1) Public Benefit Protection
If your client or their family member receives public benefits such as Medicaid or SSI, it is crucial to take steps necessary to protect them. These benefits may provide the individual with their sole source of income, health care, and other services that are too valuable to risk losing. Atlantic Law can work with you and the client to develop a plan to allow the client to keep his or her public benefits while still being able to enjoy the money that you obtain for them. Solutions may include a stand-alone special needs trust, pooled special needs trust account, a designed spending plan, or an ABLE account.
In additional to developing and implementing a plan to protect the client’s public benefits, Atlantic Law will also take care of all communication with the Department of Social Services and Social Security Administration and prepare the necessary documentation to report the client’s change in circumstances, taking this responsibility off the list of things the lawyer and client must worry about.
2) Minor Settlements and Minor Beneficiaries
If your client is a minor who will receive substantial funds from a settlement, award, or as a beneficiary of a wrongful death lawsuit, Atlantic Law can help develop a plan to protect against the minor’s later poor decision making. Typically involving the use of a trust, the money can be held for the minor’s benefit to an age where it is more appropriate for the individual to receive the money. At the same time, the money can be used for many of the child’s needs, including education and health care.
If there is a question of whether the child may later qualify and need public benefits, hybrid trusts are available to provide such flexibility.
3) Medicare Set Asides
If your client either receives Medicare coverage or has a reasonable expectation of doing so within 30 months, there may be a need to create a Medicare Set Aside. Atlantic Law is available to review your client’s situation and make recommendations for protecting Medicare’s interests in the lawsuit.
4) Guardianships and Conservatorships
If your client does not have the capacity to move forward with litigation and cannot sign a power of attorney, then it may be necessary to have a guardian and/or conservator appointed.
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5) Guardian ad litem
Brian is available to serve as Guardian ad litem for adults who may suffer from a lack of capacity.
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6) Qualified Settlement Funds
Brian is available to serve as Guardian ad litem for adults who may suffer from a lack of capacity.
A qualified settlement fund, also known as a 468b fund, or QSF, is a powerful tool that encourages and simplifies lawsuit settlements. QSFs are commonly used in class action lawsuits, but can also help in the settlement of other cases.
A QSF is a trust authorized by Treasury Regulation 1.468B-1(c). Under the regulation, a QSF must:
1. Be created by a court, and be subject to continuing court supervision;
2. Resolve claims related to the subject of the lawsuit; and
3. Qualify as a trust under state law.
A QSF provides benefit to defendants in a suit because it allows them to be fully released from litigation, and receive immediate tax benefits. QSFs also provide benefit to plaintiffs as they are able to have immediate control over their settlement funds as defendants will immediately pay their share of settlement funds into the QSF.
An independent, qualified trustee, often an accountant or a lawyer, is appointed to serve as trustee of the trust. The trustee manages the funds, handles ongoing claim resolution, and works with the plaintiffs to determine the trust’s payouts.
7) Estate Planning
If your client is about to receive a substantial settlement or award, it will certainly have an effect on their life. That makes it the perfect time for the client to meet with an experienced estate planning attorney to consider his or her estate planning needs. Atlantic Law is happy to meet with the client to discuss the importance of estate planning or to review any existing plan.
For any cases that involve litigation, Atlantic Law is also available to assist in the preparation of any pleadings necessary to implement the plan and appear in court to help explain the intricacies of the benefits and the plan.
Lastly, it sometimes takes time to obtain verification of benefits, so it is important to contact Atlantic Law early in the process so a plan that fits the client’s needs can be developed and put into place prior to the conclusion of the case.
For any cases that involve litigation, Atlantic Law is also available to assist in the preparation of any pleadings necessary to implement the plan and appear in court to help explain the intricacies of the benefits and the plan.
Lastly, it sometimes takes time to obtain verification of benefits, so it is important to contact Atlantic Law early in the process so a plan that fits the client’s needs can be developed and put into place prior to the conclusion of the case.
