A number of clients have contacted us regarding the Corporate Transparency Act asking if their trusts are affected by this law. For almost every trust we have assisted clients with the answer is no.

A power of appointment is the right given under a will or trust by a person known as the donor or Powergiver. The person who receives this right is called the done or the Powerholder. The Powerholder is someone who can appoint property to oneself or others...

The most necessary and most troublesome part of estate planning is planning for incapacity. Everyone wants to talk about who gets what when they die. That is the fun part of estate planning...

Before people show symptoms or are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or a related disorder (“ADRD”) their spending, borrowing, and management of money changes. Economists and medical experts at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Georgetown University examined Medicare...

About 13.5 percent of the U.S. population has some type of disability. Around 46 percent of Americans over age 75 live with some disability. The most common disability affects one’s ability to ambulate. About 4.7 percent aged between 21 and 64 years and 30 percent of people aged 75 or older...

Two items published in February impressed us. One on the fragility of life and the effect of decisions we make. Second, we make decisions before we know the facts. The second is changing.

We all rely upon powers of attorney to manage incapacity. Who will help us when we need help? Who will assist us when we need someone to help us, not actually take over? Powers of attorney are essential to make healthcare and financial decisions for us. The person making or giving the power is known as the “principal”.

Small business owners will have yet one more thing on their to-do list now the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is in effect. Around 30 million small businesses will be impacted by the law, which establishes a federal database of the reporting companies that will be accessible to certain authorities and organizations.

Transfer on death or TOD accounts, sometimes known as Payable on Death or POD are form beneficiary designations. Beneficiary designations are most commonly known to us in life insurance. Every life insurance policy has a beneficiary. We are all familiar with beneficiary designations for our 401K or IRA.

Two times you may need to appeal a decision for the denial of Medicare benefits is when you are in the nursing home or in the hospital. There is no time to consult with a lawyer. Indeed, lawyers are of little use when you or your family member are hurting and need treatment.

Eighty million Americans will be enrolled in Medicare by 2030. That is the major health care plan for seniors and those under 65 with long-term disabilities. We focus in this note is the increasing costs for Medicare and taking advantage of Open Enrollment in Medicare, which started October 15th.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released a list of the first ten drugs whose prices will be subject to negotiation for Medicare patients, a plan implemented under the Inflation Reduction Act (“IRA”). Not to be cynical, but like any venture the government is involved in, it is hard to make sense of it.

Family dynamics can change drastically when a parent or spouse dies. In particular, if a surviving spouse remarries, the question of what happens to the family home can make dynamics among the children and the new spouse even more complicated.

We do not usually write about technical income tax issues in our newsletter, but Revenue Ruling 2023-2 has caught the attention of a lot of our clients. We have had some clients contact us about changing their estate plans citing Rev. Rul. 2023-2 when it is inapplicable to them.

A fiduciary is that person you are going to trust to make decisions when you are no longer available. The ultimate purpose of estate planning is family harmony. And selecting a fiduciary is often the most difficult part.

As estate planners, we increasingly have clients that are “Senior Orphans.” A Senior Orphan is someone without a spouse, child or friend on whom they can depend. The spouse or partner could already be incapacitated. Children may be alienated, incapacitated, unavailable or geographically remote.

A Pennsylvania court ruled that the son of a Medicaid applicant must pay an elder law firm’s fee for successfully negotiating a penalty period reduction because the son would otherwise be responsible...

Most people do not know the difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion. There is a big difference in both. And in the consequences.

Undue Influence is when someone pressures another in such a way that the person being influenced is not acting by their own free will; they are being coerced into taking a certain action. Undue influence often arises when a friend family member falls ill. For example, mom has been diagnosed with cancer...

As we age, the likelihood of mental incapacity increases. Without doubt, our bodies and minds deteriorate as we age. Mental incapacity could result from dementia, stroke, brain injury, or other illness. What is mental incapacity and in what ways can you plan to be best prepared for it?