Annuities can be valuable retirement and longevity planning tools, but they are complex financial products that can be misused. There are two kinds of annuities: variable and immediate. Variable annuities have gotten a bad reputation in recent years because they are often sold to people, especially seniors, for whom they are inappropriate. Immediate annuities, on […]
Over the last two decades, changes in the estate tax laws have caused a great shift in the focus of estate planning. At one time, the primary issue was avoiding a 55% estate tax rate on a relatively modest level of assets. For example, in 1995 the federal estate tax exemption was only $600,000. Back […]
Do you want to use your IRA to help a charity, but also benefit your heirs? Instead of leaving your IRA directly to your children, you can leave it to a charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT) while still benefiting your children. With rules about inherited IRAs potentially in flux, this may be an attractive estate planning […]
In December 2014, the federal government enacted a new law called “The Achieving a Better Life Experience Act” (“ABLE”). The general premise of ABLE is to permit certain disabled individuals to set up a special bank account that would be disregarded as an asset for most federal public benefits, such as Medicaid. This would allow […]
Life Care Planning Lawyers – CT While there is currently no national tracking of instances of financial exploitation of elders, a recent study conducted by the National Institute of Justice found that about 60 percent of the study’s adults over the age of 60 had been targeted by scams. Additionally, many seniors find themselves victimized […]
has been extensive media coverage on the life and death of legendary actor, Robin Williams. One recent revelation made about one year following his sudden death was that Williams had been living with Lewy Body dementia (LBD). What does that really mean? When most people hear about dementia, they associate it with Alzheimer’s disease. But […]
There are some misconceptions around the role of Adult Protective Services (APS) in the lives of vulnerable adults. Discussions of involvement of APS can elicit feelings of fear or anger due to the assumption that involuntary changes will then occur. A recent fact sheet developed by the National Center on Elder Abuse located at the […]
Changes to Probate Court Funding in Connecticut Prior to the start of the State of Connecticut’s current fiscal year that began on July 1, the State’s General Assembly made some important changes to how the state’s Probate Courts are funded. The new budget reduces state funding for the Probate Courts down to zero for the […]
At Weatherby & Associates, PC, we encourage our clients and their families to “be the squeaky wheel” and to never hesitate to advocate for patient rights for nursing home residents. That is one of the overall recommendations outlined in the 2005 Justice in Aging piece called “20 Common Nursing Home Problems—and How to Solve Them.” […]
Navigating the care of a loved one in a skilled nursing facility can seem very daunting for family members and friends entrusted with the role of advocate. Justice in Aging compiled a handbook called “20 Common Nursing Home Problems—and How to Resolve Them.” So far, we have outlined 10 of the 20 problems identified in […]