LAW OFFICE OF PAUL J. FELLIN

Practice Areas

What we do?

 

Compassionate during a stressful time.

 

A life deserves respect.

The type of respect that a legacy, whether you consider it small or large, includes compassion as wishes are laid out. Whether you've been planning for decades or this is a last second decision, our experience with the law and with people provides the type of focus and expertise your legacy deserves.  This time can be extremely stressful and you should receive the guidance you deserve.

Elder Law is a practice area devoted to servicing the needs of the growing aging population.

An Elder Law attorney must be knowledgeable in many areas of the law, including guardianships, long-term care planning, advance health care directives, powers of attorney, estate planning, probate and trust administration, asset protection, special needs trusts and planning, and elder abuse.  Elder law attorneys incorporate many features of planning, including quality of life, financial planning, health and long-term care. Our purpose is to preserve your assets while you are still alive and to make sure you have the best quality of life in many aspects. We are able to help with a variety of issues, including:

Medicaid Asset Protection

  • Laws have been enacted that severely restrict the eligibility of seniors and the disabled to receive Medicaid coverage to pay for skyrocketing costs of nursing home care.  The current laws have set the lookback period at 5 years for all types of transfers, whether it’s a transfer to a trust or directly to a family member.  Medicaid will now look back 5 years from the date of your entry into a nursing home in attempt to penalize any transfers of assets you may have made.  The average cost of a nursing home is nearly $15,000 per month, so Medicaid is practically a necessity for all people entering a nursing home.  Even people with long term care insurance will generally have to turn to Medicaid to supplement bills that their insurance will not cover as the costs of nursing homes have far exceeded the average insurance coverage amounts.

Protection of Home

  • For most seniors, the most important asset is their home.  Without proper planning in place, your home could be exposed to claims by both nursing homes and Medicaid.  However, proactive planning with our assistance can help safeguard your home for future generations.

    One technique is the creation of a “Medicaid Trust.”  You can transfer the remainder interest of your home into a trust without giving up the right to live in the home for life.  You keep tax savings from STAR exemptions and eliminate capital gains taxes upon the sale of the home after your death.

Protection of Other Assets

  • This “Medicaid Trust” is also able to hold all types of financial accounts.  You would take your executed trust agreement to your bank or financial advisor and a new account would be opened up in the name of the trust.  The account would then be funded with whatever amount of assets you choose.  You would appoint one or more people to serve as trustee and they would be vested with the power to manage the assets in the trust account. 

    Under the terms of the trust, you are entitled to receive any income generated by the trust account.  The trustee is empowered to withdraw any principal for the benefit of any beneficiary of the trust.  This is a useful tool if there is an emergency situation in which you are in need of a large sum of money from the trust account.  The trustee is able to withdraw principal and distribute it to one or more beneficiaries.  The beneficiaries are entitled to gift that money back to you.  Thus, you do not lose all ability to access principal if the need arises.

    The trust is assigned a tax id number and will file a tax return at the end of the year.  However, since you are entitled to the income generated by the trust, that income will be taxed on your personal return and the trust will not have an income tax liability.  This is a major benefit as a personal income tax rate is often lower than the trust rate.

Timetable for Trust Creation

  • You should do this while still in good health to get the clock ticking in your favor.  Once 5 years has expired, your home and any financial accounts place into the trust will be totally exempt assets that would not be subject to any claims from Medicaid or a nursing home should you receive it.

Probate and Estate Administration

 

Probate and Estate Administration focuses on marshalling, securing, coordinating, and finalizing one’s financial affairs after their death. If the Descendent had a Last Will and Testament, then the fiduciary must Probate the Will in Surrogate’s Court. Where there is no Last Will and Testament, the next of kin must proceed with Estate Administration in the same court.  The authority is granted by the Surrogate's Court for probate and intestate administration. The authority to administer the estate begins once Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration issue from the Surrogate's Court.

We are committed to expeditiously and efficiently handling your Probate and Estate Administration needs.  We will assist you with filing all necessary documents with the Surrogate’s Court in order to have a fiduciary appointed on behalf of the estate.  Once appointed we can assist you in collecting all estate assets and preparation for final distribution to the beneficiaries.

Real Estate

 

We represent sellers and buyers, to handle a wide variety of real estate transactions, including the representation of clients in connection with the purchase and sale of residential property; sale of real estate in connection with the administration of an Estate; and acquisition and sale of residential property as part of a larger estate plan..

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Elder law

Estate Planning

Estate Planning is the process for having smooth family transfer of assets upon your death with the least emotional strain. It is the means by which your wishes are properly followed.  The following items are important things to keep in mind when creating a basic estate plan:

Power of Attorney

  • A Power of Attorney is a document that authorizes another to handle your financial affairs prior to your death.  This document is crucial to ensure your financial matters can be effectively managed should you become incapacitated.  

Health Care Proxy

  • A Health Care Proxy is a document that authorizes your agent to speak on your behalf as to any healthcare decisions in the event you become unable or unwilling to make decisions. You typically set forth instructions for the agent to follow and vest them with authority to undertake certain decisions on your behalf.

Will or Trust

  • Your Will or Trust sets forth your wishes upon your demise and also points the person or persons in whom you trust to carry out your wishes.

Joint Ownership

  • Property owned jointly may be owned in two different ways: (1) as joint tenants with rights of survivorship (JTWROS) which provides that the survivor of the joint owners takes it all; (2) as tenants in common (TIC) which provides that each owner owns his or her individual share and it does not go to the survivor but to the Estate of the owner who died.

Beneficiary Designation

  • Many assets have a direct beneficiary named such as life insurance, annuities, retirement accounts and pension plans. Such assets pass to that beneficiary and will not be controlled by the terms of your will or trust.

What Are My First Steps?

  1. Create a detailed list of assets including the value of the asset, any liens against the asset, in whose name the asset is held and any beneficiary of the asset.
  2. Create a family tree with dates of birth for children or grandchildren under the age of 21.
  3. Consider and discuss with your spouse and or family the person whom you would trust as Executor of the estate, as Trustee of any trusts, Guardian of any minor children Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy.
  4. Think about any special bequests or burial arrangements you may have.
  5. Think about who you want to receive your residual estate, i.e., everything else you own.

Meeting with your Attorney

  • Once you have begun the process, it is time to meet with an experienced estate planning attorney.   We will be able to prepare drafts of documents for your review based upon your meeting. Once you are satisfied that the document represents a true expression of your wishes, we will supervise the signing of the documents.

 

  • Discussing wills and their importance, along with estate planning and probate proceedings

    Produce powers of attorney

    Help with health care and planning, health care proxies, Medicare and patients’ rights

    Provide financial representation in regards to financial planning, estate, income, retirement, et cetera

    Assist with locating long-term care, either at home or in an institution and help file any claims

  • Assist with the preparation of Medicaid applications for home care and/or institutional care benefits

  • Help with selecting and appointing a legal guardian

  • Clarify patients’ rights when living in a nursing home and file any necessary claims

  • Draw up a living will

  • Elder Law Asset Protection