Are All Powers of Attorney Created Equal?

Posted on July 26, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

An audience member at one of our recent presentations about advance health care directives suggested that people should make powers of attorney and advance health care directives when they reach 50 years old or older. We responded that most people over 18 years of age should make powers of attorney and health care planning documents […]

Read More »

What Are the Differences between Wills and Trusts?

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] People ask us to explain the difference between wills and trusts from time to time when we are speaking to groups about advance health care directives and other estate planning topics. We have tried many ways to answer the question over the years, but we […]

Read More »

Indiana’s CARE Act

Posted on July 11, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] The Indiana legislature passed the “Caregiver Advise, Record, and Enable Act” (known as the CARE Act”), which took effect on January 1, 2016. Under the CARE Act, when a patient is admitted to the hospital, the hospital must give the patient (or the patient’s guardian […]

Read More »

New Indiana Electronic Records Law

Posted on June 11, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] The Indiana General Assembly updated several Indiana laws into the digital age during the 2016 legislative session. The legislature updated existing laws in the Indiana Probate Code, guardianship statutes, the Indiana Trust Code, and the Power of Attorney Act to allow trustees, decedent’s personal representatives, […]

Read More »

Puny Powers of Attorney

Posted on June 5, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

Most people think of wills or trusts when they think of estate planning. However, powers of attorney are probably the most important estate planning documents that most people can have. A last will and testament is a good way to direct how people will distribute and receive your assets when you die, but if disability […]

Read More »

Child Care Delegation – Empowering the Village

Posted on May 28, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

Jesus once took a child into his arms while he was teaching and said, “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.” The Bible, Mark 9:42 (NIV). Child […]

Read More »

Best Intentions – Paving Material for a Bad Road

Posted on May 21, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] They say that the road to destruction is paved with good intentions. The saying fits procrastinators that intend to make or update estate plans involving turbulent families, but never get around to making updated plans. An estate plan procrastinator can create even more destruction by […]

Read More »

IRA Planning for Long-Term Care and Longevity

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] (Updated March 14, 2018) Hollywood actress Betty Davis was quoted as saying, “Old age ain’t no place for sissies.” Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you view it) more people are reaching older ages today than ever (such as Ira Chestnut, pictured at left as a high […]

Read More »

Undue Influence: Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Posted on April 28, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Many people are familiar with the prodigal son parable that Jesus shared with his critics in Luke 15:11-32. In that story, the prodigal son demanded and squandered his inheritance, returned home in disgrace, and received his father’s embrace and celebration upon return. The story also […]

Read More »

Does That Trust Need a Tune-Up?

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Hawkins Elder Law.

[See our Disclaimers page about relying on this website’s contents.] Revocable trust plans have been around for fifty years or more. Revocable trusts were quite the rage when we began practicing law in the early 1990s. Most people wanted the privacy advantage that revocable trusts held over last wills and testaments. Some people believed mistakenly […]

Read More »

Verified by MonsterInsights