Creating an estate plan in 2019 looked a little bit like this: you and your spouse or partner, perhaps along with your adult children, would make an appointment at the office of a Milford estate planning lawyer to go over your plans. A week or so later, you’d receive drafts of your documents in the...

Working with an experienced Trumbull will and trust lawyer to create a comprehensive estate plan can seem like a daunting process. Let’s face it: the decisions you have to make, the information you have to gather, and the sheer amount of paperwork involved are enough to make anyone pause. That’s why it’s so important not...

Caregivers for elderly loved ones can easily become burnt out and exhausted. Oftentimes, they’re responsible for their loved one and their own children, as well as maintaining a household and a job. As a New Haven County elder law attorney, I believe that respite care and adult day care are two great options to give...

“How much do you tell your kids? When do you tell them? Is it possible to tell your kids too much, too soon? What happens if you tell them too little, too late?”  These are common questions that come up when deciding whether to involve adult children in the Milford estate planning process. The answers...

A revocable living trust protects your privacy, avoids probate, and determines who will handle your affairs while you’re incapacitated and after you’ve passed away. It’s an essential element for estate plans as it provides an extra layer of protection to your estate and gives you the peace of mind that your wishes will be carried...

Here’s a common horror story: a father remarries late in life to a woman with her own kids. The father does not create a Last Will and Testament. When the father dies, his estate goes entirely to his new wife since she is his next of kin according to the laws of intestacy. When the...

As the coronavirus continues to impact life as we know it here in the United States, the most common question we’ve been asked during the course of the pandemic is whether an existing estate plan should be changed or updated. Of course, the answer to that question (like most things in life) is that it...

Most people are familiar with the term “life estate” as a way to give someone “life rights” to a property. While a life estate does accomplish this goal, choosing to set up a life estate is not a one-size-fits-all solution and may even cause serious consequences for everyone involved. What is a Life Estate? A...

A Special Needs Trust (SNT) is a complex legal tool set up on behalf of a person with special needs or disabilities. The SNT allows a beneficiary with special needs to safely utilize money or property in the trust without jeopardizing the ability to collect needs-based public benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and...

Milford probate lawyers hear quite regularly from heirs who are shocked to learn that the property they inherited from a loved one comes with a mortgage. Now what? It’s important to know that a mortgage does not die when the owner does. How that mortgage is dealt with depends on a variety of factors, including...

As we continue on in this time of social distancing and, in some communities, shelter-in-place, more and more people are faced with a difficult situation: handling out-of-state probate proceedings after the death of a loved one. Many seniors today are “snowbirds” who spend their winters in warmer states like Florida while keeping their actual residency...

There are several strategies available that Trumbull estate planning lawyers use to help seniors and their families avoid lengthy and costly probate proceedings, including adding other people as joint owners on their accounts or making beneficiary designations on accounts and policies. However, these strategies should only be done under the supervision of an experienced estate...

A conservatorship is when a person is appointed by the court to look after another person’s financial and physical well-being. This is not always a great situation to be in since the court may appoint someone who would never be chosen by the individual or their family. Fortunately, there are a few simple ways to...

Did you know that more than half of all adults in America do not have a Last Will and Testament? That number is even fewer when it comes to Revocable Living Trusts. You’d think more people would create an estate plan, especially since there are so many public figures who famously left a mess for...

Shelter in place and quarantine orders are the rule of the day with the coronavirus outbreak. Many of these executive orders came while snowbirds and retirees were staying here in their second homes, and now they are likely stuck there for a little longer than they originally planned. From a legal standpoint, many snowbirds are...

Estate planning is a responsibility we all have, young or old. Yet only about half of all Americans with children have a Last Will and Testament or Trust to direct how their children should be cared for and who should inherit any assets left behind after death. It’s also troubling to know that most estate...

On the heels of a very rough month for our country, scammers are now coming out of the woodwork in an attempt to defraud individuals and vulnerable senior citizens who are isolated and perhaps unclear about current policies related to coronavirus stimulus payouts or testing. We wanted to warn our clients and readers about some...

More than 10 percent of people who are acting as caregivers for an older family member are doing so from a distance. Living an hour or more away from an aging parent or other relative can present some additional challenges for caregivers. Among those challenges are the financial strains of hiring help and the difficulties...

Parents of children with special needs often find themselves overwhelmed with the daily responsibilities of managing their child's care and coordinating various services. There is often very little time or energy left to spend on long-term planning. However, consulting with a special needs attorney in Milford can get you started on the right path to...

When an elderly parent reaches the point where they need assistance with their daily living tasks, caregiver duties often fall on the shoulders of their adult children. In some families, the caregiving responsibilities are divided between siblings or other relatives. Ideally, everyone sharing in those duties will be on the same page when it comes...

With the number of COVID-19 cases in America increasing exponentially, people across the country are preparing themselves for every possible scenario. As a result, many estate planning attorneys are being inundated with calls and emails about how to plan for this type of pandemic. While the following five tools are essential for estate planning at...

Intellectual property – ideas or works of art that have value but don’t originate in material reality – are considered personal property and may be bequeathed to heirs. There is well-established law on intellectual property and estate law for those who want their heirs to benefit from the fruits of their labors. If you’re creating...

Self-made billionaire Warren Buffet once famously said, “Leave your children enough money so they can do anything, but not enough that they don't have to do anything.” Commodore Vanderbilt's grandson, an heir to some $60 million in 1885, also once declared that "inherited wealth is as certain death to ambition as cocaine is to morality.”...

When a loved one passes away, the grief is often overwhelming and exhausting. Your emotional state may make it nearly impossible to carry on basic functions like sleeping or eating. Trumbull probate lawyers understand that the last things you'll feel like tackling are the legal or financial tasks that must be handled after an individual...

Whether you've been asked to be the trustee of a loved one's trust or you're in the process of choosing someone to act as your own trustee, it helps to understand what is expected of a trustee. Being a trustee involves a lot of responsibility, often on both a short-term and long-term basis. Keep in...