Posted on October 28, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Think for a moment about what “last will and testament” means to you. Maybe the term reminds you of a movie with a widow dressed in black, perhaps wearing a black veil. You may think about a deceased person’s family gathered at a lawyer’s office […]
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Posted on October 24, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
New clients often ask us to prepare wills and we prepare wills for most of our estate planning clients. We tell clients that wills are important to deal with the business of dying, but death is not usually the biggest issue. A debilitating stroke or other illness can make a power of attorney (often called […]
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Posted on by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Economic and sociological factors have transformed the way we care for elderly family members over the past sixty years. We celebrate economic and social progress, but many caregivers pay heavy costs for that progress. Most of us have living parents or grandparents that have survived […]
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Posted on September 26, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Many people today struggle with how to invest money and what to do when a family member faces a health crisis. When you lack expertise for urgent financial and healthcare decisions, take decision-making advice from former US President Ronald Reagan: “trust, but verify.” Mr. Reagan […]
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Posted on August 29, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] No reasonably healthy person hopes to end up in a nursing home. Many family members struggle with guilt about admitting their loved ones to nursing homes. Relatively recent changes in Medicaid funding have made it possible for people to care for their elderly family members […]
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Posted on August 22, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Financial experts often say that if you die without a last will and testament, the state will decide who gets your assets. That statement is true if you die owning assets without joint owners and without naming beneficiaries of bank accounts, insurance policies, retirement plans, […]
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Posted on June 21, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Most of us become seriously injured or deathly ill sooner or later and depend upon other people to take care of us. We should all plan for this problem ahead of time so that our caregivers can be well prepared to do the job […]
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Posted on May 25, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] We began writing about estate planning and elder law topics almost 13 years ago because we kept hearing people recite laws and rules that either did not exist or did not work the way people thought. Even some lawyers have misunderstood rules about gifts and […]
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Posted on April 18, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] This article concludes a two-part series of about joint bank accounts and other kinds of asset co-ownership (click here to read Part 1). Joint Accounts – Name Sequence Some people mistakenly think that it makes a difference whether someone’s name appears first or second on […]
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Posted on March 22, 2015 by Hawkins Elder Law.
[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Clients ask from time to time how long they should keep copies of their records. They often say that they have heard that you should keep records for 3 years or 7 years or 10 years. This article provides record retention guidelines for various purposes […]
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