Brisk Elder Law

Last day for Attorney Georg LaBonte At the Law Office of William J. Brisk

Today, May 10th is Attorney Georg LaBonte's last day at the Law Office of William J. Brisk.  We wish him and his family all the best on his move back to Wisconsin.

 

Our Next Roundtable Event!

No Place like Home

Guest Speaker: The Nurse Carpenter™ Carol DeRienzo will provide her stimulating views on adapting homes that focus on individuals’ care needs.

Date: Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Time:7:45AM-9:00AM

Location: 1330 Centre Street, Boardroom, Newton Center

Please RSVP by April 12^th to Jennifer @ 617-244-4373 x 10 or via email:
jenniferduhaime@briskelderlaw.com

Carol DeRienzo, RN, BSN, CAPS, CHM, UDCP has been a licensed practicing Registered Nurse for over 33 years. Since a Nurse’s primary motivation is to “focus on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life,” Carol came up with the idea of creating a company whose primary focus was first understanding the person before recommending any specific services or environment changes. “Properly Assess and Appropriately Treat” are Carol’s prerequisites for all of Solace RNovations Inc.’s divisions.  Carol is also known as “The Nurse Carpenter”™.  To learn more please log onto www.SolaceRN.com.

The Evolution of an Idea

In the spring of 2007 Carol opened a new division within the company called “ASSIST” – At Home Support Solutions For Safety, Independence and Trust – where she began using the concepts of Ronald L. Mace (who coined the phrase Universal Design) in providing environments and products that were as usable as possible by as many people as possible regardless of their age, ability or status in life. Carol worked with many well-meaning contractors and suppliers but found that most were uncomfortable or not knowledgeable enough to discuss with clients their personal issues, their potential future needs, or the simple idea of how they use the bathroom. Carol found that even
within her own company, the professional salespeople she helped train were hesitant, uncomfortable or just plain embarrassed when it came to discussing a client’s personal issues. Based on this disconnect, clients were spending limited resources on items or services that they may not have needed or could only use for a short period of time. 

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Our Next Roundtable Event!

No Place like Home

Guest Speaker: The Nurse Carpenter™ Carol DeRienzo will provide her stimulating views on adapting homes that focus on individuals’ care needs.

Date: Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Time:7:45AM-9:00AM

Location: 1330 Centre Street, Boardroom, Newton Center

Please RSVP by April 12^th to Jennifer @ 617-244-4373 x 10 or via email:
jenniferduhaime@briskelderlaw.com

Carol DeRienzo, RN, BSN, CAPS, CHM, UDCP has been a licensed practicing Registered Nurse for over 33 years. Since a Nurse’s primary motivation is to “focus on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life,” Carol came up with the idea of creating a company whose primary focus was first understanding the person before recommending any specific services or environment changes. “Properly Assess and Appropriately Treat” are Carol’s prerequisites for all of Solace RNovations Inc.’s divisions.  Carol is also known as “The Nurse Carpenter”™.  To learn more please log onto www.SolaceRN.com.

The Evolution of an Idea

In the spring of 2007 Carol opened a new division within the company called “ASSIST” – At Home Support Solutions For Safety, Independence and Trust – where she began using the concepts of Ronald L. Mace (who coined the phrase Universal Design) in providing environments and products that were as usable as possible by as many people as possible regardless of their age, ability or status in life. Carol worked with many well-meaning contractors and suppliers but found that most were uncomfortable or not knowledgeable enough to discuss with clients their personal issues, their potential future needs, or the simple idea of how they use the bathroom. Carol found that even
within her own company, the professional salespeople she helped train were hesitant, uncomfortable or just plain embarrassed when it came to discussing a client’s personal issues. Based on this disconnect, clients were spending limited resources on items or services that they may not have needed or could only use for a short period of time. 

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When HIPAA Happens

No one likes hospitals, except when you need one. Unfortunately, families caring for their elderly loved ones are finding hospitals and other care facilities full of legal red tape that is increasingly difficult to navigate.

Sometimes the red tape is simply hospital policy gone too far. Regardless, navigating the maze requires doing your homework ahead of time. For example, what do you know about HIPAA?

HIPAA is the “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1997.” The title of a recent article in the New Old Age Blog of The New York Times summarizes the issue well: “A Privacy Law Often Misinterpreted.”

One purpose of the law is to ensure the privacy of medical data. Nevertheless, this doesn’t mean the
hospital is intended to protect the privacy of the patient from their loved ones, especially when that loved one is present during an examination! In fact, HIPAA does not prevent health care providers from sharing relevant information regarding a patient with their family members, unless the patient objects.

The original article is a worthy and enlightening read, whether you are a patient, a family member or even a medical professional. Apparently, there is a lot of misinformation leading to misinterpretation when it comes to HIPAA.

Bottom line: make sure you have up-to-date Advance Health Directives that specifically provide your designated agents with current and future access to all of your medical information, verbal and written, with specific authority to execute HIPAA releases on your behalf.

Reference: The New York Times – The New Old Age Blog (March 27, 2013) “A Privacy Law Often Misinterpreted”

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Asset Protection – Substance Over Form

Asset protection, for better or worse, is not a game of silver bullets or invincible armor. Unfortunately, this fact of life will never stop certain salesmen from marketing asset protection
that way and certain debtors from buying into it.

A tale of gullibility, faked complexity, and predictable endings can be found in a recent Forbes article titled “Bill 'Bulletproof A$$et Protection' Reed's Complex Plan Pierced By Nominee And Alter Ego Theories.” The case of U.S. v. Cohen, C.D.Ill. Case No. 08-3282 (Mar. 8, 2013), chronicles an asset protection plan so frightfully poor it could only be described as the “Bulletproof A$$et Protection.” Just the label used to market this “asset protection” scheme should give pause to the prudent.

Asset protection is all about understanding the legal nature of your assets and the potential risks that may threaten your future use and enjoyment of those assets. Certainly state and federal laws offer varying degrees of protection, as do time-tested legal strategies. It’s as much art as science, but not magic.

This is not a do-it-yourself program. Seek qualified legal counsel for assistance.

Reference: Forbes (March 31, 2013) “Bill 'Bulletproof A$$et Protection' Reed's Complex Plan Pierced By Nominee And Alter Ego Theories”

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Do You Really Have Enough Life Insurance?

It’s not too hard to properly insure a car or a valuable piece of art, because the value of the object can be determined, even in a shifting market. What about insuring your life for those who depend on you for financial support? How do you insure your life and how do you even begin thinking about life insurance?

For starters, it is essential to note that life insurance can be a complex subject, especially when it comes to the right “kind” and the right “amount” of insurance.

So what questions do you ask? Sometimes the important questions don’t come up when you click through those online life insurance calculators, and unfortunately, less so with some insurance brokers. Forbes recently addressed this important issue in an article titled “What A Life Insurance Calculator Can't Tell You.”

Generally speaking, insurance exists so you can pay a “premium” now that you can afford to protect against the risk of a catastrophic event later that you cannot afford. When it comes to life insurance, of course, the risk is to your family and loved ones if you were no longer there to care for them. Life insurance is a potent tool in this regard, but it is far from the only tool to protect for your loved ones
in the event of your death.

The original article provides an excellent analysis of common “needs” that life insurance can protect. In the end, however, nothing can replace the advice and counsel of an experienced and qualified life insurance professional.

Reference: Forbes (March 28, 2013) “What A Life Insurance Calculator Can't Tell You”

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“Fair Or Equal” Inheritance – It’s in the Eye of the Beholder

If you are planning your estate, or have already inked your planning, how will your loved ones react to their inheritance? Are you providing a “fair” or an “equal” inheritance? While it is your estate, it may be helpful to communicate your wishes and rationale now to avoid misunderstandings (or worse) later on.

The Washington Post recently explored this subject in an article titled “Dividing up money can cause divisions in families.” The article tracks the case of a certain individual who can’t help feeling resentment over the estate plan his parents have created. He believes the basis for the estate plan
is his chosen “lifestyle.”

He is gay and his married sister is not. He has no children and she does. The parents of these adult children have chosen to leave an inheritance “directly” to their grandchildren, instead of “through” their daughter. The grandchildren are set to each inherit one-sixth of the estate, with the children splitting the remaining two-thirds.

The author of the article concludes thusly regarding the inheritance planning of these parents: “And yet, this is their prerogative. It’s their money.”

What about your own family and heirs – will they understand? What can you do to make yourself understood? Then again, if instead you are the one inheriting, have you thought it through from
everyone’s perspective?

Properly thinking through your estate planning objectives and then committing it to proper legal instruments can be an arduous task. That is why too few otherwise responsible adults actually follow through on their intentions. One of the most common estate plans is one that lies unsigned in a desk drawer. When all is said and done, it is your estate and you may distribute it as you wish. Period. Nevertheless, long-term family harmony often hinges on communicating your wishes while you are alive and able to explain them. Surprise is only a good thing when it comes to birthdays and military maneuvers.

Reference: The Washington Post (March 29, 2013) “Dividing up money can cause divisions in families”

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At Death, Cash is Still King

When you breathe your last breath, which would your heirs (likely) need – a million dollars in cash or a million dollars in illiquid art? The family of Merton D. Simpson can clarify any uncertainty you may have, especially when it comes to having enough cash to bury you.

In short, “illiquid assets” can present a great challenge to proper planning for you, your family, and your estate.

While there are countless examples, a very recent and public one is the case of the aforementioned Merton D. Simpson. As reported by The New York Times in an article titled “Art Worth Millions, Yet No Cash for Burial,” careful planning is required to meet “liquid” cash needs virtually every estate
encounters. Whether paying last health care expenses or other debts, you at least want to have enough cash for your funeral.

Mr. Simpson’s entire estate was worth millions in a vast collection of African and modern art, not to mention art in his own name as an artist of no little esteem. Tragically, in the end there was no money for the funeral. In addition, what happens if and when the taxes come due? That’s when expensive collections of illiquid assets are sold at auction, oftentimes for pennies on the dollar.

Now there’s more to the story of Mr. Simpson and many more lessons to be gleaned regarding proper financial and estate planning, as well as a bit of family intrigue. The takeaway: if one dies with an estate of priceless, illiquid assets – then one’s estate may find itself deep in the desert with a purse full of gold, but not a drop of cool water to drink.

Reference: The New York Times (March 26, 2013) “Art Worth Millions, Yet No Cash for Burial”

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How to Leave Your Business in Style

Running a business is hard work. Period. Leaving it is not a cakewalk either. Unfortunately, you usually have only one shot to get it right.

If you think about it, just about every exit plan can come down to three tools. A recent Forbes article titled “Three Ways to Exit Your Business” examined these tools: sale, capital transfer, and gifting.

While there are many ways to mix-n-match these tools depending on your unique circumstances, the biggest failure is to put your head in the sand. Is it any wonder two-thirds of all business fail to make it from the founders to the next owners, and only half again make it from that second hand off to the third level owner?

The key teaching point is to engage the professional services of your accountant, financial advisor and
attorney sooner rather than later. Like a good coach, make sure your “team” knows the end result you want to accomplish in your business transfer. Be sure to read the original Forbes article as part of your preparation.

Reference: Forbes (March 19, 2013) “Three Ways to Exit Your Business”

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Power of Attorney – Power to Steal?

One of the tricky things about old age is the point at which you need to legally delegate another to handle your financial matters. This legal “appointment” is one of the most important decisions you will make. Why? Because it can be a license to steal in the wrong hands.

A “power of attorney” is one of the most fundamental legal instruments you will ever create. In fact, everyone upon becoming a “legal adult” (varies by state law) ought to appoint one or more “attorneys-in-fact” to handle financial matters in the event of incapacity. The alternative is an unpleasant (and expensive) adventure in the probate court.

But a power of attorney has an unfortunate downside, especially in the form of financial “elder abuse.” It can become a license to steal.

The problem of abuse by way of a power of attorney is nothing new. In fact, a recent article in MarketWatch took up the matter. The article, titled “Power of attorney: It’s easily abused,”
noted that 34% of all elder abuse doesn’t originate with credit card fraud, bogus lotteries, or emails from captive African princes. No, it is due to family members who have access and maybe even the power of attorney to dispose of accounts as they see fit.

The importance of your selection of attorneys-in-fact cannot be stressed enough. This is one of those decisions when the entire family ought to be apprised and alerted to who is going to do what and why.

Do not go it alone. The Law Office of William J. Brisk is here to help you navigate these potentially treacherous waters.

Reference: MarketWatch (March 19, 2013) “Power of attorney: It’s easily abused”

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