The practice of elder law revolves around the population served - seniors. While an attorney who practices elder law must be proficient in many areas of law, the focus of elder law is a dedication to meeting the many and varied legal, financial, health care and social needs of older adults.
Given the complexity of legal and other planning issues that impact the senior population, an elder law attorney must use numerous planning tools and techniques to meet the special needs, goals and objectives of this segment of the population. In most planning situations, elder law attorneys work closely with social workers, health care workers, financial planners and other trusted professionals.
There are quite a large number of planning areas that pertain to the practice of "elder law," including:
Estate & Lifetime Planning - among other things, estate planning includes the preparation of wills, determining the appropriateness of trust planning and gifting, and the analysis of tax implications of planning decisions. Lifetime planning involves the implementation of financial and healthcare powers of attorney and advance directives. These types of documents allow individuals to initiate planning that becomes vitally important in the event of a physical and/or mental incapacity. Properly prepared powers of attorney should be tailored to each individual's personal planning situation and only involve agents in whom complete trust can be vested.
Nursing Home Planning and Public Benefit Eligibility - many seniors are concerned about the possibility of a lengthy stay in a health care facility such as a nursing home. The issues causing the concern include how does one get good care in such a setting and how does one pay for the care without substantially depleting a lifetime of earnings and savings. The practice of elder law very importantly addresses these complicated issues and offers planning solutions that solve the individual needs of each older adult and where possible seeks to qualify the individual for available benefits including Medical Assistance. This type of planning becomes vitally important for married seniors, given that the lack of planning could very well leave spouses who are not in need of nursing home care without the necessary assets to meet their living needs.
Resident Rights Advocacy - championing the individual rights of seniors in need of health care services provided in a facility setting or at home.
Housing Selection - assisting older adults in understanding the numerous housing options available and how to best finance these options, including personal residence ownership, senior citizen apartments, assisted living arrangements and nursing home selection.
Law Office of
SHAWN M. PIERSON
105 East Oregon Road
Lititz, Pennsylvania 17543
717-560-4966 |