News & Articles

Postnuptial Agreements for Estate Planning

March 29th, 2016

Americans are familiar with prenuptial agreements that detail how a couple's property will be divided in the event of a divorce or death. In most states spouses can reach similar agreements after they get married. The Wall Street Journal reports… Read More

Tags: estate planning, Postnuptial Agreement, probate, , succession, trust, will

Hospice Director Charged with Murder

March 28th, 2016

Hospices are supposed to provide humane end of life care. Most do. However, one hospice in Texas shows why we should always be vigilant in protecting against abuse of the elderly. Monica Patterson was the director of a hospice in Edinburg, Texas. It… Read More

Tags: aging issues, care, Elder Abuse, Elder Law, help, home care, hospice, law, long-term care, nursing home

New Nursing Home Quality Measurements

March 25th, 2016

The federal government has announced six new measurements for its system of comparing the quality of care patients receive at nursing homes. Anyone interested in information about the quality of a nursing home can go to Medicare's website and us… Read More

Tags: care, Elder Abuse, Elder Law, homes, housing, level of care, long-term care, Medicaid, Medicare, Nursing Homes, quality of care, Special Needs, weblogs

Japan Debating Living Wills

March 24th, 2016

The right to refuse life-extending medical care is well-established in the U.S. Millions of Americans have living wills instructing doctors not to give them certain kinds of treatment. In Japan the idea is a novel one and being hotly debated. In the… Read More

Tags: aging issues, estate planning, Living Will, power of attorney, web blogs, Wills

Gaddafi's Estate in Limbo

March 23rd, 2016

Muammar Gaddafi's son might have stolen money from the Libyan government and stashed it in a foreign bank. The new Libyan government would like it back, but questions over the legitimacy of the new government make that difficult. Muammar Gaddafi… Read More

Tags: Estate, International Law

Nursing Homes Abandoning Residents

March 22nd, 2016

Under federal law if a nursing home patient goes to a hospital and the nursing home subsequently refuses to readmit the resident, the resident is entitled to an administrative hearing conducted by state government. However, even when residents win th… Read More

Tags: Elder Abuse, Elder Law, hospitals, long-term care, Medicaid, Nursing Homes, senior care

Should Dave Ramsey Be Regulated?

March 21st, 2016

The Department of Labor's pending regulation concerning financial planners who handle retirement accounts has caused some concern that popular media figures like Dave Ramsey might be censored. Elder law advocates have long been concerned that pe… Read More

Tags: advice, Elder Law, estate planning, financial advisors, free advice, laws, radio, Retirement

When You Must Withdraw From an Inherited IRA

March 18th, 2016

Many people are under a false impression that they do not need to make withdrawals from an IRA they have inherited until they would have to take withdrawals from an IRA they initiated. To avoid penalties it is important to understand the rules. If yo… Read More

Tags: Inheritance, Inherited IRA, withdraw

The Percentage of Income You Might Get From Social Security

March 17th, 2016

Social Security is designed to be a pension system that replaces income when people retire. However, it is not designed to be a full pension that replaces your entire income. It is therefore important to know what percentage of your current monthly i… Read More

Tags: Elder Law, Retirement,

Should You Take Social Security at 67?

March 16th, 2016

One of the most important decisions that seniors make is when to start taking Social Security benefits. The full retirement age for most people is 67, but that does not necessarily mean that everyone should wait to start benefits until then. American… Read More

Tags: age, benefits, Elder Law, money,