What Can We Do If the Spouse of a Medicaid Applicant Won’t Provide Financial Information?

My father-in-law is in a nursing home that costs $7,000 a month. We have spent through all of our savings and retirement funds to pay for the nursing home. I now want to apply for Medicaid for him. He receives $1,900 in monthly income, and he has very little money in a checking account (around $500) and no money in sav...

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What Happens When a Beneficiary Designation Differs from What Is Stated in the Will?

I have a brother and half-brother who are both beneficiaries of my parents’ estate along with me. My parents’ will stated that certain investment accounts were to be divided into thirds and certain accounts were to be divided in half, depending on how or when they were acquired. In researching their investments, howeve...

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Is It Legal for My Mother to Name Her Financial Advisor as a Beneficiary in Her Will?

My mother named her financial adviser and his children as beneficiaries in her will. Is it legal for her attorney to allow this?

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Is There Anything We Can Do if a Hospital Wants to Discharge My Father to a Nursing Home Instead of to an Inpatient Rehab Facility?

My father had a stroke last week, and the hospital he is in wants to discharge him to the local nursing home, which has a bed for rehab. Our family wants him to go to an inpatient rehab facility for more intense physical therapy than he can get at a nursing home. The hospital is putting pressure on my mother and father...

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What Is in a Typical Elder Law Attorney Agreement?

Can you recommend a source for a typical agreement with an elder law attorney? We realize every agreement is unique, but we would like to compare our attorney's proposed language. We are particularly interested in deliverables and reasonable percent of fees to be paid in advance.

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Can We Pay Off My Grandmother’s Medicaid Estate Recovery Over Time Instead of in a Lump Sum?

My grandmother died with a substantial Medicaid bill. She inherited an income-producing property from her father. The total amount her estate owes to Medicaid is more than the value of the property. Will Medicaid allow the estate to pay off the debt over time or will it force the estate to sell the property for less th...

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Should I Reassign Ownership of My Life Insurance Policy to My Trust and Change the Beneficiaries to the Trust?

If I create a living trust, should I reassign the ownership of my life insurance policies to the living trust? I think I need to at least change the beneficiaries of the life insurance policies to the living trust, right? 

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What Can We Do If the Executor Decides to Ignore the Will and Keep Money for Herself?

My eldest sister is the executor of our mother’s estate. She found additional money that belonged to my mother. She is not following my mother’s will and dividing the additional money between all siblings. Instead, she said she is keeping it for herself because she has suffered the most. What can we do?

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Can an Executor and Trustee Sell Property Without Getting the Beneficiary’s Approval?

My brother is executor of our parents’ estates. Both parents are now deceased. The trust provides that all assets in the trust are to be divided equally. Can he sell property and put the value of the property in the estate pool without my signature or approval?

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Father Executed Two Powers of Attorney. Which One Is Valid?

My father-in-law named son #1 his agent under a power of attorney while he was living with that son. Now he lives with son #2 and he named son #2 as agent under a second power of attorney. Which of the two powers of attorney is valid?

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