Our Articles

We hope that you will find the following articles informative. Please note that they do not constitute legal advice. Please contact us to answer any questions about Trusts, Durable Powers of Attorney for asset management, Advance Health Care Directives, and any other appropriate planning options.

Downloads

• Create a Lasting Legacy with a Dynasty Trust by Mike Gilfix
• Aging at Home: How technology and AI can help our clients by Mark Gilfix 
• Technology Innovation and Long-Term Care 2017 Updates in The Elder Law Report by Mark Gilfix
• Advising Clients About Hospitalization And Operations featured in Trust & Estates by Myra Gerson Gilfix
• Technology Innovation and Long-Term Care - Report From the Aging 2.0 Expo
• Trump Initiatives Affecting Vulnerable Populations - Leading attorneys in elder law and special needs planning analyze current proposals.
• Mesh Multigenerational Planning with New Economy Ideas - Broaden client service by giving estate planning a multigenerational scope and being alert to new economy opportunities. 
• A New Paradigm: Truly Multigenerational Planning - Help Families Achieve a Diversity of Shared Goals.
• Addressing Financial Elder Abuse - Should the bar for protective intervention be lower?
• It's all in the Genes, Trusts & Estates, October 2012. As scientific research reveals some of our bodies' predispositions, how should we plan for our future?. 
• Advance Health Care Directives Standard Forms Don't Do The Trick, The Journal of Wealth Management for Estate Planning Professionals. No two clients are alike. Real life stories show why standard forms don't do the trick.
• Burials - Going Green, Greener and Greenest, The Journal of Wealth Management for Estate Planning Professionals. Clients are increasingly interested in the most personal of recycling. 
• The Good and the Very Bad, Trusts and Estates. A few benefits are being extended, but mostly it's hard times for those counting on long-term care insurance, Medicaid and Medicare.
• Asset Protection Planning, The CPA Journal. Medicaid and the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.
• Asset Preservation and Long Term Care, Probate and Property. Assault in the name of deficit reduction. 
• Continuing Care Retirement Communities: Issues for Elder Law Attorneys, The Elder Law Report. As the quality of Continuing Care Retirement Communities has gone up, so has the cost.
• Throw Mama From the Train, Trusts and Estates. The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 abandons our nation's elders. 
• Estate Planning for Those Who Want to Stay out of a Nursing Home, Estate Planning Magazine. Many people are want to stay at home and are willing to exhaust their assets in doing so.
• Elder Housing, Trusts and Estates. Even the ultra-rich should consider living in life-care facilities during their declining years. 
• Because It's About More Than Death and Taxes, Trusts and Estates. Our greatest reward can come from helping clients articulate their values - and use estate planning to pass them on.

On-Site Articles

• Revocable Trusts: The Benefits of a Living Trust
  A Living Trust is a planning technique that offers benefits to virtually all Californians. It is particularly appropriate for individuals who are older or who have substantial assets. If you own a home in California, a living trust makes sense for you. More...
• Medi-Cal & Asset Preservation: How to Preserve Your Estate When You or a Loved One Must Enter a Nursing Home
• The Fear of Long-Term Care & Losing Your Home
  The cost of nursing home care is approaching $5,000 per month in most facilities. In some, it is in excess of $7,000 per month. How many of us have estates that can withstand this cost without the loss of a lifetime's savings? We have worked with literally hundreds of individuals and families facing this issue. More...
• Nursing Home Care: Protecting the Nest Egg
  If you have a family member or close friend who needs or will someday need nursing home care, you must learn about the alternative ways in which this $60,000 annual cost of care can be paid. This issue is so important because such costs can quickly emaciate an estate. If one spouse is in a nursing home, the other can quickly become impoverished. More...
• The Value of a Durable Power of Attorney
  A Power of Attorney is a document in which you give another person, the "attorney in fact," the legal authority to act on your behalf. This authority can be limited to a particular asset, a particular transaction, or a particular period of time. It can also be general, such that it conveys broad authority to act on your behalf. More...
• Advance Health Care Directive: Health Care Decisions
  Californians of all ages and medical circumstances are concerned about their right to make their own health care decisions. This is particularly true when questions of whether to use or maintain life-sustaining procedures arise. Because the human body can be maintained when major body systems break down, when the brain is severely damaged, and even when consciousness is irretrievably lost, these decisions do and will continue to arise. More...
• Time to Review Your Estate Planning?
  As much as you would like not to think about these documents anymore, you should. At least every two years, you should review your documents to make sure that they still reflect your wishes, your values, and your goals. More...
• Have You Reviewed Your Trust Lately?
  If you do not already have a living trust in place, you know that you should. A fully-funded trust avoids probate, saves money, and keeps your family out of the court system. A living trust is the cornerstone of your estate planning. More...
• Special Trust Planning for Special Children
  If you have a disabled child, one who is unable to maintain gainful employment because of a physical or mental limitation, that adult child may be receiving public benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Medi-Cal, which pays the medical bills. If you leave her inheritance, he/she will lose eligibility for these programs. More...
• Special Needs Trusts for Disabled Family Members
  Millions of Americans have disabled family members. The cause may be Down Syndrome, schizophrenia, cerebral palsy, autism, or countless other physical or mental illnesses. More...
• Estate Tax Laws & Alice in Wonderland