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Special Needs Estate Planning in New York

New York father prepares estate for special needs son with the help of Cuddy Law Firm

Do You Need to Secure Your Child’s Future?

As a parent—or a caregiver or guardian of a loved one with special needs—you think and worry about what will happen when you’re no longer able to care for them daily.

Who will take over their care? Who will make decisions regarding their education, vocational skills and health needs? Will there be enough money for the long term?

You can put your mind at ease by talking to an estate planning attorney.

An estate plan can protect your child’s access to government benefits and medical programs. It can ensure that your family’s resources go into supporting your child’s well-being.

At the Cuddy Law Firm, we help families of loved ones with disabilities complete their special needs estate planning and special needs trusts.

We’ll work with you to develop a life plan, so you have peace of mind knowing your child or other loved one will get the proper care. We’ll factor in your financial, legal, social, medical and family needs.

This is a highly specific area of the law. Estate planning for a person with special needs comes with unique challenges. It’s important to consult a special needs attorney with deep knowledge of this process.

If you’re in New York City, Westchester County or Upstate New York, talk to us at the Cuddy Law Firm. Let us help you prepare yourself and your loved one for a better future.

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Special Needs Estate Planning: Special Needs Trusts

A special needs trust is an arrangement that protects your child’s assets, so he or she continues to qualify for government assistance programs that are based in part on income.

Trusts allow you and your family to make financial contributions to support your child without causing them to lose access to these other benefits. Government programs may see your contributions or other sources of support for your child as income that disqualifies your child from further help.

When you’re setting up a special needs trust, you need to ask several questions:

  • Has your financial situation changed in a way that raises the need for a trust?
  • Who can be the trustees who manage a special needs trust?
  • What kinds of public benefits could your family member with disabilities receive, now and in the future?
  • What expenses can you cover using a special needs trust?
  • type of special needs trust is most appropriate for you?

This can seem overwhelming, but a special needs estate planning lawyer can help you sort through all of the decisions you need to make.

No feeling is better than knowing you’ve done everything you possibly can to secure your child’s future.

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Special Needs Estate Planning: Guardianship

When a child with disabilities reaches adulthood, state laws may consider them legally independent.

A person with significant impairments, however, may still need someone to take care of their daily lives and legal and financial decisions.

This is when you need to consider establishing a guardianship.

A guardian is appointed by a court to manage the business of an incapacitated person.

Guardianship decisions involve deciding how much help your child will need into adulthood and whether there are less restrictive ways of helping them.

It’s a complicated and emotional decision, but if you’re in New York, the estate planning attorneys and guardianship attorneys at the Cuddy Law Firm can guide you through it.

Our goal is to see you achieve the best situation for your family.

When Should I Start Special Needs Estate Planning?

It’s never too soon to start planning for the future of your child with special needs.

But thinking about what will happen after you’re gone is difficult.

Estate planning attorneys from the Cuddy Law Firm help your family through this process with care—and extensive knowledge of your options under the law.

Talks to us about trusts, wills, guardianships or other aspects of estate planning.

Once you’ve worked out how life will look for your family later, you can focus on getting the most out of life now.

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