Estate Planning

For some, estate planning means updating an older Will. When that is all that’s needed, we can help. Critical planning documents include powers of attorney and advance directives. We can help with those too. But for many, a good estate plan protects and preserves assets, creates tax and administrative efficiencies and provides comfort to loved ones. It can even ensure that aging and death will not cause financial hardship and conflict.

This approach to estate planning requires a thorough review of asset titling and family relationships. We help our clients understand the difference between probate and non-probate assets, and learn how to pass assets to beneficiaries and charities by non-probate means. We address tax implications, losses to creditors or fraud and other important concerns. This may involve the drafting of deeds, trusts, beneficiary designations and assignments of business interests. Our planning process can help anticipate and head off serious issues that can arise with advanced aging and health events.

This planning process develops a dynamic and elegant estate plan that can anticipate various outcomes, even when we can’t know what may be coming. With this approach, we do our best work. We believe that good planning can help make aging and death a time of grace and dignity.

Attorney Secrest answered callers' questions on public radio’s Vermont Edition. Listen to a good discussion of our approach to estate planning here.

Long Term Care Medicaid Planning

As most of us know, long term care is very expensive. Whether at home or in a residential facility, anyone who cannot care for themselves independently, will need help. Help can come in many forms: skilled nursing, personal care services, occupational and physical therapy, adult day care, transportation and housekeeping. The State of Vermont will help pay for this care if a person applies and is eligible for long term care Medicaid.

Not to be confused with Medicaid health insurance, this program (also known as Choices for Care) is a comprehensive program for individuals who are aged, blind or disabled. The clinical test for eligibly looks at how independently the applicant can live. A means test looks at financial assets and determines whether the applicant will receive state assistance for care at home or in residential care.

Our services include helping families plan for the possibility of long term care, focused on asset preservation. Our attorneys are members of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and its Vermont Chapter. We are very knowledgeable about the financial eligibility rules and experienced with the application process. We provide comprehensive consultation in this area, offering application preparation and support. In addition, we prepare powers of attorney and advance directives. If appropriate, we also draft Special Needs Trusts.