“Prevention is so much better than healing because it saves the labor of being sick.”
– Thomas Adams
Emergency Long-term Care Planning Or Estate & Guardianship Litigation
If you do find yourself as the person in charge after a loved one suddenly falls ill or dies, leaving you with a pile of paperwork that you have no idea how to sort through. Do not panic! Call 812-232-6003 to set up an emergency consultation at Cox, Zwerner, Gambill & Sullivan, LLP.
There are definitely steps that you can take quickly after an emergency happens to begin to mitigate or repair whatever damage has been done through an unanticipated event. The sooner you act to contact the Firm, the more we will be able to do to assist you through the tough times. We have handled hundreds of Guardianships as well as Emergency Medicaid / Long-term Care Asset Protection Plans.
Comprehensive Estate, Trust, Medicaid & Disability Planning
Putting together an estate plan is a lot like wearing a mask. If you do not wear a mask, i.e., put an estate plan together, you might be fine, but then again, you might not.
Indiana law gives every one of its residents a default who-will-inherit-my-stuff provisions, and the ability to go to Court to ensure that it happens. Without consulting an experienced attorney, how would you know whether the default provisions actually work for your family?
With its more than 100 years of experience, Cox, Zwerner, Gambill & Sullivan, LLP, has represented clients advising how best to plan and organize their estates in order to avoid paying federal estate taxes as well as how best to pass their assets to their loved ones and favorite charities with as little headache as possible.
Again, failing to plan for long-term care is like not wearing a mask in the presence of someone who you know has Covid-19. More than at any other time in history, the most important part of estate planning isn’t planning who will receive your stuff after you die, it is: How do I best organize my assets to ensure that I can pay for nursing home or in-home care?
Approximately 70 percent of Americans over the age of 65 will need some level of long-term care services in their lifetime with 40 percent needing care in a nursing home. Indiana’s default position, i.e., those without a plan, is simply to spend all of your hard-earned money until there is little to nothing left.
Failing to plan for a potential short or long-term disability period is just as dangerous. The default Indiana position is that your family, or Adult Protective Services, will have to go to Court to get a Court appointed Guardian over your person and estate. This doesn’t even have to be someone you know. You could be left in the hands of a total stranger who gets paid $35 per month to check up on you while leaving you alone in a 24/7 institution.
Tailored Solutions For Every Situation
In order to best care for yourself and your family, it is important that every person or couple has an estate plan created by an experienced and knowledgeable attorney who can be there not only when you are composing your plan, but also when you do become disabled or pass away to assist your family to implement your wishes.
There is such a variety of methods to achieve your estate and long-term planning goals that the best way to start this planning process would be to contact our Firm. There is no one size fits all approach to comprehensive planning. What works for your best friend’s family is not necessarily what is best for your family.
The most expensive estate litigation scenarios occur when the disabled or deceased individual failed to create a comprehensive plan with a competent attorney. Although the team at Cox, Zwerner, Gambill & Sullivan, LLP, has handled many estate litigation cases, our experience is that these type of Bleak House1messes usually arise when the disabled or deceased party has failed to consult with an attorney and create a comprehensive plan.
Estate & Trust Settlement
A significant portion of the business of Cox, Zwerner, Gambill & Sullivan, LLP, has included the efficient and competent guidance of Personal Representatives of Estates as well as Trustees of Trusts to handle the settlement of a deceased person’s affairs. The assets managed range from estates worth less than $50,000.00 as well as multi-millionaires who need to file a timely IRS form 706.
Even if our Firm did not represent your deceased loved one in preparing an estate plan, our team of experienced Attorneys can walk you through this time of mourning and guide you to the best results possible for your family.
Contact Us
Call our Firm at 812-232-6003 to schedule an appointment at our historic Terre Haute office,2 a Zoom conference call or use our online form.
1 A novel by Charles Dickens. First published as a 20-episode serial between March 1852 and Septe,ber 1853. At the center of Bleak House is a long-running legal case in an English Court, which comes about because a descendent wrote several conflicting wills. At the end of the legal battle, there was nothing left to be received by the fighting beneficiaries because all of the money was handed over to their attorneys to pay for the legal fight.
2 Parking – The Firm provides complimentary, convenient parking for all of our clients in the parking lot at the corner of Wabash Avenue and Fifth Street in Terre Haute. Parking is for clients and staff only. In order to activate the parking gate, press the small black button located on the lower left-hand side of the gate box. Parking is for clients and staff only. All others will be towed at owner’s expense.
