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DO YOUR CHILDREN KNOW WHAT TO DO IN AN EMERGENCY?

Davidov Law Group

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If you have a medical emergency and have to be hospitalized, where do you want your loved ones to be? Would you rather have them at the hospital talking to the doctors and hospital staff about your important medical issues, or would you rather your loved ones be at home frantically searching for your important health care documents?

Of course, you would rather have your loved ones at the hospital with you. However, in order to make sure that they can be there and assist with your health care decisions, then you not only need a Health Care Proxy, but you also need to make sure that your family knows where to find it in an emergency. For that to happen, they need to know that you have a Health Care Proxy, who you have designated to act on your behalf, and where you keep the Health Care Proxy. This makes sure that the person you have designated has the document to show the hospital staff as soon as possible. That way, if a decision needs to be made right away, your designated agent can make it.

Talk to an attorney about getting a Health Care Proxy, and then let your family know about it.

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ome big changes in your life are easy to recognize. When you have your first child, for example, you know that your life has dramatically changed. At these times, it is easy to see why you need to update your estate plan to reflect the changes.

However, there are other changes in your life that are harder to recognize because they occur gradually. For example, in your career, you will probably have many different raises and promotions. Each one individually is not a big change, but cumulatively the change can be quite dramatic. Because the change in income has taken place over such a long period of time, it is easy to downplay its significance. However, if you think about the change in income from the beginning of your career to now, you might see that it is very significant.

Income is just one thing in your life that you can gradually change over time. Think about other ways that your life has changed over time, especially since the last time that you updated your estate plan. If there have been significant changes, contact an experienced estate planning attorney and get an updated estate plan that takes those changes into account.

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The Supreme Court’s recent decision to uphold the Affordable Car Act effects more than just your health care and your health insurance. It could also have important implications for your estate plan that you should talk to an estate planning attorney about.

The Affordable Care Act implements a new 3.8% surtax on investment income, including investment income of estates and Trusts that is not distributed to heirs and beneficiaries. It only applies to net investment income over approximately $12,000. Of course, any investment income that is distributed to heirs and beneficiaries will be applied to calculate their potential liability for the new tax. This new investment income surtax goes into effect January 1, 2013.

The estate tax is also scheduled to change at the same time. Both of these tax issues could effect your current estate plan, so you need to review your estate plan with your attorney before the end of this year and make any necessary changes to your plan. You cannot afford to wait until the tax changes go into effect. Prepare for the new laws now, so that you and your estate do not face an unexpected tax next year.

Davidov Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

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Do you know what your parents’ plans are to pay for long term care in a nursing home? Do your parents even have plans for the possibility? These are questions that you need to know the answers to. I’m sure you are aware that you can be forced by law to pay for the care for your children. What you might not know is that 29 states have laws that can force you to pay for the long term care of your parents, even if you do not live in those states.

Known as Filial Support laws, these laws have provisions that allow nursing homes to seek reimbursement from relatives of those in the nursing homes’ care. Some courts have ruled that nursing homes can recover from relatives who live out of state. The important thing is where the nursing home is located, not where the relatives live.

Long term care in a nursing home is exceedingly expensive. Make sure that your parents have a plan in place to afford the care. If they do not then you could be responsible. While you are at it, make sure that you have a plan to pay for your long term care, if you ever need it. Do not stick your children with your nursing home bills.

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Many people make the mistake of thinking that estate planning is just about protecting wealth and distributing property. Those are often important goals of estate planning, but they are not the only reasons to have an estate plan. There are other reasons to have an estate plan and other goals that you can accomplish with an estate plan. In fact, the other goals are often far more important than wealth and property.

If you have children, you can use an estate plan to determine who should have guardianship over your children in case something happens to you. Whose custody you leave your children in is usually far more important than how much money you leave your children. However, if you do not have an estate plan, you will not be the person to decide who will take care of your children.

An estate plan also sets out who takes care of you and your property if you become incapacitated. If you are in the hospital, for example, someone might need to make health care decisions for you. As part of your overall estate plan, you can decide who has the authority to do so.

Do not make the mistake of thinking that just because you do not have a lot of property you do not need an estate plan. Property is important to estate planning, but it is not the most important thing.

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If you are in surgery and unable to make an important decision concerning your care, have you considered who you want to make the decision for you? Have you discussed it with the person you would designate so that he or she knows what you would want done? Have you created the appropriate legal framework for the person you designate to make those decisions? A Health Care Proxy is a document that you can use to legally appoint another person to make medical decisions on your behalf when you are incapacitated and unable to make them on your own.

Doctors and other health care workers have to follow strict legal rules and procedures when discussing your health and care with other people. To protect your privacy, they are not allowed to discuss your care with other people in most cases. That means that if a decision regarding your care needs to be made quickly, the doctors will have to make it themselves. What they choose to do might not be what you would want done. A Health Care Proxy allows you to designate someone who doctors can legally discuss your health with and someone who can tell doctors what you want. Talk to an attorney about getting one today.

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Most people think of physical violence when they think of “abuse,” but elder abuse can take a variety of forms. There are people out there who seek to manipulate the elderly and they convince the elderly to rearrange their financial affairs for the abuser’s benefit. Of course, they do not tell the elderly that is what they are doing. It just happens to work out that way.

Unfortunately, this is a growing problem in the United States as we have an aging population. It is something that you need to be aware of as you get older and it is something that you need look out for as you watch your loved ones get older. Make sure that no one is taking advantage of you or your loved ones.

It is not always easy to know when someone is being abused. However, before making any decisions, you can always ask for a second opinion. Talk to an elder law attorney before you sign any financial documents of import. Make sure that your loved ones do the same thing. Make sure the attorney is working for you and that you have all the information you need.

Davidov Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

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People are sometimes confused by the term “Revocable Living Trust.” Unscrupulous companies and websites often take advantage of this confusion as a way to get people to purchase a Revocable Living Trust form from them. These companies and websites make people think that there is something magical about a Revocable Living Trust. However, to understand whether you need a Revocable Living Trust, you need to understand what is truly meant by the term.

The words themselves are not magical and they do not create a magical legal document that is perfect for everyone. First, a Trust is a legal entity that holds property and assets for the benefit of someone or something else. The property is held in “trust.” Revocable and living merely mean that the Trust is created while you are living and that you have the right to revoke the Trust and retain the assets that you put into it. For many people, this is an excellent estate planning method as any assets put into the Trust while you are alive do not have to go through Probate after you pass away. However, some people should use different legal methods in their estate plans, often for tax reasons.

To know whether a Revocable Living Trust is right for you, talk to an experienced estate planning attorney.

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One thing that makes estate planning fun is that everyone’s situation is unique. Every client that comes into an estate planning attorney’s office has a different story to tell and different estate planning goals. The fun part for attorneys is not only in listening to all of the different stories, but also in developing an estate plan that meets each client’s unique situation.

For example, many people go to an estate planning attorney with the idea that they need to get a Living Trust. Most people will actually end up with an estate plan that does include a Trust. The questions become what kind of trust? How is it structured? Is it revocable or irrevocable? Does it include a Trust Protector? Can it be amended? Who will serve as the Trustee? The answers to these questions and others like them make each Trust a little different. The estate planning attorney finds those answers by listening to what the clients say.

In today’s world, you do not have to go to an estate planning attorney to get a Living Trust. There are other options. However, you should go to an attorney so that you can be certain that someone has listened to your story and created a Trust that is right for you.