Many adult children in Georgia assist their aging parents in long-term care planning issues. Executing an estate plan is often part of this process. Certain legal issues can be quite complex, such as those regarding choosing a trust. The type of document used can have a significant impact on inheritance, charitable donations, estate taxes and more. There are numerous types of trusts and it is definitely not a Read More

Georgia and all other states require a person to be of sound mind when he or she signs legal documents, especially those pertaining to estate planning. However, how each state legally defines mental competence may vary. It is possible to have minor symptoms of dementia or other mental decline and still be deemed competent enough to sign a will or other legally enforceable document related to elder law issues. Many Read More

For many families, the retirement age of the parents tends to overlap with the college years of the younger children in the family. That can place a lot of financial stress on the parents, who may feel compelled to provide educational financing for their children. All too often, that pressure doesn’t end with college. Kids may require years of support when starting a career or moving for a new job. As a parent who Read More

If there is anything more difficult than being a parent, it is probably being a caregiver to your own ailing parents. For some people, caring for aging parents is a task that occurs well after their children are grown. Unfortunately, some people find themselves in the difficult position of providing financial and social support both to their children and their parents at the same time. These caregivers can have their Read More

It is not uncommon for Georgia residents ages 65 and older to face challenging elder care issues in life. Adult children may try to help their aging parents with long-term care planning, which often includes the estate planning process. As people age, they are often more open to discussing their own mortality. Executing an estate plan is important for elders for many reasons. Most elders say they do not want to Read More

One of the most difficult aspects of creating an estate plan is unquestionably the need to allocate responsibilities to people in your family. Choosing who gets what asset may be a simple process by comparison. There may be certain items that have a meaningful history for family members or loved ones, or assets that people have specifically requested to inherit. Fewer people are likely to directly request Read More

In Georgia and elsewhere, many elders have close relationships with adult sons or daughter, or perhaps adult nieces, nephews or grand-children. Such family members are often key figures in helping aging loved ones manage their financial affairs. An ongoing situation in another state involves the great-nephew of an older woman, who has owned and operated a hotel for many years, and a recent court decision to appoint a Read More

Many circumstances can prompt a Georgia elder’s decision to transition to an assisted-living environment. When an elder is no longer able to function independently, he or she, along with adult children or other family members, may research nursing home services and available residencies. Especially if one has never had experience with nursing facilities in the past, it can be quite challenging trying to figure out Read More

There are many concerns that weigh on the parents of autistic children that parents with neurotypical children will likely never truly understand. For example, parents must plan for the care of their child not just until they reach the age of majority, but often for the rest of their lives. That can drastically impact how parents structure their last wills and estate plans. Parents who have autistic children, even if Read More

Most people over the age of 75 encounter mental or physical health challenges. It is often an adult son or daughter who is tasked with providing support to an aging parent, which can be quite difficult if a parent suffers physical or mental incapacity. In Georgia, and elsewhere, conservatorship is a process that allows someone to act on behalf of another who is no longer able to act on his or her own behalf. When a Read More