Elder Law

What do you do if you can’t find the Will? Your loved one has passed away, you have pulled yourself through the mourning period, and now you are ready to tackle the estate. You remember that your loved one had a Will — maybe they kept mentioning it, or maybe you knew that they had signed it at their lawyer’s office at some point. You remember that they had told you they were...

These trying times have spurred New Jersey to venture into new ways to get things done. The lock-down has made it difficult for individuals in hospitals or nursing facilities, or people quarantined in their homes due to recent exposure to COVID-19 — as well as many others — to get documents notarized. Along with Powers of Attorney, Deeds, new investment account paperwork, insurance...

A Last Will and Testament designates an Executor who has legal authority to handle the estate assets. The Will also specifies who receives what, and in what way; the language of the Will specifies if the share is to be put in a Trust or is to pass outright, and who will receive the share if the named beneficiary has died. If assets are jointly owned or if they have named beneficiaries, they...

Advance planning with powers of attorney and health care powers of attorney is a good way to ensure that there is an authorized person to handle things and make decisions should a person become incapacitated due to stroke, accident or dementia. Of course there are plenty of situations in which no such documents were ever signed. When a person without such planning documents becomes...

You may wonder, “can I employ my daughter if she is living with me?” According to the National Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were over 3 million personal care aides and home health aides in the labor force in 2018, the most recent year for which data are available. In the State of New Jersey, over 41,000 people were employed in this occupation. AARP’s 2016 national survey...

Medicaid Eligibility SinceThe Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) Of 2005, s.1932, CHAPTER 2by Linda Ershow-Levenberg, Certified Elder Law Attorney (C.E.L.A.)Updated August, 2020Practice Area: MedicaidSeniors and their families need to be aware of the legal landscape for individuals who potentially will require nursing home care in the next five years. The...

What To Do If Medicaid Benefits Are at Risk of Terminationby Linda Ershow-Levenberg, Certified Elder Law Attorney (C.E.L.A.)Updated August, 2020Practice Area: MedicaidA married nursing home resident has been on Medicaid for years. His “community spouse” passes away. What will happen next?An unmarried Medicaid recipient is receiving community...

As the CARES Act implementation gears up, one question that we elder law attorneys have had  was how the cash payments would affect ongoing eligibility for means-tested benefits like SSI and Medicaid. These are the “economic impact payments” being sent to taxpayers.  If you get benefits from a program with a resource limit of $2000 and you get another $1,200 automatically, will...

Social Security Rules You May Not Know Aboutby Linda Ershow-Levenberg, Certified Elder Law Attorney (C.E.L.A.)Updated August, 2020Practice Area: Elder LawThere are many protections built into the Social Security system for insured individuals and their family members. In some cases, an individual didn’t pay into the system long enough to be...