Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia

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• Elder Law

  Home » Services » Elder Law Elder Law Elder law refers to the field of law that addresses issues most likely to affect the elderly. This includes incapacity, nursing home issues, and estate planning. While seniors are the most likely demographic group to develop an incapacitating illness or injury, to go into a nursing home, or to pass away, these things can happen to anyone of any age. As a result, everyone needs to talk with an elder law attorney. At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, our legal team provides advice to people young and old in Garden City and surrounding areas. When you are ready to take control of protecting your assets, securing your autonomy in case of disability, and providing for your loved ones, give us a call at 800-295-1917. We can put together a personalized plan for you and can answer general questions you may have including: What does an elder law attorney do? Do I need to talk with an elder law attorney? How can a Garden City elder law attorney help me? What Does an Elder Law Attorney Do? The job of an elder law attorney is to provide assistance with planning for aging, end of life issues, and for death. This means: Creating a plan for what kinds of healthcare you want in an emergency situation. Using a living will, advanced directive, and a healthcare power of attorney can make it possible for you to decide what kinds of care you want. You can specify if you wish to undergo CPR, be on a feeding tube, or otherwise have life-extending care provided. You can also decide who will make healthcare choices for you if you can’t communicate. Creating a plan for who will manage your assets if you can’t. There is a very real chance you could become incapacitated due to illness or injury. This could make it impossible for you to pay bills, run a business, manage investments, or take care of your property and assets. By naming someone to act for you and take care of your property, you can protect the value of your nest egg. Creating a plan for how nursing home care should be paid for. Many people end up spending some time in a nursing home at some point in their life. Private insurance and even Medicare usually won’t pay for this, except under limited circumstances when skilled medical services are needed. If you require custodial care and can’t get insurance to cover it, you could be forced to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of your own money. When you no longer have any resources, Medicaid will pay for the cost of nursing home care. If you create a Medicaid plan so your assets don’t have to be spent down before you become eligible for Medicaid, you can protect your nest egg and the inheritance you wish to leave behind. Creating a plan for the transfer of assets upon your death. You may want to try to avoid probate, or may want to address the special needs that your heirs have. This could be especially important if your heirs are careless with money or if you want to leave money to someone who has a disability. An elder law attorney helps you use wills, trusts, and other estate planning tools. These are just a few of the many things elder law attorneys do. Elder law matters are important issues for people of all ages, so it is not only seniors who should talk with an elder law attorney. Do I Need to Talk with an Elder Law Attorney? You need to talk with an elder law attorney if you haven’t already, or if you don’t have a comprehensive plan in place for your future. This is true for everyone of all ages. If you care about providing a legacy for your family, avoiding unwanted medical care, shielding your family from tough healthcare choices, and making sure your children are cared for and your assets are protected, you need to get legal help. How can a Garden City Elder Law Attorney Help Me? At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, we pride ourselves on making sure that clients in Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding areas of Long Island can create a secure plan for their future. This means making full use of all legal tools to protect yourself in case of incapacity or death. It also means taking the necessary steps to ensure your family members are protected in times of adversity or after you are gone. To learn more about the specific services our Garden City elder law attorneys can provide and to get help with your personalized plan, give us a call today at 800-295-1917.

  Link: Elder Law

• Estate and Gift Tax Figures

  FEDERAL Estate and Gift Tax Applicable Exclusion: The amount that can be passed free of federal tax. Whatever amount is used during lifetime is no longer available for use to pass assets at death. The Estate and Gift Tax Applicable Exclusion is currently $13.99 million. Annual Gift Tax Exclusion: The amount that can be given to each person you want without using any Applicable Exclusion. The Annual Gift Tax Exclusion is currently $19,000. Generation-Skipping Tax Exemption: This allows for giving to people who are grandchildren or other “skip persons.” It may also be used as a sophisticated way of avoiding Federal estate tax at the death of a child. Each person currently has $13.99 million of Generation-Skipping Tax Exemption. STATE State Estate Tax: In addition to the Federal Estate Tax, many states have a State Estate or Inheritance Tax. State Estate and Inheritance Tax may apply at a much lower level than the federal tax. It may apply when a person dies when resident in or owning property in any of the many states with such a tax.

  Link: Estate and Gift Tax Figures

• Estate Planning Sevices

  Estate planning is something everyone needs to think about, no matter how young you are or how much money you have. If you have anyone counting on you, have any assets, or are concerned about maintaining your autonomy in the face of disability, you need an estate plan. The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia will help you to create one. Our Garden City estate planning attorneys have extensive experience in the field of estate planning and we are members of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys. We understand what it takes to create an asset protection, incapacity, and legacy plan and we make sure that your goals are met. Give us a call at 800-295-1917 to get started on your personalized estate plan. We’ll also answer some of the general questions that you may have about the estate planning process including: When should I get started with estate planning? What should be part of a Garden City estate plan? How can a Garden City estate planning lawyer help you? When Should You Get Started with Estate Planning? Many people wait too long to get started with estate planning, which puts their assets at risk and which can result in financial loss. You do not want to be one of them. You should begin estate planning as soon as you have any assets you care about or as soon as you have a family or loved ones who you wish to protect. In fact, it may be beneficial to begin estate planning even if you don’t find yourself with money or people to provide for, as you still need to ensure that you take care of your own future. Estate planning isn’t something only for the elderly. Parents with young children need to create a plan for what will happen to their kids if something goes wrong. Anyone of any age is also at risk of an unexpected medical emergency. Because you owe it to yourself and to those you care about, you should contact an estate planning attorney today if you do not have a fully comprehensive estate plan in place now. What Should be Part of a Garden City Estate Plan? Your estate plan needs to address your own concerns about the future as well as the special needs of your family. This means that you must create a personalized plan which has been tailored to you. Our legal team will help you to explore some of the different legal tools which may be a part of your plan including: A power of attorney: A power of attorney allows you to take control over who manages your assets in case of incapacity. With no power of attorney, family members will need to initiate guardianship proceedings if they must take control over managing your affairs. This is time consuming, costly, and could result in someone you don’t like or trust being named as your guardian. It also involves the court in your personal affairs. When you create a power of attorney and name an agent, all of this is avoided and your agent can simply act for you. A living will/advanced directive: An advanced directive and/or living will can allow you to specify if you want CPR, a feeding tube, artificial hydration, or other extraordinary medical care measures taken in the event of a serious illness or injury. A healthcare proxy: When you create a healthcare power of attorney and/or name a healthcare proxy, you get to control who makes medical choices when you can’t. While your living will should address the important issues, your healthcare proxy will make other decisions that you didn’t communicate in advance. Trusts: Trusts can be used to protect your assets in case you need to pay for a nursing home, and in case your heirs are not responsible with money, are disabled, or end up getting divorced. Trusts can also be used to reduce or avoid estate taxes. There are many different kinds of trusts, so you should find out which type(s) are right for inclusion in your estate plan. A last will and testament: A last will can be used to determine who inherits property that does not transfer via trust or otherwise transfer automatically upon your death. These are just a few of the different components which may be included in your estate plan. You should speak with an attorney to discuss your family and financial situation as well as your goals for the future so you can create a detailed plan that works to meet your needs. How can a Long Island Estate Planning Lawyer Help You? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia provides estate planning advice to clients in Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding areas of Long Island. When you are ready to ensure you have control over your own destiny and your own legacy, give us a call at 800-295-1917. We’ll assist you in making full use of the legal tools you need to secure your future and to provide for loved ones after you are gone.

  Link: Estate Planning Sevices

• IRA & Retirement Planning

  Many people work their whole lives and still struggle to have a financially secure retirement. While it can be hard to set aside money for the future, you owe it to yourself to create a comprehensive retirement plan so you don’t have money worries during your golden years. Whether you are young or old, rich or poor, you should have a retirement plan in place. The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia can help. Your retirement plan should involve much more than just putting aside some money each month. You need to take advantage of tax breaks to help you save and you need to find informed ways to protect the nest egg you are building. Using the right legal tools and getting professional advice is key, so contact a Garden City retirement planning lawyer today at 800-295-1917 to start on the creation of your plan. At The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, we will offer personalized advice and answer any questions you might have including: What do I need to know to make a retirement plan? How can IRAs help me save? How can a Garden City retirement planning lawyer help? What Do You Need to Know to Make a Retirement Plan? When you create a retirement plan, you need to know how much to invest, what types of accounts to invest in, what the rules are for those particular accounts, and how to make sure your assets are protected. An experienced attorney can provide you with assistance addressing all of the different aspects of your plan. The amount that you will need to set aside for retirement is going to be based on many different factors, including your age at the time when you begin saving as well as your income level and whether you will have a pension or other benefits coming in. It is always best to save more, rather than less, and it is always best to make sure you take advantage of some of the important tax breaks that can help you to save. An attorney can advise you on the types of tax-deferred accounts that not only subsidize your savings but that can also help to protect your retirement assets. How Can an IRA Help You Save? For many people saving for retirement, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) are going to be the best or even the only option. If you have a 401(K) or other plan at work, you can participate in it- and also invest in an IRA. If you have no workplace retirement plan, you can open an IRA on your own with a brokerage firm of your choosing. When you open an IRA, you can benefit from being able to put aside money pre-tax or from allowing invested money to grow tax free. Most people will opt to either open a traditional IRA that they can invest in with pre-tax money, or a Roth-IRA that allows growth and withdrawals without paying taxes. If you are self-employed, earn non-wage income, and/or own your own business, then you may instead choose a Self Employed (SEP) IRA or a Simple IRA. These can provide advantages such as allowing you to invest a larger percentage of your income each year than a traditional or Roth IRA would provide. An IRA has annual contribution limits, so you should strongly consider beginning to invest in an IRA as early as possible. If you don’t put money into an IRA over the course of a year, you never get back that opportunity to invest that pre-tax money. An attorney can help you to open an IRA, to decide which type of IRA to use, and to understand the rules for making investments in your IRA. IRAs also have rules for required withdrawals as you get older. A Garden City retirement planning lawyer will help seniors to understand and comply with requirements for withdrawing money from IRAs. How can a Garden City Retirement Planning Lawyer Help? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia At The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, our legal team has helped many people to begin investing when they are young for retirement or to catch up during middle age to build a nest egg. We also help seniors to make their retirement funds last, to protect their assets, and to make informed investment choices. To learn more, give us a call today at 800-295-1917 to speak with a retirement planning lawyer. We serve clients in Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding areas of Long Island and have a long track record of success so call now to begin securing your retirement future.

  Link: IRA & Retirement Planning

• Legacy Planning

  Creating a legacy plan goes beyond just making a will and deciding who will inherit. With a comprehensive legacy plan, you can set goals to build assets and take steps to protect those assets so you can support your loved ones and the causes you care about. You can also facilitate the seamless transfer of money and property after death, which may be especially important if you have built up a family business or have a family farm. Regardless of your age, assets, or income level, you owe it to yourself and your loved ones to create a legacy plan so you can make your mark and leave a positive impact on this world. The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia is here to help. Give our Garden City legacy planning lawyers a call today at 800-295-1917 for personalized advice and to get answers to questions including: Why is legacy planning important What is involved in legacy planning? How can a Garden City legacy planning lawyer help you? Why is Legacy Planning Important? Legacy planning is very important because you will work your entire life and you should be able to have something to show for all of that effort. Whether your goal is to leave your kids with financial security, to give to charities, or to do all of the above, it is up to you to create a plan as early as possible to achieve your dreams. Without legacy planning, you could end up spending your money instead of making it work for you. You could end up with your money going to people who you would not have chosen, or being lost due to nursing home costs or estate taxes. To prevent these undesirable outcomes, it pays to get proper legal advice from a legacy planning lawyer as soon as possible. What is Involved in Legacy Planning? Legacy planning involves taking different steps at different phases of your life. Your legacy plan could include: Setting financial goals. How much do you need to save to be able to grow your wealth and leave a meaningful legacy behind? Exploring tax-advantaged accounts. There are special tax breaks for people to save for retirement and to save for college for children and grandchildren. You can make use of these accounts to supercharge your savings and ensure your money is working as hard as it can for you. Protecting your assets. Once you have begun to build wealth, you want to ensure you don’t lose it. This means structuring ownership carefully so you don’t have to spend down assets in case you must go into a nursing home. You can also find ways to limit or reduce estate taxes, and to protect your money and property from being lost due to irresponsible heirs, bankruptcy, or divorce. Protecting your family business. If you have a farm or a family business, you want to be able to hand this down through the generations. There are steps to take to make sure that you can facilitate the seamless transfer of the property without its value being lost due to estate taxes or due to a period of mismanagement in case of incapacity or death. Transferring your assets. You want to facilitate the timely and efficient transfer of assets to new owners after your death. You can do this in different ways, including the use of trusts to avoid probate as well as creating accounts with joint ownership. These are just a few of the key things that you may wish to do as part of your legacy planning process. Our legal team can help. We can also offer assistance with advanced legacy planning strategies, such as the use of charitable remainder trusts or the creation of charitable or family foundations. Your plan will be designed to meet your specific goals and to protect the assets that you have acquired. How can a Garden City Legacy Planning Lawyer Help You? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, our Garden City legacy planning lawyers assist clients in all aspects of legacy planning. From setting goals to grow assets to taking advantage of investment tax breaks, to securing your assets and assuring their seamless transfer, we offer you advice on everything you need to know to control the mark you leave on the world. Give us a call today at 800-295-1917 to learn more about how we can help. Our legal team serves Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding areas in Long Island, so call now.

  Link: Legacy Planning

• LGBTQ Estate Planning

  At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, our legal team has a long history of helping LGBTQ individuals to overcome shortcomings in the law in order to protect their future. While there have been significant advances in anti-discrimination legislation and gay couples can now choose to marry, issues still remain in incapacity planning, retirement planning, and estate planning. Our legal team can help you to deal with those issues and make the best use of legal tools to protect your future. When you need help with LGBTQ planning in Garden City, we are ready to offer you the comprehensive advice that you deserve. Give our estate planning lawyers a call today at 800-295-1917 or contact us online to find out more about the legal services we offer and the personalized advice we provide to lesbians, gay individuals, transgender individuals, and bisexual individuals. We can also answer questions you may have including: Why is LGBTQ planning important? What should be a part of your plan? How can an LGBTQ planning lawyer help you? Why is LGBTQ Planning Important? For lesbians, gay individuals, bisexual individuals, and transgender individuals, estate planning and retirement planning can be complicated by inadequate recognition under the law as well as by more complex family situations. You may have a partner who you were not able to marry for a long time, which could mean you own substantial separate property or are not able to qualify for Social Security on each other’s work records. You may have non-biological children who you have raised but not adopted. You may also have a family who is not fully supportive of your sexuality or of your gender identity. These are just some of the many issues that need to be addressed in the creation of an LGBTQ estate plan. Like anyone else, you want control over what happens in case you become incapacitated or if you pass away. You also want a secure retirement and to provide for your children and loved ones in the future. LGBTQ estate planning helps you to do all of these things, while taking into account the unique issues that can be created by your sexual or gender identity. What Should Be Part of Your LGBTQ Plan? Your LGBTQ estate plan should include the use of many different kinds of legal tools that protect you and protect your loved ones. The specifics of your plan should be customized to meet your needs, but your plan may include: Instructions for guardianship of children: This can be especially important if children are being raised with a partner who has not formally adopted them. Custody issues can arise when a parent passes away in these situations and you want to make your wishes very clear. Advanced instructions for your funeral and memorial. There have been many tragic cases where unsupportive family members have not posthumously recognized the true gender identity of a transgender person who has passed away. If you want to ensure you are remembered with your true gender, rather than your birth gender, you may wish to make plans in advance for your funeral and memorial. An incapacity plan. You want to make sure the person of your choosing manages your assets and makes medical decisions for you if something happens to you. This can be especially important if you are not married to your partner. An estate plan. You want to control who inherits your property. While you can use a will, sometimes a will is contested by non-supportive family members who may not recognize your relationship with a loving partner. You need to ensure you use the right legal tools to facilitate the seamless transfer of assets, which may include trusts and joint accounts that transfer assets outside of probate. These are just some of the many different issues to address in LGBTQ estate planning. While the legalization of gay marriage has made it easier to provide for your partner after you are gone and to get protections at the end of your life, you still need to address many important issues to achieve a secure future. How Can an LGBTQ Planning Lawyer Help You? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, we help married, coupled, and single LGBTQ individuals. We will carefully discuss your family and financial situation and your concerns about the future and we will provide you with the comprehensive legal tools that you need to protect yourself and your loved ones no matter what life brings. Give us a call today at 800-295-1917 or contact us online to speak with an LGBTQ planning lawyer serving the Long Island Counties of Nassau and Suffolk and the County of Westchester.

  Link: LGBTQ Estate Planning

• Pet Planning

  For many people, one fear they have about getting sick or passing away is the fear of what will happen to their companion animals. Having a beloved dog, cat, or other animal friend can enrich quality of life for people of all ages and can actually extend your life in many cases. With all that your animal does for you, you want to make sure your beloved pet is always taken care of even if something happens to you. Pet planning can help you to make sure that you take care of your animal and give your pet the love and support that such a loyal pet deserves. The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia has extensive experience providing assistance to owners of all types of companion animals, so give our Garden City pet planning lawyers a call today at 800-295-1917. We can help you to create as simple or as comprehensive a plan as you desire and we can also offer you answers to some of the questions you may have including: When should I create a pet plan? What should my pet plan contain? How can a Garden City pet planning lawyer help? When Should I Create a Pet Plan? You should create a pet plan as soon as you have brought an animal into your home. Often, seniors are cognizant of the risk that they will pass away before their pet and they make provisions for the care of an animal. Young people, on the other hand, may not think about becoming sick or experiencing an untimely death. This can result in an animal companion not being cared for properly in the event of an owner’s incapacity or an owner’s passing. You do not want your animal to end up in a shelter, to be left uncared for if you suffer a medical emergency, or to end up with a caregiver who you would not have trusted. You owe it to your pet to take the necessary steps to identify a guardian, to ensure your animal is cared for, and to provide your companion animal a good life even if something unexpected arises. The sooner you take action, the more certain you can be that your pet won’t suffer terribly if something unexpected happens to you. What Should my Pet Plan Contain? A pet plan can be a simple plan or you can take advanced steps to ensure you control your animal’s quality of life even after you are gone. The complexity of your plan is up to you. In some cases, pet owners will simply specify in their will who should become the guardian of their pet in the event of incapacity or death. If you name someone to take care of your animal, you should speak with that person first to ensure they are able and willing to take on the task of pet care. You may also wish to name a backup animal guardian in case the person who was the first choice for caring for your animal becomes unable to respect your wishes. In many situations, pet owners will actually go further than just making provisions for who gets the animal after death. You may want to ensure that your dog, cat, or other pet is fully provided for. Vet care, treats, doggy day care, toys, and other expenses can grow to a substantial amount of money over the life of the pet. If you want to ensure there is enough money available and that the cash is used specifically to provide for your pet, you can create a trust and name a trustee. The trustee will have a fiduciary responsibility to honor your wishes and to act in the best interests of the trust beneficiary. This means you can rest assured the money you leave behind will be spent on the animal’s needs. You can even specify that the money be used to periodically provide some of the same treats and experiences you offered your animal during your lifetime. How can a Garden City Pet Planning Lawyer Help? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, our legal team understands the importance of the human/ animal bond and we know how much joy your pets bring to your life. We will work very hard to help you ensure that you can take care of your animals no matter what happens in the future. We serve Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding areas of Long Island, so give our pet planning attorneys a call today at 800-295-1917 if you are ready to take the important step towards making sure your pet is cared for.

  Link: Pet Planning

• Trust Administration & Probate

  Many people coping with the loss of a friend or relative find themselves confused and frightened when thrust into the trust administration and probate process. If you have been named an executor or trustee, you have an enormous responsibility under the law. Even if you are simply a relative or heir, you have a moral responsibility to the deceased to make sure his wishes are respected, as well as a responsibility to protect your own interests when it comes to your inheritance. The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia is here to help trustees, executors, beneficiaries, heirs, and family members. We can guide you through the trust administration and probate process in Garden City and surrounding areas to ensure the process goes as smoothly as possible and to ensure your rights are protected under the law. Give us a call today at 800-295-1917 to get personalized advice, as well as answers to some of the questions you might have including: What is involved in trust administration in Garden City? What happens during the Garden City probate process? How can a Garden City trust administration lawyer help? What is Involved in Trust Administration in Garden City? Trust administration happens in situations where a person passes away at some time following the creation of a trust. The trust document will name a trustee, and will provide instructions for the use of trust assets. The trustee will follow the instructions in the trust document, manage the assets within the trust, and facilitate the transfer of those assets to trust beneficiaries. The trust administration process happens outside of court, and there is no judicial oversight – unlike with the probate process. However, trustees have a fiduciary obligation to act in the interest of beneficiaries and never to act in their own self-interest. Trustees must manage money and properly carefully, and must take the formal legal steps necessary to transfer assets to new owners in a timely and efficient manner. Trustees may have to deal with issues like re-tilting property and filing a tax return for the trust, depending upon the specifics of the situation. The obligations imposed on a trust administrator can be complicated and getting legal help is advisable. What Happens During the Garden City Probate Process? The probate process occurs after a death except in some limited circumstances, like when provisions were made for probate avoidance. The probate process is overseen and managed by an executor named in the last will and testament which was created by the deceased. The executor can decline to take on this responsibility, but most people who are named as an executor prefer to take action at the request of the deceased. The executor should be represented by a probate lawyer, because it is the executor’s job to file all appropriate court paperwork and to oversee the probate process. This includes doing things like getting the assets of the estate appraised so it can be determine if the estate should be taxed and at what amount. The executor also has to notify creditors of the death and the chance to make claims on the estate, and must manage property for the heirs during the probate process. Executors, like trustees, have a fiduciary duty. However, the probate process is different from trust administration because it is overseen by the probate court. An experienced probate attorney can help an executor to fulfill all of the legal responsibilities that go along with taking on his or her important role. With the help of a legal advocate, the executor can make sure that the deceased’s last wishes are respected and can facilitate the effective transfer of assets to heirs. An attorney can also provide legal representation to those who are concerned that a will may not be valid. If you wish to challenge the validity of a will during probate, you’ll need to make strong, substantiated arguments about why the will is improper and should not be probated. How Can a Garden City Probate Lawyer Help? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia A probate and trust administration lawyer in Garden City is there to guide you through all of these formal legal steps which must be taken after a death. When you want to ensure you have an experienced and compassionate legal representative regardless of your role in the trust administration or probate process, call the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia. Give us a call today at 800-295-1917 or contact us online to learn more about how our legal team can help you with probate and trust administration in Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding areas.

  Link: Trust Administration & Probate

• Special Needs Planning

  Parents, close relatives, and other friends of people with disabilities often take on responsibility for helping the person with special needs. Your role may involve providing financially for the person with the disabling condition, or providing care giving services. You may serve as the guardian for the person with disabilities, or may simply provide monetary assistance or want to give a gift to enrich that person’s quality of life. If you find yourself in any of these situations, you need to get legal assistance with special needs planning. The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia can help. Taking the wrong actions could end up jeopardizing important government benefits, so give us a call today at 800-295-1917 to speak with a Garden City special needs planning lawyer. We will help with the creation of a personalized and customized plan and can also offer answers to questions you may have including: Why is special needs planning important? What is involved with special needs planning? How can a Garden City special needs planning lawyer help? Why is Special Needs Planning Important? A person with a disability may be unable to work to earn a living for himself, and may be unable to provide care for himself. A person with special needs may also be unable to manage money or property he acquires, such as cash that is provided through a personal injury settlement or from a gift. As a result, when a person with special needs is about to come into cash or property, provisions need to be made to ensure that the assets are managed appropriately. A person with a disability may also be receiving government benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Medicaid. These benefits can be worth many thousands of dollars a month, especially if the person with special needs requires nursing home care, residential care, or costly medical care. These benefits are all means-tested, which means that if the person with the disability were to receive a gift or otherwise obtain assets, the important and valuable benefits could be lost. Special needs planning makes it possible to protect the financial needs of a person with a disability. With the right plan, a personal injury settlement, a gift, or other assets can be appropriately used to provide for the person with the disability. A plan may also be created to ensure that physical care is provided to the person with disabilities when a parent or other caregiver passes away or otherwise becomes unable to provide help. What is Involved with Special Needs Planning? Special needs planning usually involves the creation of a specific type of trust, called a special needs trust. There are first party special needs trusts if the assets which will be used to fund the trust belong to the person with disabilities. This can happen if someone who is disabled has worked, earned money, and acquired property before becoming disabled,. It can also happen if someone who is disabled will be receiving a personal injury settlement after an accident that caused the disability. There are also third party special needs trusts. These trusts are created in situations where a family member or close friend wishes to provide money for a person with disabilities, either as an inter vivos gift (a gift during the giver’s lifetime) or as a posthumous gift (a gift provided after the giver’s death). A first or third party special needs trust can shield money and property kept in the trust from counting as assets that would disqualify the person with disabilities from receiving government benefits. A trustee can also be named who has a fiduciary obligation to effectively manage trust property and assets and to use the property to benefit the person with disabilities. The use of special needs trusts is just one part of a special needs plan. If you are providing care and serving as guardian for a person with disabilities, you will also need to make other provisions to ensure that a person you trust is able to take over the role of guardian if something happens to you. How can a Garden City Special Needs Planning Lawyer Help? Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, our legal team has extensive experience providing assistance with special needs planning to clients in Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, and surrounding locations of Long Island. Whatever your relationship is to the person with the disability or whatever your financial plans are for the person with special needs, we can help. Give us a call at 800-295-1917 or contact us online to learn more about the assistance we offer.

  Link: Special Needs Planning

• Medicaid

  Maybe your health is declining or you’ve had a recent “close call” or you’re healthy but are concerned about your family’s history with Alzheimer’s or other illnesses or you’ve seen others have their assets wiped out paying for assisted living or nursing home care, and you’re worried about who will care for you and how you’ll pay for that care in your later years. Maybe you’re concerned about the health of loved one and you stress about how you will manage to pay for their expenses. Regardless of what your concerns may be, proper Medicaid planning is likely the solution to your conundrums. You may qualify for Medicaid to pay your nursing home bills, which can save you thousands of dollars each month, and an experienced elder law attorney can help you find out if you qualify. Planning Early is Vital for Medicaid Success Because of the limitations of the options available to pay for care, Medicaid is the most popular option for most Americans. The need for nursing home care does not have to catch you off guard. Planning early is vital, if possible you should begin planning at least five years before you need to enter a nursing home. When you plan far in advance, you can work within Medicaid guidelines to create a plan that protects the majority or all of your assets from long-term care expenses. The decision to place a loved one in a nursing home is often accompanied by an incredible amount of anxiety and stress. Whether the need for long-term care is brought on by a sudden accident or by a long-term, progressive illness, this is likely an unhappy time for both the person entering the nursing home, the caregiver and everyone else helping with the transition. Besides the upheaval involved in moving to a nursing home, there is also the stress of figuring out how to pay for nursing home bills that can total thousands of dollars each month. During this time of grief and stress, it’s easy to do nothing and avoid it altogether, assuming it has to come out of your own or your loved one’s savings. However, it is critical to make good financial choices during this period, because these decisions can have far-reaching consequences. Fortunately, there are options for alleviating the burden, and our office is available to guide you through this unfamiliar process. You Don’t Have to Do This Alone Few people can afford to pay the full cost of a long-term nursing home stay. So, how do you cover the cost of nursing home care…and who exactly is responsible for the nursing home bills? Our experienced attorneys can guide you through the entire process and be your family’s trusted advocate, helping your loved one find the right nursing home, get the very best care there, and pay for it all without going broke. But timing is everything, so don’t delay in taking the first step.

  Link: Medicaid