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Saying that there has been "undue influence" is often used as a reason to contest a will or estate plan, but what does it mean?

When a married couple applies for Medicaid, the Medicaid agency must analyze the couple’s income and assets as of a particular date to determine eligibility. The date that the agency chooses for this analysis is called the “snapshot” date and it can have a major impact on a couple’s financial future.

A federal court has ruled that hospitalized Medicare beneficiaries who were switched from inpatient to observation status can appeal the decision, making it easier for them to receive coverage for subsequent nursing home care. The ruling appears to bring to an end more than a decade of litigation on behalf of Medicare recipients.

On July 8, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service issued new guidance that allows a deceased person’s estate to elect “portability” of their unused gift and estate tax exemption for up to five years after their death. So, if your spouse passed away less than five years ago, you may be able to file an estate tax return to transfer their unused estate tax exclusion to yourself.

When loved ones pass away, there are lots of considerations, including what happens to their Social Security. The decedent's payments need to be stopped, but survivor's benefits may be available to the spouse or, in certain cases, children.  Social Security benefits stop at death. ...

Medicaid applicants must prove that they have limited income and assets in order to be eligible for long-term care services. Before beginning the application process, it is helpful to understand what information you will be required to provide to prove your eligibility. 

Collecting art or other valuable items can be a passion for many people. Often such a pastime is more about enjoying the art or the medium itself than about ensuring financial gain. However, once you have accumulated a sizable collection, what do you want to happen to it after you pass away?

An executor is the person or institution responsible for managing the administration of a deceased person's estate. The executor (also called a personal representative) is either named in a will or appointed by the court, if there is no will.

While an inheritance is usually desired, there are some circumstances in which it might be unwelcome. If you don’t want an inheritance, you must disclaim it. 

If you want to pass money to future generations without having it subject to gift and estate taxes, then a dynasty trust may be right for you. A dynasty trust allows trust assets to be used for the benefit of multiple generations while keeping the assets out of the grantor’s and the beneficiaries’ taxable estates.

Unfortunately, not all families get along. If you are having problems with one of your children, you may not want them to benefit from your estate. There are several strategies for dealing with an estranged child in your estate plan.

We've all been warned about protecting ourselves from identity theft, but one group of victims can't take action to defend themselves—the dead. Identity thieves steal the identities of more than 2 million deceased Americans a year, according to fraud prevention firm ID Analytics. Fortunately, there are steps that you can take to discourage identity thieves from targeting a deceased loved one.

Although the vast majority of Americans have estates that fall under the estate and gift tax exemption, the exemption is set to be cut in half in 2026. Proper planning may be necessary to make sure you are taking full advantage of the current exemption and aren’t negatively affected when it decreases. 

If you need a lot of cash on hand upon retirement, Social Security offers a lump-sum payment option that’s worth six months of benefits. However, it comes at a cost. It is important to understand the details before agreeing to the payment.

While Medicaid helps pay for nursing home care, being admitted to a nursing home as a Medicaid recipient is not always easy. There are several ways to navigate the process, depending on your situation.

Many parents or grandparents with sizable amounts of money to pass on to their heirs are apprehensive about the effect it many have on their children or grandchildren. In some instances, they fear that the recipients will misspend the funds on drugs, fancy cars or failing businesses. In other cases, the fear is simply that their children will lose their drive to achieve and overcome barriers that may present themselves if there's no financial necessity to do so.  

If you are injured due to another person’s negligence and receive Medicaid benefits to pay for care, the state has a legal right to recover the funds it spends on your care from a personal injury settlement or award. Yet in a legal case involving a Floridian teen who was catastrophically injured more than a decade ago, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that state Medicaid programs may be repaid from settlement funds reserved for future medical expenses as well.

Acting as an agent under a power of attorney is a big responsibility and it isn’t something everyone can take on. It is possible to resign or refuse the position.

Serving as a trustee of a trust can be a huge responsibility, so trustees are entitled to compensation for their work. The amount of compensation depends on the type of trustee and the complexity of the trust. 

Gifting assets to your grandchildren can do more than help your descendants get a good start in life -- it can also reduce the size of your estate and the tax that will be due upon your death.

In an alarming number of instances, private Medicare Advantage plans are denying coverage for medical services that would be covered under original Medicare, according to a federal investigation. These denials are likely preventing or delaying medically necessary care for tens of thousands of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries each year.

If a loved one is experiencing memory loss or suddenly making poor decisions, you may want the court to appoint a conservator, which requires a declaration of incompetence. Determining whether someone is incompetent to make their own decisions is a complicated process. 

In recent months, phone lines at the SSA were experiencing major technical issues, preventing some individuals from being able to reach the SSA via telephone in a timely manner.

When one spouse is in a nursing home and applying for Medicaid, planning has to take into account the possibility that the spouse who is not in the nursing home (called the "community spouse") may pass away first. This is because the community spouse's death may make the spouse in the nursing home ineligible for Medicaid.

Elder law and estate planning serve two different -- but equally vital -- functions. The main difference is that elder law is focused on preserving your assets during your lifetime, while estate planning concentrates on what happens to your assets after you die.