Ladimer Law Blog

Could a credit shelter trust help you preserve wealth to pass on to your loved ones? It’s possible. In basic terms, a credit shelter trust is a type of trust used by married couples to minimize estate tax liability and preserve assets for their descendants. In states with high estate tax thresholds, this type of […]

MassHealth can be both a blessing and a burden. For an eligible Massachusetts resident who needs long-term nursing care and lacks the resources to pay out of pocket, MassHealth coverage may be the solution that makes it possible to get that care. Considering long-term care in Massachusetts often costs upwards of $100,000 per year, many […]

If you’re like most people, your family is the most important thing in your life. It might be just you and one other person, or you might be part of a close-knit crew of dozens – whatever its makeup, your family is everything. Naturally you want to make sure your relatives are taken care of, […]

Like cleaning out your closet and getting more sleep, estate planning is one of those tasks that you might classify as a “should do.” You know that creating a will and making your end-of-life wishes known is an important and responsible thing to do.

Establishing a trust but failing to fund it is like opening a bank account without depositing a single penny. Your trust may be worth nothing more than the paper it’s printed on until it’s funded. Funding is simply the process of transferring assets into the trust. Those assets aren’t protected by the terms of the […]

Few diagnoses are more devastating than dementia. With 10 million new cases each year, this syndrome touches many families. When your parent is diagnosed with dementia, many things are out of your control. Managing your parent’s healthcare, home management and estate planning needs is a concrete way to help.

Your home: It’s where you’ve made precious memories, and it’s probably the most expensive thing you own. Who do you want to take ownership of it when you die? Property has major emotional and financial attachments, which is why it’s at the center of many inheritance disputes. Putting property in a trust is one way […]

What will happen to your home if the day comes when you need to move to a nursing home? If MassHealth covers your long-term care, it won’t take your home and force you out, but the program may take profits from its sale – profits that your beneficiaries are counting on. The best way to […]

Residents of long-term-care facilities rarely need cash. Room and board, housekeeping and activities are all included in the monthly cost of a nursing home. But what’s a resident to do when she runs out of her favorite perfume, or when he wants to give a birthday gift to a grandchild? If MassHealth is covering the […]

They’re both legal documents, and they can both be used to protect your assets and provide for your loved ones. Wills and trusts are equally important tools for estate planning, but many people are vague on the differences between them. The first thing to know? Wills and trusts aren’t mutually exclusive. You might need both.

MassHealth coverage is, quite literally, a lifesaver. It allows Massachusetts residents to get the medical coverage and long-term nursing care that they need but can’t afford. But like most government-run programs, MassHealth applications require members to navigate a complicated process before they get covered. Here are just a few of the most common pitfalls to […]

Ladimer Law is pleased to announce that Julie McQuade Ladimer and Jessica Pesce have been recognized as two of the top young attorneys in Massachusetts. Julie and Jessica have both been selected as Rising Stars for 2018 – 2019. Honorees are named by Super Lawyers, part of Thomson Reuters. Only the top 2.5% of attorneys […]

On a difficulty scale from “applying for a library card” to “applying for citizenship,” applying for MassHealth falls somewhere in the middle. It’s a straightforward process that requires a dauntingly long application and a bit of a wait. The MassHealth application process often takes a few months from start to finish. For Massachusetts residents who […]

Estate Planning: Essential Documents for Young Adults At 18 we feel invincible, and like our life is just beginning, so planning for seemingly impossible what-ifs might seem unnecessary. But life is nothing if not unpredictable. 18 is an age when we want to feel in control but often also feel secure under the parent-child relationship, […]

Buying life insurance is supposed to be a way to provide financial security for the people you leave behind. If that expensive policy actually triggers an estate tax to be levied against your estate, is there any point in buying life insurance at all? The answer is yes, but only if you know how to […]

They put food on the table, a roof over your head and bandages on your skinned knees. Now that your aging parents need your help, do you know what to do? Have you thought about preparing for their MassHealth application?

Some parts of modern adult life, like root canals and IRS audits, are both miserable and hard to avoid. Going through probate might not be quite as torturous as having teeth pulled, but it’s not something anyone does for fun. Avoiding probate is generally a goal of estate planning for good reason.

Want to Protect Your Assets? You Need More Than a Will Would you be comfortable leaving town knowing that your home was locked up, but your garage door was wide open? Probably not. So why would you create a will that protects some of your assets and not take further action to protect the rest?

If only he had saved more. If only she had invested in this fund instead of that one. If only he had picked the right lottery numbers. As attorneys specializing in long-term care planning, we see clients grapple with those “if-onlys” all the time. They’ve reached a point at which they need long-term care, but […]

Yachts, ski chalets, chartered jets, trusts: one of these things is not like the others. Contrary to popular belief, establishing a trust isn’t a luxury reserved for the ultra-rich. Yes, trusts are often used by the wealthy to shield assets and pass money from one generation to the next. That’s just one way that trusts […]