Dallas Elder Law Attorney

This discusses the many types of wills in Texas and how the types of wills differ.

Parentage is often the basis of lawsuits. This podcast goes over some of the issues in a will contest case where the will contestants attempted to establish that they were children of the deceased to hopefully be a beneficiary.

Protection of your beneficiaries while considering income taxation and tax-deferred growth are discussed.

Many misunderstand basic tax issues on gift taxes, estate taxes and income tax in estate planning. This podcast attempts to simplify these issues.

Estate planning is not just about passing your assets to your beneficiaries. It includes protection from a myriad of concerns that could range from your spouse remarrying to protecting your children (and grandchildren) from disability, marital issues, creditor issues. etc. This podcast goes over some of those issues and how can your protect your loved ones the way you want.

There are at least 6 types of trusts used in connection to planning for or retaining public benefits.

7 different situations when a named executor cannot serve as an executor.

Signature cards control as therefore seven different types of accounts which determine how funds are distributed at death.

Some of the 20 or more mistakes executors sometimes make.

Some assets pass outside of a Will. This show goes into description of some assets that generally pass outside of probate.

Whether you have real estate in another country or you live in a foreign country, sometimes your Will or Trust created in the U.S may be valid and sometimes it will not.

Trusts are often used to protect either the one who establishes the trust or the beneficiary (ranging from protection of your assets if your spouse remarries to creditor issues to protecting if a beneficiary is disabled.)

This podcast describes situations in which a child may or may not be paid or be compensated under long-term care Medicaid rules.

Many are unaware that a veteran (or their spouse) who became disabled (unrelated to wartime service) could be eligible for a benefit that pays the veteran (or their surviving spouse) particularly if they need assistance with two activities of daily living (bathing, feeding, dressing, etc.) or if they are homebound. This podcast describes eligibility requirements and planning for the benefit.

As of January 1, 2022, you can give up to $16,000 per year, per person without reporting to the IRS and without gift taxation. So, for example, if a married couple with three children wanted to give the maximum to each child, then they could give up to $96,000 ($16,000 x 3 by the husband and $16,000 x 3 by the wife) in year 2022 without reporting to the IRS.

Although a homestead generally does not count as a resource when applying for governmental assistance, the government has a right to make a claim for benefits if one receives long-term care Medicaid. This podcast describes ways to protect the home from the government's claim after a Medicaid recipient's death. Also discussed is how to obtain Medicaid eligibility if your income exceeds the limit.

An actual story illustrates the myriad of problems when you do your own planning.

Are you concerned about your joint account holder changing the way you want your account to pass? Have you thought about creditor issues of your joint account? 6 problems resulting from joint account ownership.

Relationships change, laws change, health changes, and assets change. Protection against spouse remarrying, your children's spouse getting remarried, spendthrift protection, creditor protection, disability protection are among the topics discussed.

Elder law attorneys look at wills a little differently than typical estate planning attorneys since public benefits are often considered. This article mentions public benefits issues in considering wills and revocable living trust in addition to advantages and disadvantages from an estate planning attorney’s perspective.