Wealth Preservation, Trusts and Estates

There is an important exception to the typical Medicaid transfer rules (Deficit Reduction Act (“DRA”), 42 U.S.C. 1396p) which allows parents to transfer assets to trust for a disabled child and still qualify for Medicaid immediately. Read here to learn more about this exception and the Medicaid rules generally. This is an often missed Medicaid asset protection strategy used by experienced Elder Law Attorneys in Pennsylvania (PA) and other states. This planning can protect hundreds of thousands of dollars of assets and serve to insure that the disabled child can lead a safe and secure life while still qualifying for necessary public and private benefits.
Please feel free to contact Douglas L. Kaune, Esq. any time at 610-933-8069 or dkaune@utbf.com to discuss your particular Medicaid Asset Protection, Nursing Home or Elder law case to determine the appropriate planning for you and your family.
Wills * Trusts * Elder Law * Probate * Asset Protection * Power of Attorney * Estate Planning
Malvern, Phoenixville, West Chester Offices serving Collegeville, Royersford, King of Prussia, Berwyn, Wayne, Newtown Square, Media, Paoli, Frazier, Chester Springs, Spring City, Valley Forge, Kennett Square, Exton, Lionville, Downingtown, Chadds Ford, Norristown, Devon, Radnor, Chester County, Montgomery County, Delaware County, Bucks County, Berks County, Philadelphia County Pennsylvania (PA).

A recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court case raised the issue of whether or not an agent under a power of attorney can change the beneficiaries of the principal’s retirement plans. Be sure that your power of attorney is accurate under the new ruling.

By: David M Frees III, Esquire
Since the recent Supreme Court ruling in Slomski, you might want to check your power of attorney with your will, trust, or estate planning lawyer to make sure that it still accurately reflects your intentions. Click here to read the Slomski case on our web site www.PaEstatePlanners.com.

First, you have to ask yourself whether or not someone should have that power. And, while your initial answer may be no, there may also be reasons why an agent should have that power. For example, if your spouse is the beneficiary of your IRA and retirement plans, it might seem like you would not want that to be changed. But, what if you became incapacitated and your spouse became very ill. He or she might want to change the beneficiary from himself or herself, to one or more of your children.

And, what if you were incapacitated and one child became very wealthy, while another, due to sever illness was unable to work. Might you want your spouse, as an agent under your POA, to be able to change the beneficiaries.

There is no right or wrong answer.

But, what we do know, is that thanks to the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Shlomski case, your power or attorney may no longer do what you wanted.

If we drafted your power of attorney, please feel free to call for an telephone consult to see if you need or want to revise it.

If our firm did not draft your power of attorney, please contact your counsel, or, schedule an appointment to review your estate plan.

There is no charge for the initial consultation, and if we are doing a will, trust, or other documents for you, we will update your power of attorney for no additional charge.

To get an appointment or phone consultation with one of our lawyers, please call and mention this code DavidFrees2010. Call Donna, Denise, or Beth for an appointment or for a pjone consultation about this important issue. 610-933-8069

David M Frees III is the Chairman of the Trust, Estates, and Wealth Preservation Section of
Unruh, Turner, Burke and Frees

He can be reached at dfrees@utbf.com or at 610-933-8069.

The firm maintains law offices in Malvern, Phoenixville and West Chester. These offices are convenient to Devon, Exton, Chester Springs, Downingtown and many surrounding communities.

Save Your Personal Injury Award With OBRA (42 U.S.C. § 1396p(d)(4)) Special Needs Trusts in Pennsylvania (PA) and elsewhere. Many individuals injured in an accident, through negligence or medical malpractice find themselves disabled to varying degrees. Among the things they can no longer do is maintain a job. Therefore these individuals receive public benefits such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) to assist in maintaining their lives. Lawsuits and ultimately, large monetary awards stem from these types of injuries. It is likely that once these personal injury awards are paid to the individual, they will be disqualified from the public benefits of SSI and Medicaid. The personal injury award could be lost quickly to pay for the recipient’s ongoing medical care and living expenses. An important solution is the OBRA “Payback” Special Needs Trust. Click here to learn more about this type of trust and Special Needs Trusts in general. Generally, the benefits recipient is legally permitted to create a Special Needs Trust for his or her own benefit for the balance of his or her lifetime. This self-settled Special Needs Trust allows the personal injury award to be maintained to supplement and enhance the individual’s public benefits with the balance of the trust being paid back to Pennsylvania (PA) at the death of the recipient.
Please feel free to contact us any time at 610-933-8069 or dkaune@utbf.com to discuss your particular Estate Planning Needs to determine the appropriate structure of your planning documents.
Wills * Trusts * Elder Law * Probate * Asset Protection * Power of Attorney * Estate Planning
Malvern, Phoenixville, West Chester Offices * Chester County, Montgomery County, Delaware County, Bucks County, Berks County, Philadelphia County Law Practice Locations.

By David Frees Esq. “Top Lawyer” by Main Line Today Magazine.

Married couples often believe that signing a joint signature card at the bank makes those assets impervious to creditor claims in the event you are sued. And, while Pennsylvania law does offer some protection on joint accounts, you need to be careful and consider not only careful planning, but what you do after the account is opened.

For example, if a husband and wife own a joint account, and one of them gets sued, it is generally true that the creditors’ cannot get the joint asset. However, see this recent bankruptcy case that seems to say it is not just the signature card that matters but also what you do after the account is opened.

It is also important to remember, that if one spouse dies and the joint account becomes the property of a spouse who has been sued, then the creditors can again reach the account.

If you are concerned about your will, estate planning and/or asset protection please visit www.PaEstatePlanners.com for more free reports or call 610-933-8069. If you are a Pennsylvania resident, you can get a free initial consultation by mentioning this code: DavidFrees2010.

David Frees has attained the highest AVVO rating of 10.0 and has been selected as a Top Lawyer by Main Line Today Magazine.

Annuities have long had a role in Medicaid and nursing home asset protection planning in PA and in other states. There are planning opportunities that allow a husband and wife to shelter a portion of the family assets so that the community spouse (non-nursing home spouse) can remain at home and have greater financial freedom. The case referenced below is a favorable opinion for the Medicaid applicant and should increase the likelihood that certain annuities will be successful Medicaid nursing home planning tools for married couples.
In Weatherbee v. Richman, 595 F. Supp. 2d 607 (W.D. Pa. 2009), the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania reversed the denial of Medicaid benefits to a nursing home resident (“institutionalized spouse”), holding that the income from an irrevocable, non-transferable, non-assignable, single premium, immediate annuity payable to the spouse of the nursing home resident (“community spouse”) was protected under federal law, specifically the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act of 1988 (“MCCA”). MCCA provides that the community spouse’s income is completely protected and does not affect the Medicaid eligibility of the institutionalized spouse.
Please call Douglas L. Kaune, PA Lawyer 610-933-8069 for additional information about this case and to discuss Medicaid and nursing home planning opportunities it presents for you.
Wills * Trusts * Probate * Elder Law * Estates * Estate Planning * Asset Protection Planning
Malvern, Phoenixville, and West Chester Law Offices Chester, Montgomery, Delaware, Philadelphia, Berks and Bucks County PA

David M. Frees III It’s that time of year. New Years Eve approaches and it is time to make decisions, set new goals, and to make your new year’s resolutions. And, this year, more than ever, estate planning, updating your will, trust, and power of attorney should top the list.

This brief article will examine why 2010 estate planning resolutions and will updates are more important than ever, and how to make sure that this is one resolution you’ll actually keep.

First, the many laws related to estate planning and estate and inheritance taxes change regularly. For example, Medicaid - nursing home laws, estate and gift tax rules, and power of attorney laws have all changed recently for Pennsylvania residents.

However, this year there was also a major change, when Congress allowed, at the last minute, for the federal estate tax law to lapse. But, don’t take that too happily because it comes roaring back in just 12 months and that version may be worse than ever. And, to make matters worse, if your assets (including life insurance) exceed 1 million dollars, your estate planning documents might not even work properly.

So for the full story on who should revise their estate plan and why, as well as notes on how to keep this resolution, click here.

Forbes Magazine recently published an article listing eight reasons to update your will, trust, or estate plan despite the uncertainty of the federal estate tax. If you have been wondering, whether or not to wait until the dust settles on federal estate tax reform, then read this interesting piece.

And, if we do help you with your estate plan, and the law changes within a few weeks or even six months, then you will not pay for a second round of estate planning. We guarantee, that there will only be a small charge to re-execute your new wills.

So, if you need to revise, or update your wills because of a move, a death in the family, marriage, divorce, new children or grand children, or because of an inheritance, or other changes through time, then please call Mrs. Brownback, or Mrs. Fox at 610-933-8069 or email dfrees@utbf.com to make an appointment with me. If you mention this article, you will also receive a new CD we have produced on Enhanced Estate Planning to protect your children and grandchildren from divorce and lawsuits.

David M. Frees III

529 Plans For Pa Residents By: Attorney David M. Frees III

529 Plans come in many shapes, sizes, and colors. And, there is significant variation from state program to state program. If you would like to know the top five reasons to consider a 529 and get a great web based resource to help you to understand and to compare the different plans, then click here for my 529 Plan Article for Pennsylvania Residents.

The article reviews some of the estate planning, gift tax, income tax, and administrative issues involved with selecting a 529 plan.

Let us know your questions in the comments section.

David M. Frees III is a Pennsylvania probate, will, and trust attorney with offices located in West Chester, Malvern, and Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.
David Frees has an AVVO Rating of 9.8 and “Superb”

For a consultation to make sure that your estate planning documents are up to date, and coordinated with your 529 plans, call 610-933-8069. Mention this article to receive a valuable resource, our Enhanced Estate Planning CD.

David M Frees III, Esquire has just been awarded AVVO’s highest lawyer and attorney rating of 10.0. Frees heads the Trust, Estate, and Wealth Transfer Section of Unruh, Turner, Burke and Frees with offices in Phoenixville, Malvern, and West Chester, Pennsylvania.

Frees whose practice is limited to trusts, wills, estates, probate, asset protection, and estate planning helps families and individuals to create effective estate tax, asset protection, and business succession plans.

However, Frees notes that “The firm has lawyers that work in many different areas so that our clients’ needs ranging from personal matters such as estate planning, personal injury and related matters are well protected and served by the firm. And, many other firm practice areas help clients in their business, real estate, and related commercial matters.”

“I am honored to receive AVVO’s highest professional rating. AVVO is one of the premier lawyer search and referral sites on the internet and rates lawyers on a variety of factors. I regularly publish legal guidelines and answer estate planning, will, trust, and probate questions for AVVO users and I believe that it is a powerful tool for consumers.”

Thanks to everyone, including my partners and associates, my support staff, and the other lawyers and clients who have helped me to achieve this honor. I have a great team of people that I work with and great clients that we serve.”

Frees’ offices provide trust, estate, and estate planning services to the entire Philadelphia region, including but not limited to Chester and Montgomery Counties, Berks, Bucks and Lancaster Counties and many communities such as Ardmore, Devon, Berwyn, Paoli, Malvern, Willistown Township, Charlestown Township, East Pikeland, Schuylkill Township, and Doylestown

More information about AVVO rating and search services for Pennsylvania residents can be viewed by clicking this link.