Practice Groups

The day-to-day demands of caring for a child with special needs can be overwhelming. Often lost is the need to plan for when you can’t be there. Depending on your child’s particular needs, it can be quite costly to provide for his or her long-term care.

A special needs practitioner assists parents with long-term health care planning for special needs children along with the estate planning necessary to care of the child after a parent’s death. Often, a guardianship may be necessary to ensure the continued well-being of the child into adulthood.

Our attorneys have substantial experience in preparing and presenting petitions seeking to establish a guardianship and in defending individuals who do not believe a guardianship is necessary.

Our attorneys handle all aspects of special needs planning including the creation of Special Needs Trusts and Letters of Intent. We deal with governmental or other alternative programs to maximize the quality of care and services that are available to children and others who face special challenges.

We can also help with selecting the appropriate benefits – Social Security Disability Insurance, Medicaid, Medicare and more – and help determine which services your child will need throughout his or her lifetime.

There are several planning tools available:

• Special Needs Trusts
• Supplemental Needs Trusts
• Special Needs Guardianships (Article 17-A)
• Article 81 Guardianships
• Medicaid Planning

We recommend meeting with us before your child turns 18, at which point you may no longer be able to gain access to your child’s medical, educational, legal and financial records.