Addressing Your
Elder Law Needs
The Elder Law Needs
Planning the Next Step
If you have not made a will or established a trust for your assets, our lawyers can help. We will also advise you about creating powers of attorney, advance directives and guardianships to handle financial and medical assistance decisions should you become unable to make those decisions.
When the time comes to select a nursing home or assisted living facility, our lawyers can help you understand what to look for when selecting a living situation. We will also help you with the paperwork required by the facility and review the contracts. We consider it our privilege to offer additional legal assistance to those who have previously relied on us as clients and to new clients alike.
Special Needs Planning
Providing For Loved Ones With Special Needs
At Walsh & Company, we help our clients provide for the ongoing care and support of loved ones with special needs. Children and adults with developmental disabilities may not get what they need from a simple will or basic estate planning tools. It takes knowledgeable advice and proper planning to ensure maximum protection for the people who are most important to you. Since our firm was founded, people have relied on us to help them accomplish their goals in estate planning and trust matters.
Many parents worry about what will happen when they are no longer able to care for their child with special needs. Programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) may be available to meet basic needs, but only if your child is eligible. Without proper planning, you can actually disqualify your son or daughter from receiving public money. We help clients establish special needs trusts to provide the support your child needs, while preserving their access to public benefits.
We can explain your options and help you create a trust to serve your interests. You can create a trust that allows other people to make contributions. You can choose a trustee who will serve your child’s needs and obey your guidelines with fidelity. You can fund your trust in a way to protect your child from fraud. We can help you make the right decisions to protect your loved ones.
Maryland Guardianship Attorneys
Where will your child live? How will he or she make ends meet? Who will be responsible for the care and attention your child needs? At Walsh & Company, our lawyers have the skill and experience to help you answer these questions. We have a thorough understanding of special needs planning.
Medicaid
Addressing Your Medicaid Planning Needs
Are you considering long-term care for yourself or a loved one? At first glance, the expenses involved in medical assistance and nursing care can seem prohibitive. However, help may be available through Medicaid assistance.
Our goal is to make sure you or your loved one are always properly cared for. The costs of long-term care or medical care can be high, so it is important to plan for such expenses. Our qualified attorneys understand the Medicaid requirements for our area and are able to assist you with qualifying for Medicaid while protecting your assets.
If you have been researching Medicaid, you may realize there is an overabundance of information available. What this information may not demonstrate is the importance of proper planning. By preparing yourself and your estate, you may be able to protect your legacy and still qualify for long-term care under Medicaid.
The truth is that Medicaid is a government-assistance program for low-income and middle-income senior citizens and for chronically disabled persons. Each state manages its own program, so requirements and benefits may vary. Yet, regardless of your locale, Medicaid has stringent eligibility guidelines.
At Walsh & Company, our attorneys understand the complexities of the Medicaid claim system as well as your concerns about eligibility. We know you want to protect your assets and preserve your estate. That is why we have included Medicaid planning as a focus area of our practice.
Senior Service
Providing Advice And Assistance For Senior Clients
Sometimes our elderly clients find they need services that are beyond those normally handled by a law firm, but they don’t have a family member available to help.
We consider it our privilege to extend additional help to those clients who have relied on us for legal services. Advanced age can be a challenge to anyone, but it can be especially difficult when there are no family members the elderly person can call on. Our senior services attorneys provide caring, understanding elder law services to our clients.
- Reviewing living situations for suitability
- Helping in the search for appropriate assisted living or nursing home facilities
- Moving the elderly person to a new residence
- Disposition of household goods
- Assisting with healthcare needs and medical appointments
- Helping with personal shopping needs
- Paying bills and meeting ongoing financial obligations
Guardianships
Helping Families Address Guardianship Needs
When an elderly person can no longer make essential financial and medical decisions, a guardian may need to be appointed to make those decisions. Often a family member will be the guardian. At other times a trusted friend will be selected. Establishing the guardian relationship requires careful attention to detail and full respect for the dignity and care of the elderly person involved.
Sometimes a special needs child will require a guardian to handle financial, education, and/or healthcare decisions. Our guardianship attorneys know how to handle the process and help everyone involved understand their rights and obligations, including the periodic accounting that must be made to the court.
At Walsh & Company, we have the experience to set up guardianship accounts, instruct and advise guardians about their responsibilities, and close accounts when they are no longer needed.