Medicaid is a joint federal-state program that provides health insurance coverage to low-income children, seniors, and people with disabilities. In addition, it covers care in a nursing home for those who qualify. In the absence of any other public program covering long-term care, Medicaid has become the default nursing home insurance for many. Lacking access […]
Many people believe that if they have a will, their estate planning is complete, but there is much more to a solid estate plan. A good plan should be designed to avoid probate, save on estate taxes, protect assets if you need to move into a nursing home, and appoint someone to act for you […]
Proper execution of a legal instrument requires that the person signing have sufficient mental “capacity” to understand the implications of the document. While most people speak of legal “capacity” or “competence” as a rigid black line–either the person has it or doesn’t–in fact it can be quite variable depending on the person’s abilities and the […]
Estate administration is the process of managing and distributing a person’s property (the “estate”) after death. If the person had a will, the will goes through probate, which is the process by which the deceased person’s property is passed to his or her heirs and legatees (people named in the will). The entire process, supervised […]
A trust is a legal arrangement through which one person (or an institution, such as a bank or law firm), called a “trustee,” holds legal title to property for another person, called a “beneficiary.” The rules or instructions under which the trustee operates are set out in the trust instrument. Trusts have one set of […]
The knowledge that we will eventually die is one of the things that seems to distinguish humans from other living beings. At the same time, no one likes to dwell on the prospect of his or her own death. But if you postpone planning for your demise until it is too late, you run the […]
“Sabrina Winters made the trust planning process extremely easy. She is very responsive and is flexible about meeting times, venues, etc. She and her office are warm, yet professional. She exhibits a vast amount of knowledge about her field and we truly feel that she is acting as our advocate. We are very reassured […]
Probate is the Court process to settle a person’s estate after their death. The process carries with it several potential problems and risks. Knowledge of such pitfalls can eliminate or reduce the difficulties. 1. Missing Documents: A Will names an Executor (also known as a “Fiduciary” or “Personal Representative”) to probate the Estate. In order […]
Though there are many factors that you should consider when choosing an estate lawyer or trust attorney, the price for services is often a consideration. What should you expect in the way of fees? Though every attorney has different rates and a different fee schedule, here is a guide to what you can expect for […]
They say there are only two things in life that you can count on – death and taxes. An estate planning attorney helps you plan for the inevitability of death, as well as the possibility of mental or physical incapacity prior to death. The key word here is PLAN. Each individual comes to an estate […]
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