DDD Tag

Funding a first party Special Needs Trust with alimony, an inheritance, or a personal injury settlement can preserve those assets for benefit of a person who is receiving or applying for means-tested government benefits such as SSI, DDD or Medicaid/MLTSS. There is quite a process to establish the trust and then fund it with these assets. But that’s just the beginning — not the end....

When a minor who has disabilities reaches age 18 and is incapacitated, their parent or custodian will typically file for Guardianship. In some cases, the minor has assets under Court control that are held in a guardianship court account through the county Surrogate. These might be assets that were received through a prior personal injury lawsuit award or settlement, or assets that the  minor...

There are times that an individual with disabilities who is under 65 receives a lump sum of money at a time when s/he is receiving benefits through Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid or the Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD). The problem of course is that those are all means-tested benefits and the participant is at risk of losing eligibility if they retain the assets....

Some people who are disabled receive a modest amount of Social Security Disability benefits and also receive Supplemental Security income (SSI). To be eligible for SSI, the total countable income in a given month must not exceed certain amounts that are set annually. If one receives at least a dollar of SSI, s/he can receive Medicaid for health insurance. Effective January 1, 2015, the Social...

When it comes to designing an estate plan there is no “one size fits all” because each family is unique. You may have a young adult child with profound disabilities who will never be self sufficient and will require extensive support. Or you may have a child who is developing a certain degree of independence with work activity or ability to live outside your home despite their...

I recently came across information about special programs events that may be of interest to you if you are caring for or assisting a family member who has special needs. The events took place in November in the greater Essex-Morris-Union county areas but they are the beginning of what will be many programs on these issues that will be run through the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest....

Legislation is pending in the Congress concerning the payment of a veteran’s survivor benefits. Under current law, a veteran’s survivor benefits which are payable to the veteran’s children must be paid directly to the beneficiary. If the beneficiary is disabled and is dependent upon other governmental benefits which are means-tested, this could cause the recipient to be...

There is a bill concerning Guardianship actions that was passed by the State Senate that is awaiting action by the State Assembly, called S-1957. http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2014/Bills/S2000/1957_I1.HTM. The State Senate passed it with amendments which are described here: 1957_S2 Legislative status can be found at http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bills/BillView.asp This bill concerns the proofs...

When a petition for guardianship is filed in NJ, the examining physicians, the court-appointed attorney for the alleged incapacitated person, and the Court are required to consider whether the person lacks the capacity “to care for himself” and to “manage his affairs” in some or all domains. See N.J.S.A. 3B:12-24.1b (the statute) and N.J. R. 4:86-2(b) and 4:86-4(b)...