Practice Areas

Special Needs Trusts

Cook County Special Needs Trusts Lawyers

Special needs trusts are used to provide money for disabled children, disabled spouses and elderly parents without making the beneficiary ineligible for governmental benefits. If you are concerned about your personal savings being exhausted by nursing home expenses, you can also create a special needs trust for yourself as a part of the Medicaid planning process. If you would like to learn more about special needs trusts, contact Bush & Heise, Attorneys at Law, in Barrington, Illinois, to receive a free initial consultation about your options.

If you place money in a special needs trust for a disabled beneficiary, that money is not counted as the beneficiary's personal asset when determining eligibility for Medicaid or other government benefits. If you give the money directly to the beneficiary, it must be spent before the beneficiary is eligible to receive government benefits.

There are several times when people use special needs trusts:

•  To provide a source of money to disabled children
•  To provide a source of money for a disabled spouse
•  To provide a source of money for a loved one in a nursing home
•  To preserve assets that would otherwise be spent on nursing home care

Many people are reluctant to set up a special needs trust for themselves because they are concerned about losing control of their assets. While you will lose control of your assets if you place them in special needs trust, you need to weigh that against the benefit of preserving your assets.

Our estate planning lawyers have nearly 30 years of experience assisting clients with special needs trusts. Contact our estate planning firm to speak directly with an attorney. We offer free initial consultations, evening and weekend appointments, and accept MasterCard and Visa payments for your convenience.

Attorney Brian L. Heise is member of National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.