Here are my selections for the top ten (10) New Jersey cases involving Special Needs Trusts / Disability Planning decided in 2009 and 2010. For those cases I previously blogged about, a link to the blog post as well as the case is included below. (1) Special Needs Trust Can Be Established Only.. read more →
Listed below are the blog posts, articles and other content from Vanarelli & Li, LLC website with the highest readership in 2010. For blog posts, the original post date is included after each hyperlinked title. Gift Tax Annual Exclusion Amount Unchanged In 2010 – October 31, 2009 “Blue Water” Navy Vietnam Veterans Now Eligible For.. read more →
A self-settled special needs trust is exempt from being counted as a “resource,” for purposes of determining eligibility for public benefits, pursuant to section (d)(4)(a) of 42 U.S.C. §1396p. (For this reason, this type of trust is sometimes referred to as a “(d)(4)(a) trust.”) Pursuant to this federal law, as amended on August 10, 1993.. read more →
Here are my selections for the top ten (10) twelve (12) New Jersey elder law / public benefits / Medicaid cases decided in 2010: (1) R.C. v. Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services and Hudson County Board of Social Services, OAK DKT. NO. HMA 08047 – 10 (Hudson County, October 22, 2010): Judge Awards.. read more →
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D/NV) has introduced legislation designed to enact the tax cut compromise that was reached last week between President Obama and Senate Republicans. Entitled the “Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010,” the present bill is structured as an amendment to current law enacted in 2001 under.. read more →
Under the statutes, the Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA) has a duty to assist a veteran in obtaining all relevant medical records, to provide medical examinations and obtain medical opinions necessary for the agency to make a decision on a claim for benefits. The duty has been explained in the cases in different ways, and.. read more →
Under the rules governing the Social Security Administration (SSA), “disability” is defined as “the inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment or combination of impairments that can be expected to result in death or that has lasted or can be expected to last for.. read more →
I’m pleased to report that 2010 yielded a rich harvest of guardianship decisions from cases filed throughout New Jersey. I’ve also identified some great cases from 2009 that deserve placement on any “Top Ten” list. They are all well-reasoned opinions from a variety of trial and appellate court judges in our state. I had.. read more →
A disability compensation benefit is paid by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to a veteran who (1) has a service-connected disability (injuries or diseases that happened while on active duty, or were made worse by active military service); and, (2) was discharged under other than dishonorable conditions. There are approximately 23.4 million veterans in.. read more →
Ohio’s First District Court of Appeals has joined other state and federal courts across the country in ruling recently that Ohio improperly imposed a penalty period on a Medicaid applicant whose wife purchased an annuity during the look-back period. The Court held that Ohio’s regulations regarding the purchase of annuities are improperly restrictive, and are.. read more →
A.D., a retired physician, began residing at Bergen Regional Medical Center (Bergen Regional), a nursing home, in October 2004. She was 80 years old at the time. She began receiving Medicaid benefits in late 2004. In 2006, the Bergen County Board of Social Services (Board) discovered two Keogh accounts at Citibank in A.D.’s name valued.. read more →
November 1, 2010 Washington, D.C. VA Begins Paying Benefits for New Agent Orange Claims VA Encourages Affected Vietnam Veterans to File Claims The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has begun distributing disability benefits to Vietnam Veterans who qualify for compensation under recently liberalized rules for Agent Orange exposure. “The joint efforts of Congress and VA.. read more →
Thomas Saccone is a retired Newark, NJ firefighter. He and his wife’s only son, Anthony, suffers from severe mental disabilities. Tom is a long-standing estate planning client of my law firm. Tom has shown himself to be a devoted husband and father who is relentless in his efforts to plan his estate in order to.. read more →
The two monetary benefits available to disabled veterans are Service-Connected Compensation and Non-Service Connected Pension. Surprising though it may be, however, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) does not consider everyone who ever served in the military to be a “veteran” for benefits purposes. According to 38 U.S.C. §101(2) and 38 C.F.R. §3.1(d), a “veteran”.. read more →
In Mary Elizabeth Walsh-Morales v. Jon D. Morales, Docket No. A0524-09T2 (Appellate Division, November 5, 2010), the state appeals court reiterated the legal standard in New Jersey which must be met before a divorced parent will be permitted to remove a child to another state. Plaintiff, a divorced mother, told defendant, her former husband, that.. read more →
As an elder law attorney, I receive many inquires from potential clients asking me to evaluate a potential lawsuit against a sibling involving a deceased parent’s estate plan. The claim typically seeks to set aside a deceased parent’s will as invalid, the result of undue influence by a sibling. Typically, the potential client seeking a.. read more →
My law firm recently was successful on appeal in overturning the denial of Medicaid eligibility for an incapacitated client residing in a nursing home. In R.C. v. Division or Medical Assistance and Health Services and Hudson County Board of Social Services, OAK DKT. NO. HMA 08047 – 10 (Hudson County, October 22, 2010), R.C., through.. read more →
Problem: Communication / Negotiation Issues Example: Siblings’ long-standing mistrust of each other prevents them from putting differences aside and focusing on the needs of the aging parent. Solution: Address the underlying issues and explain the need to put anger / mistrust aside to effectively assist the parent. Emphasize common goals and positives in the.. read more →
Convening a mediation involves getting often recalcitrant parties to participate in the mediation. It is both absolutely critical to the mediation process and often the most difficult part of resolving a dispute. Convening a mediation, when fewer than all the parties have requested mediation, as is often the case, is a mediation itself. The process.. read more →
W.J.A. v. D.A., Docket No. A-0762-09T3; (Appellate Division, September 27, 2010) is a defamation case based upon statements posted on a website. After plaintiff’s complaint was dismissed and plaintiff appealed, the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, determined that Internet postings that accuse one of engaging in sexual misconduct are the type of defamatory.. read more →
The Benefits Inspection Division is part of the Office of Inspector General (IG) in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Benefits Inspection Division’s mission is to improve management of VA benefits processing activities and veterans’ services. The Benefits Inspection Division conducts on-site inspections at VA Regional Offices (VARO) to review disability compensation claims processing.. read more →
(The 13th Annual Elder and Disability Law Symposium was held on September 29, 2010 at the New Jersey Law Center, in New Brunswick, NJ. This year I was asked to give the case law update at the opening session, summarizing the most significant legal developments over the past year in the areas of elder and.. read more →
In New Jersey, a document may be accepted for probate as a will in a number of ways. First, under the formal requirements of N.J.S.A. 3B:3-2(a), a traditional will shall be (1) in writing; (2) signed by the testator or in the testator’s name by some other individual in the testator’s conscious presence and at.. read more →
Today, a final regulation was published in the Federal Register (75 FR 59968 ) making it easier for veterans to obtain health care and disability compensation benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for diseases associated with military service in Southwest Asia (including Iraq) or Afghanistan. The final regulation establishes new presumptions of service-connection.. read more →
A new ethics opinion by the American Bar Association, Formal Opinion 10-457 (Lawyer Websites), identifies some of the ethical obligations that lawyers should address in considering the content and features of their websites. The major recommendations which I culled from the ethics opinion follow: (1) Information about Lawyers, their Law Firm, or their Clients. No.. read more →
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