When a family member needs long-term care—such as care in a nursing home or assisted living residence—it can be devastating. It is emotionally...
Eldercare Lawyer Blog
Legal Documents Every Parent Should Have
All three of my children are in college and over eighteen. Though I still think of them as kids, the law sees them as adults. The moment a person...
When Financial Incentives Start to Influence Care Decisions
This week, I came across three separate articles on nursing homes. While each offered a unique perspective, together they painted a troubling...
“Do I Have To Pay Mom’s Credit Card Bills?”
“My mother died recently. She had about $20,000 in credit card debt. I am the executor of her estate. Do I have to pay that credit card debt or did...
Can I Sell My House for a Dollar?
“Can I sell my house to my son for a dollar? Would Medicaid question that?” Clients have asked me these questions many times. My answer is, if you...
A Reasonable Flat Fee
I have been practicing elder law for twenty-five years. Most of my practice is transactional law, as opposed to litigation. I draft estate planning...
A Timely Medicaid Application
Filing for Medicaid benefits is a complicated process. Medicaid is a federal and state health payment plan for needy individuals. In order to be...
A Poorly Drafted Will Can Create Big Problems
A last will and testament is a document through which a person passes his assets on to others after his death. A Will is also a document through...
Do I Need a Trust?
“Do I need a trust?” I hear this question all the time from clients. There is no easy answer because the reason a person may need a trust varies....
One Lawyer, One Client
When I first opened my law practice twenty-five years ago, I knew that I would concentrate in one area—elder law. There are many benefits to...
Protecting Your Assets from Medicaid
For years, I have been using an irrevocable trust to protect a client’s home from the cost of long-term care. I successfully used such a trust to...
Having an Estate Plan
In my lifetime, several United States presidents have passed away, and one thing I notice about presidents is, each of them planned out their...
New Year’s Estate Planning Resolutions
It’s another new year. Many of us will enter resolutions with ourselves—either spoken or unspoken—things we want to accomplish in the new year. I...
Will I Pay Estate Tax?
The new year is upon us, and with that, the federal government has issued new numbers for the credit equivalent against federal estate and gift tax....
One Guardian or More Than One?
I have been practicing elder law for twenty-five years. During that time, I have been involved in hundreds (if not thousands) of guardianship...
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Living Documents
For more than 26 years, I have practiced elder law in New Jersey. Over that time, I have drafted tens of thousands of estate-planning documents—last wills and testaments, financial general durable powers of attorney, and advance health care directives. These documents...
Gift and Estate Tax: The Boogeyman
Beginning in 2026, the federal lifetime exclusion against gift and estate tax is scheduled to increase to $15,000,000 per individual. In simple terms, this means that a person can give away—or die owning—up to $15 million in assets without paying any federal gift or...
Understanding the Role of a Guardian in New Jersey
Planning for the future is something many people postpone until it is too late. In New Jersey, when an individual becomes unable to manage their own personal, financial, or health-related affairs, the absence of proper planning can lead to the need for a...
Why Everyone Should Have a Power of Attorney
Few legal documents offer more practical protection than a Durable General Power of Attorney (POA). It ensures that someone you trust can manage your finances if you become ill, incapacitated, or simply unavailable to sign a document. Yet many residents of New Jersey...
Why a Revocable Trust Can Save You Headaches
When people hear the term “trust,” they often think about taxes, wealth, or complicated legal maneuvers. But the most practical reason for creating a revocable living trust is much simpler: avoiding probate in other states. Probate in New Jersey: Quick and Easy Here...
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