Estate Planning

In most cases, people with disabilities have the capacity to create their own estate planning documents, and in some cases it is crucial that they do so.

Special Needs 101

Because beneficiaries of programs like Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Medicaid must be quite poor to qualify, they can lose their benefits when they come into an inheritance, receive money in their own names from an accident settlement, or merely...

Special Needs 101

Guardianship can provide parents of children with special needs a way to protect their child's financial and medical well-being even after they have turned 18.

Special Needs 101

The PASS program allows SSI beneficiaries to use their non-SSI income to pay for job training or to start a business. If beneficiaries follow the complicated rules governing the program, the Social Security Administration will not count income used for...

Special Needs 101

If your child has special needs, a standard estate plan -- will, trust, power of attorney, and health care proxy -- may not be adequate for your family. Here are three must-have documents...

Special Needs 101

If a person with special needs receives a large personal injury award, paying for health insurance could become an unaffordable expense unless precautions are taken. A special needs trust could be the answer.

Special Needs 101

Retirement accounts like 401(k)s and IRAs make up the majority of most people's savings. While these plans encourage saving by offering significant tax rewards, they were certainly not set up to help families with special needs.

Special Needs 101

This book offers a boilerplate special needs trust. Our reviewer finds many flaws and asks: Why would you want to scrimp on the one tool that will provide for your child'™s lifetime care?...