Category Archives: Estate Planning
Should You Mediate a Probate Dispute?
Most estates are probated without any controversy. However, sometimes parties disagree about certain issues. For example, a creditor might make a claim for payment that the personal representative does not believe is legitimate. Probate disputes can be lengthy and time-consuming. In Charles Dickens’ famous novel, Bleak House, a probate dispute ends up eating the… Read More »
How to Reduce Costs of Long-Term Care
Nobody wants to spend the end of their life in a nursing home, but millions of people will. And the cost is eye-popping. According to Senior Living, the average annual cost of a semi-private room in a nursing home in Florida is almost $100,000. It might be more or less depending on where you… Read More »
Put Your Intentions in Writing
Here is a common situation. An elderly person wants to provide for a grandchild or a niece or nephew and tells her children about her intentions. “When I die, make sure to give Joe $20,000 for a down payment on a home” or things to this effect. However, the elderly person dies without making… Read More »
Do You Want to Avoid Probate?
Probate is the process of validating a will and then paying off the estate’s creditors in an orderly fashion. Once creditors have been paid, the estate’s personal representative will distribute property according to the will or, if there is no will, according to Florida’s intestacy rules. Probate is overseen by the probate court, which… Read More »
Many Nursing Homes Still Lack Generators
Hurricane Irma revealed a weakness in nursing homes and critical care facilities. In particular, they lacked any alternate power source, such as a generator. As a result, a dozen residents died from heat-related reasons in a Hollywood, Florida nursing home when Irma struck. Our legislature responded by passing a law that required nursing homes… Read More »
Doctor Allegedly Swindles Patient Out of His Home
At Millhorn Elder Law Planning Group, we spend a lot of time warning our clients of different scams, some involving health care and other involving impersonation over the internet. Unfortunately, scammers are not always anonymous people operating out of a basement in some foreign country. Instead, they might be trusted professionals who have excellent… Read More »
Is Jeffrey Epstein’s Will Legal?
Jeffrey Epstein was allegedly worth over $500 million, though no one really knew how he had earned it. When the disgraced financier killed himself in August, he was awaiting criminal charges for sex trafficking minors. With his death, the criminal case is now moot, though there is an interesting debate about whether the will… Read More »
Cheaper Prescription Drugs Are on the Way
It’s long been known that people in other countries can get prescription drugs for much cheaper than Americans end up paying. In particular, many people hop over the border to Mexico or Canada to get their drugs for a fraction of the price that they would otherwise pay for in a Florida pharmacy. Politico… Read More »
The Problems with Reverse Mortgages
USA Today recently published an eye-opening story on senior citizens who were shocked to suddenly face foreclosure. The cause? Reverse mortgages. As experienced elder law attorneys, we are familiar with reverse mortgages, which are often sold as “too good to be true,” principally because they are. Some dishonest companies target the elderly with confusing… Read More »
Is Florida Really Retirement Heaven for Seniors?
Florida draws millions of retirees to our state, drawn by the beautiful weather and zero personal income tax. However, a recent study suggests that the state only performs in the middle of the pack on measures of senior wellbeing. As reported by the Orlando Sentinel, Florida ranked only 29th of all 50 states in… Read More »
