What is Special Needs Planning?

If you have a disabled child, or a disabled loved one for whom you provide financial support or care, part of your estate planning process likely should include special needs planning. Likewise, if you have a disability yourself, it is important to consider special needs planning in connection with any other estate planning you are doing. Special needs planning, as part of the estate planning process, involves using tools to ensure that an individual with a disability has the benefits they need.

What should you be considering if you have a disability yourself, or if you have a loved one with a disability? The following information can help you to plan ahead, and to learn about estate planning tools to discuss with your lawyer.

Establishing a Special Needs Trust

Part of any kind of special needs planning typically involves the establishment of a special needs trust, often abbreviated as an “SNT.” In Connecticut, there are two different types of special needs trusts that can be established, and the specific type you will want to create will depend on whether you are thinking about special needs planning for yourself or for a loved one. The two kinds of special needs trusts are:

• Self-settled trust (for yourself, if you have a disability); and
• Third-party trust (for a loved one with a disability).

Self-settled special needs trusts in Connecticut are established by the disabled adult for themselves, typically when they receive assets through a personal injury settlement, an inheritance, a prize, or a gift. If you are a disabled adult, you may be relying on public benefits that require you to have limited assets. Receiving an influx of money by one of the means cited above can result in the loss of public benefits. To avoid losing public benefits like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments, you can place the new assets into a self-settled special needs trust for yourself.

Third-party special needs trusts are established for another person with a disability so that they will not lose access to benefits. This is the type of special needs trust you will want to establish if you want to provide for a loved one with a disability. With a third-party special needs trust, you can leave assets to a disabled loved one without impacting that person’s eligibility for certain public benefits.

Creating Advance Directives 

As far as special needs planning goes, you should also discuss advance directives with your estate planning attorney if you are dealing with your own disability. Advance directives can allow you to make important decisions about your future health care if you become incapacitated and unable to indicate those decisions for yourself.

Contact a Connecticut Estate Planning Attorney 

If you have any questions about establishing a special needs trust, or if you want to learn more about estate planning for individuals with disabilities, you should seek advice from an experienced Canton estate planning lawyer at the Law Office of Brian S. Karpe. We provide a range of estate planning services to clients in Canton and throughout Connecticut, and we can speak with you today about getting started. Contact us for more information.

Source:

cga.ct.gov/2016/act/pa/2016PA-00176-R00SB-00392-PA.htm