TRUST PLANNING: IF NOT A CURE ALL, WHY DO IT?

In the past few weeks, I have had two trustee-clients ask me the same question:  “What was the point of all of the planning if I still have to deal with all of this drama from my sibling [or child] now that my parent has passed away?  Wasn’t Mom/Dad’s Trust supposed to avoid all of…

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MASSHEALTH MIRACLES: HOW CAN YOU GET ONE OF YOUR OWN?

A large part of our practice is educating our clients and their families about long term care opportunities, helping them access the care most appropriate for their needs, and then helping them figure out how to pay for that care.  For many clients, the answer to “how do I pay?” is the Medicaid program, known…

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ESTATE PLANNING IS REALLY NOT THE BEST PLACE FOR “DIY”

I am a big fan of “DIY” (doing it yourself) in certain situations.  Home renovations and decorating, for example.  Heck, there is a whole TV network dedicated to people fixing up their homes by themselves, filled with videos and step-by-step instructions.  But you may have noticed that there is no TV network dedicated to DIY…

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AMAZING CENTENARIANS

Over my years of being an elder law attorney, I have learned many valuable life lessons from my clients.  One of them is that people age in different ways.  I have learned that there are some really old 65 year olds, and some incredibly young 80, 90, and yes, 100 year olds.  Yes, a lot…

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DYING IN AMERICA

A few weeks ago the Institute of Medicine, the nonprofit, nongovernmental health arm of the National Academies of Science, released a 500 page report entitled “Dying in America.”  A summary of the report is available here.. A principal reason why patients undergo unwanted and ultimately expensive care at the very end of their lives is…

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SUMMER FAIRS … AND ADAPTATIONS

One of our favorite summer activities is exploring new places.  This summer our discoveries included a craft fair in Bennington, Vermont, and over Labor Day weekend, the New York State Fair in Syracuse.  Since it is impossible for us ever to forget that we are elder law attorneys, a part of us is always on…

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PLANNING AHEAD IS PLANNING FOR LIFE

The now former publisher of our local newspaper writes a weekly column which always includes a notable quote.  This one by Golda Meir caught my eye, and I saved it because it sums up the essence of our practice philosophy:  Planning Ahead is Planning for Life. One of my all time favorite books/movies is Gone…

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JOINING THE 21st CENTURY A LITTLE BIT (OK, A LOT) LATE

Most people joined the 21st Century on January 1, 2000. And yes, we were there too: three generations of our family, on Boston Common, drinking hot chocolate, enjoying amazing fireworks, sharing the excitement of watching the calendar change to a new millennium. In the almost 15 years since that night, we have run our practice…

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