At the Law Offices of Leonard L. Shober, P.C., we specialize in serving the needs of the elderly. Long term care can have a devastating effect on finances. Many people do not realize the law lets them arrange their finances so they don't have to spend all of their money on long term health care. We help our clients keep every penny the law allows - and we do more. We oversee all aspects of an asset protection plan, providing comprehensive case management services for the elder and the family. Our management of the financial and legal aspects of the admission enables the family to focus on emotional issues in this time of crisis. We will worry about nursing home applications, liability issues and applications for medical assistance. Moreover, we structure our fees so we can act as a true support system to families, recognizing that there may be many questions and problems presented during this time of crises. We establish a flat fee at the beginning of each case in consultation with the family and depending upon the level of involvement they may require. Because of our flat fee structure, we are able to spend time with our clients on the phone and in person. We find that it is during these extra sessions that some of the most important information surfaces. In addition, there are no additional charges for expenses such as copying, postage, telephone, messenger service, word processing, reasonable travel, secretarial overtime and other similar items. The client knows ahead of time exactly what it will cost for our services. This is factored into the planning and the spend down on legal fees is deductible against the amount of assets that may be lost to a facility. Many clients feel that they are spending money that would otherwise be lost to a nursing home on legal advice that will actually save them money! This is a great incentive for purchasing quality legal representation.
At the Law Offices of Leonard L. Shober, we offer a full range of services covering all aspects of asset protection, including comprehensive case management services for the elder and family. Our services enable the family to focus on supporting the elder in the time of crisis rather than focusing on nursing home applications, finances and applications for assistance. We structure our fees so we can act as a true support system to families. We do not charge for telephone calls no matter how many we receive and how long they take. Admission to a nursing home is a time of crisis and there are many details, questions and uncertainties that must be worked out with the family. We believe our "case management" style of legal representation works best.
Admission to a nursing home is a time of crisis and there are many details, questions and uncertainties that must be worked out with the family. Nothing can be left to chance and all avenues must be explored since there is so much at stake. If a client loses one month coverage at a nursing home, it may cost the family an additional $6,000 - $7,000. All it takes is for one missed life insurance policy or savings bond for the client to be considered ineligible for Medicaid. For this reason, we personally investigate all of the client's assets and personally administer transfers and spend down payments. We often maintain escrow accounts to make sure that payments are made to the nursing home or assisted living facility in a timely and documented manner. These payments often represent return of gifts so it is essential that their payment be controlled.
After we evaluate the legal and financial needs of the elder, we prepare a comprehensive asset protection plan to suit the individual needs of each elder, and spouse if applicable. This plan is prepared in written form and is given to the client as part of the package of services that we provide. An example of the comprehensive services that we provide for Asset Protection Planning may include:
Collect and analyze all relevant data:
Prepare and deliver a detailed Financial Inventory;
Analyze the status of present estate planning;
Create a comprehensive Health Care/Estate Plan that will allow the elder to:
keep the maximum allowable assets under the law;
eliminate Probate if possible and structure estate documents so that benefits granted while the elder is living do not have to be returned at death;
administer the Probate Estate if required;
protect the welfare of the elder by acting as liaison with hospitals, intermediate-care and nursing facilities;
ease the burden from the family's shoulders. Implement the Plan, which includes preparation of all necessary documents;
Act as liaison with County, State and Federal health care agencies;
Act as liaison with the nursing home and review all applications for admission, MA51's (MA medical examinations), Options Reports, and outcomes of nursing home inspections and deficiencies.
At the Law Offices of Leonard L. Shober, we bring more to our practice than an expertise in the appropriate area of law. We bring to our practice a knowledge of the elderly that allows us and our staff to ignore the myths relating to aging and the competence of the elderly. At the same time, we will take into account and empathize with some of the true physical and mental difficulties that often accompany the aging process. Our understanding of the afflictions of the aged allows us to determine more easily the difference between the physical versus the mental disability of a client. We are more aware of real life problems, health and otherwise, that tend to crop up as persons age. We are tied into a system of social workers, psychologists, geriatric care managers and other elder care professionals who may be of assistance to you. All of these things will hopefully make you more comfortable when dealing with us and ease your way as you try to resolve your legal problems.
