Author: Linda Ershow-Levenberg

People often wonder what happens to someone’s stored digital data such as emails, electronic banking, or facebook accounts if the person dies. This has been a vexing problem for surviving family members who wish to read or save that data as part of the family legacy. The federal Stored Communications Act (“SCA”), which is 18 USC 2701 et seq,  prohibits disclosure of the...

  It is not uncommon for nursing home admissions contracts to include provisions requiring the resident to consent to binding arbitration of any dispute. In this recent case in Wyoming, the question was the enforceability of an optional arbitration clause. The nursing home admission contract for Aletha Boyd was signed by her Agent under a General Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) which...

Tenants who reside in Section 8 housing must certify to their household income every year, because the rent is based on the income. A recent case addressed a termination of eligibility for Section 8 due to willful misrepresentation on the application, coupled with the defense that the misrepresentation was due to the tenant’s severe depression and thus required an accommodation under the...

The entry of a Judgment appointing a legal Guardian for an incapacitated person may be the end of the court process, but it marks the start of a new process in which the Guardian has many obligations and responsibilities. After all, the Guardian’s primary obligation is to protect the personal and financial interests of the ward. One of these responsibilities is to “let the world...

An applicant for Medicaid to pay for nursing home care is not eligible if the available resources exceed a certain level. The regulations for New Jersey Medicaid specify how joint accounts are treated: “All funds in the account are resources to the individual, so long as he or she has unrestricted access to the funds (that is, an “or” account) regardless of their source. When...

Eligibility for Medicaid to pay for nursing home care or community care is all about the numbers. Starting January 1, 2018, the Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA) for the community spouse of a married Medicaid applicant is being raised to $123,600 (from $120,900 in 2017).  This is the amount of countable available resources that the community spouse can have as of the date they want...

Veterans and their families may be aware that property tax exemption is available for 100% service-connected disabled veterans and disabled veterans suffering with certain specific severe conditions. The state law is found at N.J.S.A. 54:4-3.30.The law also makes these exemptions available to the veteran’s surviving spouse:  ” b. (1) The surviving spouse of any such citizen and...

It almost goes without saying that if your loved one is admitted to a health care facility, somebody outside of the institution needs to immerse themselves in the treatment & care planning process, read the chart on an ongoing basis, know what’s being prescribed, speak with the care providers or treatment team frequently, and demand answers to reasonable questions about What is being...

Today I had the great fortune to participate in a case in which a person who has been under guardianship for six years had their capacity restored in full.  This kind of situation doesn’t often happen, but it’s really fabulous. This case started in 2010 when the parent and sibling came to me in an emergency to report that their loved one who I’ll call “X” had...

A person who has been appointed as administrator of an estate or Executor under a Last Will and Testament is appointed to their role by either the Surrogate’s Court or Surrogate’s office. I’ve previously blogged about the steps to take if a fiduciary wants to quit the job. Previously, it was necessary to file a formal Complaint in Superior Court on notice to the...