Trustee’s Power To Acquire Annuity f/b/o Settlor Does Not Make Trust “Countable Asset”

In Heyn v. Director of Medicaid, the Massachusetts Appeals Court in an April 15, 2016 decision considered whether provisions in a self-settled trust rendered it a “countable asset” for Medicaid eligibility.  The trust mandated distributions of income to the settlor and authorized the trustee to sell assets for fair value and “to determine, in accordance with reasonable accounting principles […]

Lessons for Estate Planners

PROBATE LITIGATION LESSONS FOR THE ESTATE PLANNER © Ralph F. Holmes Updated January 2016   Introduction Due to a variety of demographic changes (we live longer, get divorced more, and have more wealth), the incidence of estate plan challenges has been on the rise. The most common litigation scenarios involve a child opposing a plan […]