leese typically deals with big gifts for family members in about 10 or 12 advanced estate plans a year. He says he handled 35 in the final two months of 2012—most including gifts in the $3 million-to-$5 million range—as the fiscal cliff talks drew intense media coverage …

The Orange Catholic Foundation has some notable names going for it as sets out to raise big money. Start with the lineup of honorees for its 11th Annual Conference on Business & Ethics set for April 24 at the Marriott Irvine, where Rev. Robert H. Schuller and wife Arvella will get the Farmers & Merchants Bank Lifetime Achievement Award. Other honorees include Rob Neal of Hager Pacific and Rick Muth of Orco Blended Products, both of whom will get the Bishop Kevin W. Vann Award for Exemplary Business Integrity. The Schullers were keys to the recent sale of the Crystal Cathedral to the Diocese of Orange, reportedly in favor of seeing the place remain a religious center. The diocese has rechristened the facility Christ Cathedral, where ties to Schuller’s longtime ministry will be honored in various ways as it becomes the seat of the Catholic Church in OC …

Give Neal extra credit for his ongoing volunteer duty as interim COO overseeing the shift to the Christ Cathedral, as well as his post as Tim and Steph Busch’s co-chair on the Bishop’s Campaign Cabinet, which aims to raise $100 million for Christ Cathedral and OC parishes …

Masimo Inc. founder Joe Kiani says former President Bill Clinton’s role as keynoter for the inaugural Masimo Foundation Patient Safety and Technology Summit in January drew a lot of attention to its campaign to get companies to share data in ways that could prevent an estimated 200,000 patient deaths a year. So did Kiani’s success in getting a number of major companies in the sector to join the effort, including GE Healthcare, by the way. Kiani says he’s been invited to talk at the Clinton Global Initiative’s annual meeting in New York in September. He also reports that the interest generated at the recent summit at the Ritz Carlton has prompted the Masimo Foundation to seek an executive director. The foundation’s board has been handling the load so far …

No waffling here: popular waffle-sandwich purveyor and Yelp favorite Bruxië is bound for new territories in OC. Restaurant News says it will open a shop in Huntington Beach in April and another in Irvine in June. Those will go with the original in Old Towne Orange, and recent additions in Brea and Rancho Santa Margarita.

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