Plymouth, MI, Elder Law Attorney
If you’re approaching your elder years, you may have a number of questions and concerns about what you can do to protect yourself and your assets. An experienced elder law attorney from Bingham Legal Group PC is ready to discuss your options for safeguarding your life here and protecting the assets you plan to pass down to your heirs. Similarly, if you have an older loved one you’re concerned about, we can help you protect them from elder abuse and neglect, as well as other issues affecting older people.
Whether you’re looking for legal help for yourself or an older family member, don’t hesitate to contact an experienced local law firm. You shouldn’t feel like you have to try to deal with stressful and overwhelming situations on your own when help is readily available.
Bingham Legal Group PC is an elder law firm serving Plymouth, Michigan. Our attorneys have extensive experience with estate planning, long-term care planning, and any other elder law issue you may have. If you need help with elder law matters, contact Bingham Legal Group PC today to get started with a consultation.
Our Elder Law Services
Bingham Legal Group PC provides many different elder law services, including:
- Estate planning and asset protection
- Long-term care planning
- Planning for Medicaid and Medicare eligibility
- Guardianship and conservatorship
- Social Security benefits
- Veterans’ benefits
- Help with elder abuse and neglect
- Help with consumer protection issues
- Help with housing and transportation issues
- Planning for medical decision-making
Estate Planning and Asset Protection in Plymouth
Estate planning is the process of organizing assets such as real estate, bank accounts, and investments so you can pass them down to your heirs with as little hassle and expense as possible. Estate planning includes writing a will and getting it witnessed, creating trusts to protect your assets and keep them out of probate, and ensuring that your healthcare and financial stability are both accounted for. Many of the legal issues we handle at Bingham Legal Group PC can be addressed by creating a comprehensive estate plan.
Long-Term Care Planning
Do you expect to need long-term care at some point in your life? Most people do, yet nursing home care is so expensive that few can afford to pay for it independently. An elder law firm can help you plan how to pay for your long-term care. You can use many different strategies, including spending down some of your assets and transferring others into a trust to protect your eligibility for Medicaid. The sooner you attend to long-term care planning, the better, even if you don’t expect to need this type of care for a long time.
Planning for Medicaid and Medicare Eligibility
Federal programs like Medicaid and Medicare provide much-needed benefits, but they also have eligibility rules that can prevent people from getting the help they need. It’s best to ensure that you will be eligible several years before applying, especially considering look-back rules that can penalize you for disposing of assets at less than market value. Our elder law attorneys can help you take the steps needed to protect your assets and your eligibility for Medicare and Medicaid. There’s no need to give up everything you’ve built just to be sure you’ll qualify for benefits.
Guardianship and Conservatorship
If you ever become incapacitated for medical reasons, your family members may face a difficult choice. If you can no longer make financial or healthcare decisions, your family can ask a court to appoint a guardian or conservator. A guardian could make personal and healthcare decisions for you, while a conservator would do the same for your financial decisions.
Of course, having family to look out for you is good. If you have an older relative who can no longer make decisions for themselves, Bingham Legal Group PC can help you petition for guardianship or conservatorship. However, most people would not want to lose their autonomy unless there was no other choice.
You can ensure that your family never needs to take this step by filling out a designation of patient advocate form and a financial power of attorney. These forms allow you to designate a chosen agent who can make decisions for you if you become incapacitated. The form also allows you to tell your agent what choices they ought to make in different situations.
Social Security Benefits
If you need help with Social Security benefits, our lawyers can assist in several ways. For example:
- We can help you understand the eligibility rules
- We can help you fill out your application
- We can help if you need to file an appeal
- We can help you maximize your benefits while minimizing your tax burden
Applying for benefits or appealing a denial can be confusing. Our lawyers can help make it much easier.
Veterans’ Benefits
If you need help applying for veterans’ benefits, we can assist with that as well. Our lawyers understand what benefits are available to you, how to determine what benefits you qualify for, and how to fight back if your benefits are unfairly denied.
Help with Elder Abuse and Neglect Issues
Elder abuse and neglect are common problems in nursing homes. If you fear that your loved one is being neglected or abused by the people responsible for their care, you should contact an elder law firm immediately to get them the help they need. We can help you ensure the safety and well-being of your loved one while also pursuing damages from anyone responsible for mistreating them.
Help with Consumer Protection Issues
If your elder loved one buys a product or service that doesn’t work as advertised, what can you do to get their money back? Sadly, con artists and fraudsters often target older people, knowing that they may find it challenging to pursue justice. However, an elder law firm will be familiar with consumer protection laws and can help you do what you need to do to hold manufacturers or retailers accountable.
Help with Housing and Transportation Issues
It can be overwhelming to attend to every issue an older family member has, especially when you still need to work and take care of yourself at the same time. When you sit down for a meeting with Bingham Legal Group PC, we will help direct you to services that can help with housing, transportation, or other issues your loved one may be facing.
Contact an Elder Law Attorney Serving Plymouth, Michigan, Today
Elder law involves a lot of different issues, from estate planning to protecting elders from abuse, neglect, and fraud. It can be challenging to handle all these issues on your own, but luckily, you do not need to. Bingham Legal Group PC can help you with any type of elder law problem, ensuring that you and your loved ones are safe and prepared for the future.
Our attorneys have over 60 years of elder law experience, and we have seen just about every situation that can arise in this field of law. Whatever problem you have, our skilled elder law attorneys will understand it and know how to get it resolved for you. If you’re a Plymouth resident in need of help with elder law matters, contact Bingham Legal Group PC today to arrange an initial consultation.