There is a Catch-22 involved in planning for incapacity, and it is actually difficult to discuss because the subject is so sensitive. Let’s start by pointing out the fact that people are living longer than ever, and the “oldest old,” people 85-years-old and up, are the fastest growing segment of the population. So when you […]

The prenuptial or premarital agreement has always carried a particular stigma with it in the minds of some people. They reason that part of the decision that you make to ask someone to marry you involves entering into a holistic partnership. If you are not willing to share all that you have you are not […]

Gov. Barbour recently announced the expansion of Mississippi's Medicaid Home waiver program.  This program allows seniors that are unable to live totally independently, but who can live without round the clock skilled care, to remain in their homes through some care provider subsidies provided by Medicaid.  This is good news for many of our state's […]

One of the most difficult end-of-life realities to cope with for many people is the impact that their absence will have on their families. Even when you can come to grips with your own mortality, you have spent decades as a parent and grandparent. You can recall countless instances when your wisdom and experience was […]

Retirement planning is generally considered to be a term that describes the financial preparations you must make for the time when your working years are behind you. This is certainly a large part of it, but you also have to decide how you want to spend the free time that you are going to have. […]

One of the most simple, direct, and efficient ways to reduce the taxable value of your estate is by giving tax-free gifts to your heirs. “Tax-free” is the operable phrase here, and there is in fact a gift tax in place to prevent people from giving away all of their assets while they are still […]

Estate planning on the one hand involves protecting your assets from erosion and making sure that you have the financial resources that you need to comfortably enjoy the latter stages of your life. This is the aspect that your estate planning attorney can assist you with, but there is an extremely personal side to it […]

It is a long row to hoe when you first take out a traditional mortgage, with most people committed to making monthly payments for thirty years as they slowly build equity. Once you have made that last payment all of the equity is finally yours, and that is certainly a good feeling indeed. At that […]

One of the issues that has been a frequent topic of discussion over the last several years in elder law circles is that of elder financial abuse. The statistics that are available on the subject only tell part of the tale, but a MetLife Mature Market Institute report estimates that some $2.6 billion is lost […]

One of the biggest factors to consider when you are planning your estate is the estate tax, and there is some huge news to report about changes to the law that were passed just before the new year. To understand the impact of this new legislation you have to digest the back story. The estate […]