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Susan R. Grady

Law Office of Susan R. Grady

Susan R. Grady

Law Office of Susan R. Grady

Susan R. Grady

Law Office of Susan R. Grady

Attorney Susan R. Grady is a solo practitioner who concentrates her practice in Elder Law (protection of assets from nursing home and preparation of Medicaid applications), Probate Law, Estate Planning and Administration, Wills, Trusts, and Seller Representation. She received her B.A. degree in 1986 from College of the Holy Cross and her J.D. degree from Massachusetts School of Law in 1995. She served as the judicial intern for the Honorable Thaddeus Buczko, First Justice of the Essex County Probate and Family Court (1995) prior to opening her own law practice in Topsfield, Massachusetts. Attorney Grady is licensed to practice in Massachusetts, in the U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts, and she is a Notary Public. She is a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association (Probate Law and Tax Sections) and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Massachusetts Chapter.

My firm is sensitive and committed to advising you in estate planning, probate law (representing estates and personal representatives), and elder law (Medicaid/MassHealth planning and the protection of your home from nursing home costs with the use of irrevocable income-only trust(s), and, completion of long-term-care MassHealth (Medicaid) applications).
I am happy to meet with you and your family at your home, at the hospital, at the assisted living facility, or at the nursing home if that is more comfortable for you.

EDUCATION:

College of the Holy Cross, A.B., 1986
Massachusetts School of Law, J.D., 1995

BAR MEMBERSHIPS:

Commonwealth of Massachusetts 1995, U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts 1996

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:

National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) - Massachusetts Chapter
Massachusetts Bar Association - Probate Law and Tax Sections

Firm Description

  • Estate and Long-Term-Care Planning, including Wills, Irrevocable Income-Only Trust(s) for Medicaid protection, Revocable Trust(s), Funding/Re-titling your assets in your Trust(s), including real estate (re-titling of non-retirement assets to trust and making the proper beneficiary designations for retirement planning assets), Durable Power of Attorneys, Health Care Proxies, HIPAA Release Authorizations, and Living Will Declarations
  • Probate Law (representing Personal Representatives and Estates of loved ones who have passed away/estate and trust administration)
  • Elder Law (MassHealth/Medicaid Planning and the protection of your home and other assets from nursing home costs (with a strategy known as the Income-Only Irrevocable Trust), Preparation of MassHealth/Medicaid long-term-care applications
  • Real Estate - Seller representation, Purchase and Sale Agreements, Deed preparation, Homestead Declaration(s) 

Hours

Day From To
Monday 8:30 AM 5:30 PM
Tuesday 8:30 AM 5:30 PM
Wednesday 8:30 AM 5:30 PM
Thursday 8:30 AM 5:30 PM
Friday 8:30 AM 5:30 PM
Saturday By Appointment Only

Cost

What Is an Elder Law Attorney?

Main Office

9 South Main Street #108
Topsfield, MA 01983

On the web

View Firm Website


Medicaid 101
What Medicaid Covers

In addition to nursing home care, Medicaid may cover home care and some care in an assisted living facility. Coverage in your state may depend on waivers of federal rules.

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How to Qualify for Medicaid

To be eligible for Medicaid long-term care, recipients must have limited incomes and no more than $2,000 (in most states). Special rules apply for the home and other assets.

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Medicaid’s Protections for Spouses

Spouses of Medicaid nursing home residents have special protections to keep them from becoming impoverished.

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What Medicaid Covers

In addition to nursing home care, Medicaid may cover home care and some care in an assisted living facility. Coverage in your state may depend on waivers of federal rules.

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How to Qualify for Medicaid

To be eligible for Medicaid long-term care, recipients must have limited incomes and no more than $2,000 (in most states). Special rules apply for the home and other assets.

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Medicaid’s Protections for Spouses

Spouses of Medicaid nursing home residents have special protections to keep them from becoming impoverished.

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Medicaid Planning Strategies

Careful planning for potentially devastating long-term care costs can help protect your estate, whether for your spouse or for your children.

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Estate Recovery: Can Medicaid Take My House After I’m Gone?

If steps aren't taken to protect the Medicaid recipient's house from the state’s attempts to recover benefits paid, the house may need to be sold.

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Help Qualifying and Paying for Medicaid, Or Avoiding Nursing Home Care

There are ways to handle excess income or assets and still qualify for Medicaid long-term care, and programs that deliver care at home rather than in a nursing home.

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Are Adult Children Responsible for Their Parents’ Care?

Most states have laws on the books making adult children responsible if their parents can't afford to take care of themselves.

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Applying for Medicaid

Applying for Medicaid is a highly technical and complex process, and bad advice can actually make it more difficult to qualify for benefits.

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Alternatives to Medicaid

Medicare's coverage of nursing home care is quite limited. For those who can afford it and who can qualify for coverage, long-term care insurance is the best alternative to Medicaid.

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ElderLaw 101
Estate Planning

Distinguish the key concepts in estate planning, including the will, the trust, probate, the power of attorney, and how to avoid estate taxes.

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Grandchildren

Learn about grandparents’ visitation rights and how to avoid tax and public benefit issues when making gifts to grandchildren.

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Guardianship/Conservatorship

Understand when and how a court appoints a guardian or conservator for an adult who becomes incapacitated, and how to avoid guardianship.

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Health Care Decisions

We need to plan for the possibility that we will become unable to make our own medical decisions. This may take the form of a health care proxy, a medical directive, a living will, or a combination of these.

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Estate Planning

Distinguish the key concepts in estate planning, including the will, the trust, probate, the power of attorney, and how to avoid estate taxes.

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Grandchildren

Learn about grandparents’ visitation rights and how to avoid tax and public benefit issues when making gifts to grandchildren.

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Guardianship/Conservatorship

Understand when and how a court appoints a guardian or conservator for an adult who becomes incapacitated, and how to avoid guardianship.

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Health Care Decisions

We need to plan for the possibility that we will become unable to make our own medical decisions. This may take the form of a health care proxy, a medical directive, a living will, or a combination of these.

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Long-Term Care Insurance

Understand the ins and outs of insurance to cover the high cost of nursing home care, including when to buy it, how much to buy, and which spouse should get the coverage.

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Medicare

Learn who qualifies for Medicare, what the program covers, all about Medicare Advantage, and how to supplement Medicare’s coverage.

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Retirement Planning

We explain the five phases of retirement planning, the difference between a 401(k) and an IRA, types of investments, asset diversification, the required minimum distribution rules, and more.

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Senior Living

Find out how to choose a nursing home or assisted living facility, when to fight a discharge, the rights of nursing home residents, all about reverse mortgages, and more.

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Social Security

Get a solid grounding in Social Security, including who is eligible, how to apply, spousal benefits, the taxation of benefits, how work affects payments, and SSDI and SSI.

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Special Needs Planning

Learn how a special needs trust can preserve assets for a person with disabilities without jeopardizing Medicaid and SSI, and how to plan for when caregivers are gone.

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Veterans Benefits

Explore benefits for older veterans, including the VA’s disability pension benefit, aid and attendance, and long-term care coverage for veterans and surviving spouses.

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