Government Benefits

Signing the Social Security Application

The Voice is the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance. This installment was written by Special Needs Alliance member H. Amos Goodall, Jr., CELA, of State College, Pennsylvania. Mr. Goodall is a Certified Elder Law Attorney (by the National Elder Law Foundation), and has practiced law since 1976. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, and a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. Mr. Goodall primarily works in special needs and elder law planning, business organization planning, and real estate and business litigation.

2024-06-19T10:43:21-04:00Tags: |
Read More

Medicare Premium Rules Will Affect Some Large Trusts

The Voice is the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance. This installment was written by Nancy Gibson, Esq., a Montana elder law and disability law attorney. Her Missoula-based practice spans the state of Montana. She is a member and past director of The Special Needs Alliance, an invitation-only organization of attorneys specializing in special needs and settlement planning. She is actively involved with the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), an organization dedicated to improving the lives of the elderly and persons with special needs. She currently is serving a second two-year term on the NAELA board of directors. Ms. Gibson limits her practice to elder and disability law, including estate planning and administration, but the majority of her cases involve special needs trusts and/or settlement planning.

2024-04-22T15:43:34-04:00Tags: |
Read More

The Secret of When Less Is More

The Voice is the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance. This installment was written by Special Needs Alliance member Peter J. Losavio, Jr., CELA, an attorney with Losavio & DeJean, LLC in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He is certified as an elder law attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation. He is a Louisiana Board Certified Estate Planning and Administration Specialist, and a Louisiana Board Certified Tax Specialist. Mr. Losavio is a charter member of the Life Care Planning Law Firms Association, and he is a member of the Society of Louisiana CPAs. Mr. Losavio obtained a Juris Doctorate degree from Louisiana State University and a Master of Law in Taxation from the University of Florida. Mr. Losavio's practice is limited to asset protection, life care planning and estate and tax planning.

2024-04-16T14:52:43-04:00
Read More

What Property May a Person Receiving SSI Own?

The Voice is the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance. The author of this installment, John S. Kitchen, Esq., has written articles published by the National College of Probate Judges and the Research Institute of America (RIA), and has drafted special needs trusts legislation enacted into law in New Hampshire. John has given presentations concerning special needs trusts at national conferences of the National Guardianship Association, ARC, National PLAN Alliance and Special Needs Alliance, as well as at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. in a program sponsored by the National Disability Institute. John has a family member with disabilities, and he is a member of the Special Needs Alliance.

2024-06-19T10:43:25-04:00Tags: |
Read More

The Military’s Survivor Benefit Plan and the Disabled Child

The Voice is the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance. This installment was written by Special Needs Alliance member Kelly A. Thompson, Esq. of Arlington, Virginia. Ms. Thompson is the author of "Trust Administration in Virginia" (published by the Virginia Bar Foundation) and the "Adult Incapacity" chapter of the Virginia Lawyer Deskbook, and she is an active volunteer with The ARC of Northern Virginia. She also serves as counsel for the pooled special needs trust for The ARC of Northern Virginia, and she is a member of the Legal Advisors group for the National Capital Chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society. Ms. Thompson's readable article "Planning for Individuals with Special Needs" is available online.

2024-06-19T10:30:20-04:00Tags: , |
Read More

Economic Stimulus Payments and TV Converter Box Coupons

This issue of The Voice, the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance, was written by SNA member Raymon B. Harvey, Esq., an AV-rated sole practitioner in Little Rock, Arkansas. You can read more about Mr. Harvey, and his practice, at his office's website, which provides additional information about Special Needs Trusts and related issues such as Guardianship and Conservatorship, Medicaid eligibility, and other topics of concern to those with disabilities and their caretaker families.

2024-04-16T14:26:42-04:00
Read More

Our Readers’ (That Is, Your) Questions

You are reading The Voice, the e-mail newsletter of The Special Needs Alliance. This installment was written by Special Needs Alliance member William King Self, Jr., CELA, of Memphis, Tennessee. Mr. Self is a Certified Elder Law Attorney, recognized by both the National Elder Law Foundation and the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. He is of counsel to the Memphis law firm of Apperson, Crump & Maxwell, and both he and the firm are rated AV by Martindale-Hubbell, the oldest and most significant lawyer rating service. A Tennessee reader of The Voice wrote to ask a series of questions about special needs planning, and Mr. Self has graciously undertaken to provide some answers -- and assistance.

2024-04-16T14:25:24-04:00
Read More

Beware of UTMA Accounts

You are reading The Voice, a newsletter published by The Special Needs Alliance. Our purpose is to provide information--and answers--about special needs planning for family members and professionals. We hope this newsletter helps you. We would love to hear your questions, suggestions and comments; please feel free to e-mail us. We also encourage you to forward our newsletter to others who might benefit from the information here, or who might have similar questions.

2024-04-16T14:13:35-04:00
Read More

Fixing a Flawed Special Needs Estate Plan

You are reading The Voice, a newsletter published by The Special Needs Alliance. Our purpose is to provide information--and answers--about special needs planning for family members and professionals. We hope this newsletter helps you. We would love to hear your questions, suggestions and comments; please feel free to e-mail us. We also encourage you to forward our newsletter to others who might benefit from the information here, or who might have similar questions.

2024-06-19T10:30:43-04:00Tags: , |
Read More

Subsidized Housing and Special Needs Trusts

You are reading The Voice, a newsletter published by The Special Needs Alliance. Our purpose is to provide information--and answers--about special needs planning for family members and professionals. We hope this newsletter helps you. We would love to hear your questions, suggestions and comments; please feel free to e-mail us. We also encourage you to forward our newsletter to others who might benefit from the information here, or who might have similar questions.

2024-04-16T13:58:45-04:00
Read More