Practice Areas
- Medicaid
- Living Trusts
- Estate Administration and Probate
- Asset Protection
- Veterans Benefits
- Special Needs Trust
Blog 
Medicaid
- Pennsylvania May Get Seventy Percent of Special Medicaid Funding
- 12 Strategies to Prevent Alzheimer's
Estate Administration and Probate
- Finding Tips On Estate Planning at the Theatre
- Update on the Status of Federal Estate Tax
- Michael Jackson Estate Makes Land Mark Estate Deal With Sony
- The Governator Says Health Reform Will "Beat Up" California
- When a will isn’t enough
Asset Protection
- "Do I Qualify For Financial Assistance For Nursing Home Care?"
- Free Asset Protection Seminar For Anyone Considering Long Term Care Planning
- Medicaid Compromise in Health Care Bill On the Chopping Block
- Medicaid and Caregiving: Who Are the Ones Taking the Lead?
- Avoid Pitfalls of Medicaid
Veterans Benefits
Special Needs Trust
- IMPORTANT REPORT EVERY SPECIAL NEEDS FAMILY MUST KNOW ABOUT ESTATE PLANNING
- Planning for your autistic child’s future can bring peace of mind
- Five estate planning mistakes made by parents with special needs children
- Could you benefit from a Special Needs Trust?
Caregivers
- Three Things To Consider When Hiring Private Caregivers For Someone With Alzheimer's Disease
- Ask These Ten Questions Before Going Into a Retirement Community
- Elder Independence: Developing Your Own Personal Health Care Goals
- Caregivers: Take Care Of Yourself First
- ELDER CARE, HEALTH CARE, AND CARING IN GENERAL
General
- 10 Ways To Ruin Your Retirement
- Secrets To Happy Retirement
- Free Webinar From Pennsylvania AARP
- 2010 Blizzard and the Ghosts of Winters Past
- ELDER CARE, HEALTH CARE, AND CARING IN GENERAL
News
- What Next For the Estate Tax?...
Posted on 8/5/2010 - Care Connection Offers Dementia Caregivers Weekly Phone Support...
Posted on 8/2/2010 - New Free Report! A Guide To Alzheimer's Care...
Posted on 7/27/2010 - How Britain Plans to Confront Its Long Term Care Crisis...
Posted on 7/20/2010 - Rendell Says States Unlikely To Get Extra Medicaid Funds...
Posted on 7/16/2010
Library
Medicaid
- Paying the Nursing Home: A Married Couple's Concerns, and What To Expect in the Medicaid Planning Process
- Home care is growing as a result of the increasing incidence of Alzheimer’s and other dementias, and is the world’s largest provider of non-medical in-home care and companionship services for seniors.
- "Why a 30-Minute Consultation? Do I Really Need One?"
- Are There Still Ways To Save the House? Transferring Property the Right Way ...
- Why Attend Our Seminar On Medicaid, Long Term Care, Vet Benefits and Estate Planning
Living Trusts
- Understanding Financial and Legal Planning Techniques: Management of a Family Business or Real Estate With a Trust
- What is the difference between a will and a trust?
- Lessons On Probate and the Benefit of a Trust From Michael Jackson's Estate Distribution
- Myths about Revocable Living Trusts, Lawyers and Estate Planning. You want the best Elder Law Attorney and Estate Planning Attorney on your side. Call us for a FREE consultation at (800) 879 0984
- Is your living trust complete?
Estate Administration and Probate
- When Pennsylvania Estate Recovery Can Take Place By Law
- Joint Bank Accounts - Risks and Benefits
- Guidelines for Gifts and Joint Accounts
- Intestacy Laws Of Pa: Dangers of Not Having a Current Living Will
- Drafting Wills That Protect Clients' Interests: Every situation is different, which is why we select vehicles that meets each client's needs
Asset Protection
- 10 Reasons to Consider Long-Term Care Insurance
- Solve Eligibility Problems Using the Personal Care Contract
- What Can Seniors and Their Families To Legally Protect Themselves In These Dire Times?
- Gift tax annual exclusion to remain unchanged in 2010. Contact us to see how this factors into your estate plan
- Gift tax annual exclusion to remain unchanged in 2010. Contact us to see how this factors into your estate plan
Veterans Benefits
Special Needs Trust
- Part 11 of 12 - Facts Every Special Needs Family Must Know About Estate Planning
- Part 12 of 12 - Facts Every Special Needs Family Must Know About Estate Planning
- Part 9 of 12 Facts Every Special Needs Family Must Know About Estate Planning
- Part 7 of 12 - Facts Every Special Needs Family Should Know About Estate Planning
- Part 8 of 12 - FACTS EVERY SPECIAL NEEDS FAMILY MUST KNOW
General
- Future of the Estate Tax: What's Next for Estate Tax? Because Congress hasn't replaced law that expired in 2009, uncertainty is the rule.
- Alzheimer Care: 6 Advantages to Hiring Home Health Aides Through Agency
- Feel overwhelmed about a loved one's Long Term Care Planning? Start by ordering one of our many FREE reports found below, and contact us for a FREE Initial Consultation
- 21 Tips For Adapting a Home For Senior Living
- Martha Stewart shares her cargiving experience as well as a plea for the Health Care Bill to include support for the growing elderly population
Shields and Boris Blog on Elder Care, Health Care, and Caring in General
Asset Protection
Avoid Pitfalls of Medicaid
You’ve worked hard and saved all your life; you’re expecting your wealth – your legacy, to pass on to your family without much trouble, right? Think again, estate planning is no longer just protecting your legacy from probate expenses. Today you have to protect your assets from income taxes, estate taxes, market loss, probate fees, Pennsylvania inheritance taxes not to mention long term medical and nursing home expenses.General
What's So Bad About Probate?
Probate is a court proceeding.
Nobody (except attorneys who do so for a fee) likes going to court.
It takes time.
When we have to probate an estate, we usually tell clients to expect the process to take about a year.
You have no privacy.
All the details of your will, your beneficiaries, your assets and expenses are public record for anyone, even a nebby neighbor, to do what they want.
It is expensive.
In Pennsylvania, attorneys can charge a "reasonable fee" to go through probate. On a typical estate this "reasonable fee" is usually 3 to 7% of your gross (not net) estate.
AAPR did a study about probate and called it a "cash cow" for attorneys. The old attorney joke is how do you make a lot of money as an estate planning attorney? You write a lot of wills and outlive your clients. Why make an attorney a beneficiary" of your estate? Learn how you can avoid probate, and preserve your assets for your loved ones.
Long Term Care or Estate Planning? - Find an Elder Law Attorney
One of the myths that I find often believed is that any lawyer can write a trust, a will, power of attorney, or living will. If this were true, I guess any family doctor could also perform brain surgery. I have seen so many attorneys who try to be everything to everyone, and make some egregious mistake because they do not practice in a particular area DAY IN and DAY OUT. They DON'T understand changes in law or potential minefields for the client. Such an attorney will defend a criminal on Monday, handle a divorce on Tuesday, a bankruptcy on Wednesday and ask you why you are there Thursday - "Oh, yeah, your estate plan." The idea that a lawyer is a lawyer is a lawyer is not in your best interests. Find yourself the right lawyer that specializes according to your need.
Follow us online for many more videos, important updates, and personal interaction:
YouTube Channel
Twitter Feed
Facebook Fan Page
ShieldsandBoris Blog
Elder Law Offices of Shields and Boris
109 VIP Drive
Suite 102
Wexford, PA 15090
Phone: (724) 934-5044
Toll Free: (800) 879-0984
Get Directions
Special Report
Videos
General:
questions
Medicaid
Living Trusts
- What is "funding" my Living Trust?
- Do I lose control of my assets when I have a revocable living trust?
- Will a living trust make me ineligible for Medicaid?
Estate Administration and Probate
- When Can Estate Recovery Take Place By Law?
- Do witnesses have to actually witness the signing?
- What is a reasonable attorney fee for probating an Estate?
Asset Protection
- What Is Long Term Care?
- What are examples of services that can be included in a "Personal Care Contract"?
-
What are the most commonly used approaches to managing and protecting assets through legal and financial asset protection?