Special Needs Planning
If you have a family member with a disability or mental illness that may prevent him or her from being self-supportive, it is important to know that legal tools are available to protect your family member’s needs in the short and long term. At Monahan Law Group, LLC, we work with many clients in the Chicago area who have family members with special needs. We can help protect your loved one.
Providing For Your Loved One While Maintaining Government Benefits
A person with a disability may not be able to work so he or she may need financial and other assistance from a variety of government resources. However, many government programs will not assist people who have assets.
Many parents or other family members have the best of intentions when leaving a special-needs child or another loved one an inheritance or other funds. But often, due to incorrect planning, their loved one becomes ineligible for other benefits or loses a significant portion of his or her funds in the process. Failure to plan correctly for a loved one with special needs can have significant negative and unintended consequences.
To avoid this dilemma, it is important to include provisions in your estate plan that will enable a loved one with a disability to maintain eligibility for means-tested government benefits without having to forgo his or her inheritance. In addition, it is important to review common savings vehicles for children, like custodial accounts or traditional irrevocable trusts, that will cause a reduction or elimination of public benefits for a child with a disability when he or she reaches adulthood.
Experienced Attorneys Who Are Ready To Help
Our attorneys are highly experienced and knowledgeable in applicable tax laws and all aspects of special-needs trusts and other available estate planning options for people with disabilities and their families. Our attorneys are also regularly appointed by the probate court to draft estate plans for minors with disabilities. We know the processes involved in protecting people with special needs, and we will guide you through them with compassion and care.
Arrange An Initial Consultation
To schedule a time to talk to one of our lawyers about special-needs planning, please call our office at 312-419-0252 or get in touch with us by email.