Elder law touches nearly every family eventually. Whether it is planning for long-term care, navigating Medicaid eligibility, addressing capacity and guardianship questions, or ensuring an aging parent’s estate plan reflects their current situation, the legal needs of older adults are distinctive and consequential. Staying informed about developments in this area is not just professionally important for attorneys; it can be personally urgent for families.
Mandelbaum Barrett PC’s January 2019 Elder Law Alert provided clients and colleagues with timely analysis of legal developments affecting older adults and their families. The firm’s Trusts and Estates practice advises families on the full range of elder law matters, from advance planning to situations that require immediate legal attention as health and circumstances change.
What Elder Law Encompasses
Elder law is a broad practice area that addresses the intersection of aging, disability, health care, and estate planning. Unlike a standard estate planning engagement, which focuses primarily on the orderly transfer of assets at death, elder law practice addresses the planning that needs to happen before death, often under time pressure as health and cognitive capacity change.
Key areas within elder law practice include long-term care planning, Medicaid eligibility and planning, powers of attorney and health care directives, guardianship and conservatorship, and the protection of older adults from financial exploitation and abuse. Each of these areas has its own legal framework and requires attorneys who are current on the applicable standards in New Jersey.
Key Issues in Elder Law Planning
Effective elder law planning requires addressing several interconnected areas before a crisis makes proactive planning impossible. Families who engage with an elder law attorney early have significantly more options than those who wait. The most consequential issues to address include:
- Long-term care planning: Nursing home and assisted living costs in New Jersey can exceed $100,000 per year, making advance planning essential for families who want to preserve assets while covering care costs.
- Medicaid planning: Medicaid is the primary public payer for long-term care, but eligibility rules are complex and subject to look-back periods that require planning well in advance of a need for care.
- Durable powers of attorney: A well-drafted durable power of attorney allows a trusted person to manage financial and legal affairs if the elder is no longer able to do so, avoiding the need for court-supervised guardianship.
- Health care directives: Advance directives, health care proxies, and living wills ensure an elder’s medical wishes are known and legally documented before a health crisis makes communication impossible.
Early planning in each of these areas expands the available options and gives families more control over outcomes than reactive decision-making allows.
The New Jersey Courts provide information on self-help resources for families navigating court-supervised proceedings, including guardianship matters that arise when capacity planning was not completed in advance.
Why Timely Legal Guidance Matters in Elder Law
The consequences of waiting too long to address elder law planning can be significant. A power of attorney executed after cognitive decline may be challenged. Medicaid planning begun after a care need arises may be subject to look-back penalties. Estate plans drafted decades ago may no longer reflect the elder’s current situation, family structure, or assets.
Regular communications like the Elder Law Alert help clients and their families stay informed about the legal developments and planning considerations that make a difference in these situations. Mandelbaum Barrett PC’s trusts and estates attorneys work with families to address elder law matters proactively, before urgency limits options.
Contact Mandelbaum Barrett PC
Families navigating elder law matters in New Jersey deserve attorneys who know both the legal framework and the personal dimensions of what their clients are facing. Mandelbaum Barrett PC’s Trusts and Estates practice provides capable, attentive guidance for the full range of elder law needs.
To speak with an attorney about elder law planning, reach out through the firm’s contact page.