Elder Law and Estate Planning

Providing Peace of Mind

FAILING TO PLAN

Without proper planning, your family may:

• Lose everything to nursing home costs;
• Pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in avoidable Estate Taxes;
• Pay thousands in avoidable Probate fees and costs;
• Become entangled in Guardianship Proceedings;
• Fight over health care decisions; and
• Fight over financial decisions.

A Meyer & Spencer Asset Protection Plan or Estate Plan gives you an orderly disposition of your assets and avoids many of the problems faced by those who fail to plan. Our Asset Protection Plans and Estate Plans are custom drafted to meet your specific needs and objectives. No two families are the same. After a consultation with Meyer & Spencer, we will provide you with a proposal with several options for you to consider. During our initial consultation, we will gather information which allows us to determine which plan best suits your needs;

• How we can protect your assets from future nursing home costs;
• Whether a Long Term Care Insurance Policy is beneficial to you; and
• Whether you need an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust to provide liquidity for your Estate;

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NURSING HOMES

A large part of our Elder Law practice involves helping families make sound decisions involved in placing a loved one in a nursing home. Since the cost of a nursing home can range from $7,000.00 to $10,000.00 per month, it is important that you consult with us as far in advance of nursing home placement as possible. Medicare generally covers only a short stay in a nursing home. After that, the family must either make private pay arrangement or try to qualify for Medicaid. We can prepare the Medicaid Application and assist you with Nursing Home admissions.

Meyer & Spencer Medicaid Plan

(Used when Nursing Home Care is imminent or likely in future)

• Complete Analysis of all Assets;
• Analysis of exempt assets and advice on Medicaid Spendown;
• Calculation of Medicaid Look-back and Penalty Period;
• Advice on timing, nature and amounts of assets to be transferred;
• Analysis of whether Life Estate is suitable;
• Analysis of Capital Gains ramifications of transfer;
• Preparation of Real Estate transfer documents;
• Preparation of Gift Tax Return;
• Preparation of Medicaid Application;
• Assistance with Nursing Home Admission forms.

Meyer & Spencer Medicaid Trust

• Assets are placed in Trust to protect from Medicaid and other creditors;
• Generally used for assets you do not plan to use, or your residence;
• Does not involve an outright transfer to your children;
• Avoids the Expenses of Long Term Care Insurance;
• Allows you to access the income from the Trust Assets;
• Provides you with complete control over Trustees.

MEYER & SPENCER LIVING TRUSTS

A Living Trust provides you with the flexibility to accomplish many different Estate Planning objectives. A primary objective is avoiding the costs and delays inherent in probate. When a Will is probated, the Estate will incur attorneys’ fees, filing fees, and fiduciary fees. These fees eat away at your estate. Probate is a time consuming process which can result in long delays before your heirs ever receive their inheritance.

• Saves thousands of dollars in probate costs;
• Revocable or amendable at any time — You retain complete control;
• You determine at what age(s) your children (or grandchildren) receive their inheritance;
• Assets can be distributed to heirs immediately with no delays;
• Assets can remain in trust for a specified period with spendthrift provisions to protect the assets from your children’s creditors;
• Provides you with complete control over Trustees.

• The ultimate in Asset Protection;
• Saves thousands of dollars in probate costs;
• Saves hundreds of thousands of dollars in Estate Taxes with Credit Shelter Protections;
• Revocable at any time while both spouses are living;
• Becomes Irrevocable upon the death of one spouse;
• Spendthrift provisions protect assets from creditors;
• Avoids Guardianship proceedings;
• Protects children’s inheritance if your spouse gets remarried;
• Allows for the distribution of trust income and invasion of trust principal when required;
• Provides Supplemental Needs language for distributions to a disabled child;
• Provides you with complete control over Trustees.

• Valuable planning tool for second marriages;
• Ensures that surviving spouse cannot disinherit children.

• Allows more money to reach your heirs;
• Allows Trust to own policy and takes insurance proceeds out of your Estate;
• Provides liquidity to Estate so home does not have to be sold to pay taxes and debts;
• Can be funded with $11,000.00 annual gift tax exclusion;

PERSONAL RESIDENCE TRUST

• A valuation discounting technique that will increase the amount received by your children;
• Takes residence out of your Estate while permitting you to continue to reside there;
• You retain the right to continue to take all property tax or mortgage interest deductions.

“CRUMMY” TRUST

• Great device for transferring assets to children or grandchildren;
• Unlike an outright gift, you retain control over gifts placed in this Trust;
• Provides spendthrift protections against creditors;
• You determine when your children or grandchildren will receive their inheritance.

• Used when a disabled child is receiving governmental benefits;
• Allows you to leave your child assets without interfering with governmental benefits.

• Allows you to support your favorite charities;
• Gifting to charity can result in substantial Estate Tax Savings.

WILLS “The Cornerstone of Estate Planning”

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If you do not wish to place your assets in trust, Meyer & Spencer can devise an Estate Plan consisting of Simple or Advanced Wills that will accomplish all of your Estate Planning objectives. Your Wills can:

• ensure that the surviving spouse is well provided for;
• ensure that trustees and guardians are named for your children;
• ensure that your assets are distributed as you see fit;
• determine the age your children will inherit assets;
• provide you with thousands of dollars in Estate Tax Savings.

ROUNDING OUT YOUR PLAN

Whether Meyer & Spencer is drafting a Trust or Will, no Estate Plan is complete without the following documents, all of which are included in any of our Estate Plans:

LIVING WILL: Allows an individual to state his or her desire to decline extraordinary life saving medical treatment which only prolongs the natural process of dying. The directions contained in a Living Will take effect when a patient can no longer express his or her wishes due to the loss of consciousness or capacity as a result of a terminal illness or irreversible brain damage.

HEALTH CARE PROXY: Allows for the appointment of a spouse, relative or friend to make health care decisions on behalf of an individual who is unable to do so due to lack of capacity or consciousness. The directions contained in the Living Will provide the individual holding the Health Care Proxy with information concerning the patient's wishes. A Health Care Proxy is required in the State of New York in order for medical treatment to be declined to an incapacitated or unconscious patient.

POWERS OF ATTORNEY: Allows for the appointment of a spouse, relative or friend to make financial decisions, pay bills and sell property on behalf of another. The Power of Attorney can be “durable” which goes into effect immediately upon signing or “springing” which goes into effect only when the principal has been declared by his or her doctor to be unable to handle his or her financial affairs.

EXPANDED POWER OF ATTORNEY: The Powers contained in a Meyer & Spencer LLP Expanded Power of Attorney provide allows for greater powers to be exercised by your trusted agent. This is a must if you wish to grant your agent the power to make asset transfers and/or gifts in the context of Medicaid Planning.

GUARDIANSHIP PROCEEDINGS: Where Powers of Attorney have not been executed and an individual no longer has the capacity to execute a Power of Attorney, a proceeding may be commenced in Court whereby a family member, friend or an individual appointed by the Court is named Guardian of the Person and Finances of the incapacitated individual. The appointed individual will have full authority to make decisions, both personal and financial on behalf of the incapacitated person.