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There are three categories of Veterans Benefits:

1. Health Care through the Veterans Health Administration,
2. Compensation for Service Connected Disabilities through the Veterans Benefits Administration; and
3. Improved Pension for Wartime Veterans (or their Widows) through the Veterans Benefits Administration.

Types two and three above are tax free, monthly financial payments to the claimant (Veteran or Widow).  Compensation is designed to pay for the “loss” the Veteran suffered due to an injury, illness or disease incurred or aggravated because of their service.  The claimant’s income and asset values are not considered when applying for Compensation.

In contrast, eligibility for Improved Pension is directly related to how much the claimant makes in income and how much they have saved in assets.  Assuming the Veteran meets the military criteria and is disabled (age 65 and above), the claimant must also meet the income and asset standards. 

The asset limit is roughly $80,000, excluding the home, personal belongings and vehicles.  Many Veterans have in excess of $80,000, but also have very high medical expenses quickly depleting their assets, leaving them with no other option but to move to a nursing home and apply for Medicaid. The strong desire to maintain a scintilla of quality of life and remain in one’s home, creates the situation where people want to preserve some of their assets and still qualify for VA Benefits.  In the Medicaid benefits universe, the use of Special Needs Trusts is available for certain classes of trust beneficiaries.

That begs the question, are Special Needs Trusts Permitted for VA Benefits Improved Pension cases?  Before answering the question, it is important to understand that there are two different types of Special Needs Trusts. There are “First Party” and “Third Party” Special Needs Trusts (SNT).  A first party SNT is funded with the money from the person who has the disability, who is also the creator or grantor.  A third party SNT is created and funded by a person on behalf of another person (i.e. a parent for a child). 

In 1993, the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA 93) was established.  OBRA 93 codified that assets placed into an irrevocable trust would still be counted as an asset for Medicaid purposes if there are any circumstances where payment from the trust could benefit the individual.  However, OBRA 93 also made two very clear exceptions. 

(1)   Individuals who are under the age of 65 and disabled, may create a first party SNT and retitle their assets to the SNT and the assets would be sheltered and exempt from Medicaid eligibility.

(2)   Assets held in a third party SNT for the benefit of a person receiving Medicaid are exempt from eligibility. 

There is no statutory law that prohibits or permits the funding of a SNT for VA purposes.  The creation and the funding is not actually the issue though. Rather, whether the principal funds inside the SNT is “countable” when applying for the VA Improved Pension (with Aid and Attendance) benefits is the issue.  The only authority to answer this question is a VA Office of General Counsel Opinion, VAOPGCPREC 33-97, dated August 29, 1997, well after OBRA 93 was enacted.

In the opinion, the VA recognizes that OBRA 93 made changes to the trust laws; however, the opinion is completely void of any acknowledgement or understanding of the two exceptions related to special needs trusts.  The VA opined that the assets in a special needs trust are “countable” when applying for Improved Pension.  Further, the VA made no distinction between first party or third party trusts, even though the case at hand was a first party trust created by a widow of a veteran. 

Due to what appears to be the VA’s lack of understanding or deliberate ignorance of special needs trust laws and the desire to rule against the claimant, advocates are left with one opinion from which to provide legal advice to clients.  The assets in a special needs trust are countable. 

There is good argument to have the opinion overturned for third party SNTs. However, the claimant must be willing to endure a lengthy appeal.  An attorney who agrees to take the case to an appeal must be prepared to argue before the Unites States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, or higher.  Lack of having a willing claimant and an experienced attorney is likely the reason this bad law is still on the books today.  Until challenged and overturned, the VA Office of General Counsel Opinion will remain the law of the land.

If you want to learn more about VA Benefits Planning & Accreditation, join me in Charlotte, NC, February 4th for a Live VA Course.  I'll be teaching the necessary information for accreditation, providing updates and practical tips based on current VA practices.  For registration information contact Kyle Russ at kruss@lawyerswithpurpose.com.

Victoria L. Collier, Certified Elder Law Attorney, Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, Co-Founder, Lawyers for Wartime Veterans, LLC and author of 47 Secret Veterans’ Benefits for Seniors…Benefits You Have Earned but Don’t Know About.

**Before attending this course you must have submitted an Application for Accreditation, VA Form 21a, to the Office of General Counsel and received approval.

Many clients wonder if their non-qualified annuities are “safe” from their creditors and predators.  The quick answer is no.  Not only can general creditors and predators gain access, the loss of an annuity to long-term care cost is common.  In either event an annuity is an asset that is subject to the risk of creditors.  The most common strategy, to avoid loss of annuities to creditors is to annuitize them.  While this protects the annuity, it takes away the value of the underlying asset and converts it to an income stream which also can be attacked. 

An annuity can be protected from nursing homes and general creditors, without annuitizing it, by putting it into an irrevocable pure grantor asset protection trust.  It permits the grantor to be trustee retaining full control in management of the annuity.  In addition, the client gives up minimal rights that ensures full protection underlying annuity without having to annuitize it or liquidate it.  Should the client ultimately need the income stream generated by the annuity they’re still given the right to annuitize or take periodic distributions without annuitizing it.  See full legal analysis and client benefits of iPug™ protection trust. 

The beauty of utilizing an IPUG trust is by changing the ownership of the annuity to the trust instead of the client, there is no tax impact as an irrevocable pure grantor trust is a grantor trust for income tax purposes and utilizes the client’s Social Security number as its tax I.D. Under the tax law, no transfer of ownership has occurred and no tax generated, but, asset protection is achieved. 

The distinctive planning strategy continues by naming a proper beneficiary of the annuity, not just changing the ownership.  As a standard practice the trust should be named beneficiary to ensure all of the protections granted by the trust.  In addition, it allows distributions to be made to beneficiaries other than the grantor, to ultimately achieve the goals of the client for their estate plan.  Protecting clients annuities without causing taxation and not having to subject clients to early termination penalties are great benefits of transferring annuities to an iPug™ trust rather than having to liquidate or annuitize them.

If you're interested in a FREE webinar on iPug Business Planning click here to register today to:

• Learn the difference between General Asset Protection, DAPT Protection, Medicaid Protection and iPug® Protection
• Review a comprehensive outline of the 2 primary iPug® Business Protection Strategies
• Learn why clients choose single purpose Irrevocable Pure Grantor Trusts™ over LLCs
• Learn how it all comes down to Funding

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

Don’t wait until the last minute to take your required VA accreditation course. Frantically searching for an organization putting on an event or for a recorded session you can download. Instead, take control and attend Victoria Collier’s live VA Accreditation training on February 4, 2015 in Charlotte, NC.

Victoria always brings cutting edge information about what the VA is doing now.  In addition, whether you need you initial accreditation or on-going CLE to maintain your status, this course will meet both goals. 

Make 2015 a year when you complete this task early so that you won’t need to worry about it for another 24 months. 

Don’t wait until the last minute to take your required VA accreditation course. Frantically searching for an organization putting on an event or for a recorded session you can download. Instead, take control and attend Victoria Collier’s live VA Accreditation training on February 4, 2015 in Charlotte, NC.

Victoria always brings cutting edge information about what the VA is doing now.  In addition, whether you need you initial accreditation or on-going CLE to maintain your status, this course will meet both goals. 

Make 2015 a year when you complete this task early so that you won’t need to worry about it for another 24 months. 

We've only got 30 seats left so reserve your spot now.  Contact Kyle Russ at kruss@lawyerswithpurpose.com to register today.  You don't want to wait, this event will sell out!

Lawyers With Purpose

Estate planning law firms have “special needs” when it comes to practice management systems. The primary challenge for estate planning firms is dealing with the complexity of the law in multiple jurisdictions, the effects of government programs such as the Veterans Administration and Medicaid, and the cross-over with financial and tax considerations.

This complexity is often too much for individual firms, and as a result the estate planning legal community has organized itself into groups where intellectual property, best practices, and expertise can be shared.

Much of the shared intellectual property has been captured in document automation templates using technologies like HotDocs. However no standard has been established as a suitable container for best practices and workflow. Firms would typically use different systems for matter management, document assembly and accounting/billing. Not only is this costly and complex but it also requires double (or triple) data entry. This is clearly not an ideal situation, and the estate planning organizations have been struggling with this problem for years.

Enter Lawyers with Purpose (LWP)…

LWP is an excellent example of an estate planning and elder law organization that provides significant value to its members through education, coaching, best practices, and shared intellectual property and document automation tools. However the challenge remained on how to deliver all this value in a comprehensive and easy-to-use manner.

Until Now.

LWP and Actionstep

Over the last few years LWP and Actionstep have been working closely together to incorporate the LWP workflows and document templates into the Actionstep cloud-based practice management system.

The combination of Actionstep and LWP is a match made in (cloud) heaven, for a number of reasons:

1  Actionstep’s flexible workflow underpinning makes it a natural container for the LWP best practice workflow processes;

2  Being a “cloud” solution means that members to not have to install any local software or infrastructure and software and process updates happen automatically;

3  Actionstep integrates directly with HotDocs on the “cloud” so all the historical intellectual property contained in Hotdocs templates runs seamlessly within the matter files and eliminates the need for firms to have local versions of HotDocs; and finally

4  Actionstep is a complete practice management system that ties everything together, and includes sales and marketing with matter management, document production, finance and accounting in a single application. So no more double (or triple) data entry.

Cloud computing is rapidly transforming many traditional industries, and there is no shortage of examples. Think of airline bookings, banking, postal services, and landline phones. What LWP and Actionstep have put together is truly transformational and one can’t help to think that this will be the shape of the estate planning arena in the years to come. Exiting times!

Click here to join me in a Live Demo and Q&A THIS Wednesday, December 10th at 4:30 EST.

Ted Jordan – ActionStep CEO

Members!  Remember our ActionStep webinars are EVERY WEDNESDAY from 12 – 1 EST!

What is ActionStep?  The first and only cloud based law practice system for estate and elder law attorneys in America.  

Below is the outline of topics to be covered.  Please be sure to get these webinars in your calendars.  They will be recorded and added to the member site if you are unable to attend live.

For registration information please refer to the information posted on the LWP Member ListServ or contact Marci Otts at motts@lawyerswithpurpose.com.

Webinar #4: December 3, 2014

Reporting – Learn how to enter data correctly in order to generate reports to help track business

Webinar #5: December 10, 2014

Open Forum – Question and Answer Session about what has been covered in the first 4 weeks

Webinar #6: December 17, 2014

RMS – Learn how manage your professional workflows to generate RMS reports 

Webinar #7: To Be Announced due to Holiday Schedules

Maintenance – Learn about Maintenance Matter workflows and how to manage clients once they opted into the program.

Block out these dates on your firm calendar and start "ActionStepping" into the future. ActionStepping into the future is about getting your team and business updated and prepared to move into the future of technology and create a clear path and plan for everyone in your estate planning / elder law practice.

Roslyn Drotar – Lawyers With Purpose, Coaching, Consulting & Implementation & Social Strategist. 

“Never ruin an apology with an excuse.” 

– Benjamin Franklin

Here’s a little secret for creating the life and business you want: STOP apologizing. Stop beating yourself up for wanting what you want and declaring it out loud.

The week following the LWP tri-annual practice enhancement retreats, our firm CCI calls are full of energy. Everyone has a crystal-clear understanding that, if we just stay intentionally focused on our Top 5 from our Money Plan™, we will launch our practice into the business we have been striving for. There is no doubt in our minds that we will get there. And we know how we will get there and who is doing what to get us there. But the following month, we notice there’s a bit less gas in the proverbial tanks. Folks show up to the calls explaining that their #1 Money Plan item isn’t in full swing, and we begin to hear versions of why: “I’ve been trying to get an update on where we are with getting the brochure out there, but Sarah is behind with drafting and I’m feeling maybe I put too much pressure on the team.” Or, “Our goal was five Medicaid applications for November, but I’m seeing that I don’t understand the MMMNA entirely so I should get that down before I start walking into nursing homes.”

The above scenarios are all versions of Apologizing.

It’s that simple. It’s the “human stuff” that stops us.  It’s our past, habits, patterns, lack of rules of engagement, and our lack of accountability and the freedom to speak and act honestly.  Realizing and correcting this tiny little secret will create the life and business you want. Getting stuck in the apology vortex shows up in various ways, not always in the verbal format of “Sorry.” You’ll see it more often than not in these situations and ways of being:

1. Habit: Many of us were raised to be polite and put others first. Parents who teach taking responsibility for any problems or issues that come up, or who teach that apologizing is a form of politeness, will often breed over-apologizers. Sometimes a child will learn this just by witnessing one parent say “sorry” too much to others.  This typically shows up with a pre- and post-qualifier of “I’m sorry” with really no statement or justification after it. These words just come out before and after almost every statement they make. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t find that funny.” They walk past you in the hall and say “I’m sorry” and you’re not even sure why or for what.
2. Self-Defeat: I don’t feel like I’m good enough, so I’m going to make sure you know I’m aware of it but have a plan to turn it around. Maybe you show up carrying an extra 40 pounds when, at the last retreat, you were down 20. So before you can even get the hellos and hugs out, you protect yourself from judgment by making an apology about who you are and who you are not. This usually shows up with a pre-qualifier along the lines of “I’ve been so busy….”
3. Seeking Reassurance: You need to get community input before you take action. The idea was great at the time we declared it. I was clear on what was being asked of me and what I needed to do, but once I got back to my desk, it all went out the window. I began to second-guess myself and became paralyzed.This usually shows up with a pre-qualifier of, “Well, I needed to double-check with you before I started, because this one thing wasn’t totally clear….
4. Fear of Conflict: We are clear in the beginning about what we want. Everyone is nodding their heads in agreement and excitement. Yet when we meet the following week, they have done very little. I want to explode (and I have in the past, but the whole team shut down and I was the bad guy). They are working on so many things and doing some great stuff in other areas, so I should just let this one go until next week. Let them catch up on their work and bring it up next week.This usually shows up with a pre-qualifier of “I don’t mean to complain but….”

People will persistently test your apology meter. Quite often it’s a byproduct of their own “stuff” when it comes to pursuing (or not) their own BHAGS (Big Hairy Audacious Goals). Don’t get caught up in living your life through the lens of others’ habits and limiting beliefs. Most often they are completely unaware of them.

Lori Deschene, author of the “Tiny Wisdom” eBook series, said, “While we can never know other people’s intentions, we can recognize that our words influence our state of mind – and apologizing when we’ve done nothing wrong needlessly creates guilt and undermines our confidence. It can also create an imbalance in our relationships, since it tells other people we think we are always responsible for any potential conflict or miscommunication; and also sends the message that we’re more interested in being agreeable than being honest.”

Today, if you find yourself apologizing repeatedly, ask yourself, “Did I actually do something that sincerely requires an apology?” If not, ask, “Do I really want to communicate that I think I did?”

Let me know how you make out; I would love to hear from you.

Molly L. Hall, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, and author of Don’t Be a Yes Chick: How to Stop Babysitting Your Boss, Transform Your Job and Work with a Dream Team Without Losing Your Sanity or Your Spirit in the Process.

The United States military is rife with history, tradition and ceremony.  Veterans Day is a day to celebrate the honor of all prior service members who devoted a part of their lives to our country, some sacrificing it all for our freedom.  

Although America’s first war requiring an assembly of military members was the American Revolutionary War from 1775 – 1783, it was not until a year after the end of WWI that Armistice Day was proclaimed by President Wilson because a year prior on the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month fighting ceased when an armistice between Allied forces and Germany went into effect.   It was thought the annual anniversaries would be celebrated with parades, public meetings and a brief closure of businesses at 11:00 on November 11^th each year.

On June 4, 1924, the United States Congress passed a resolution including these words:

“Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date (November 11, 1918) should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; …”  Twenty-seven states had already made Armistice Day a recognized holiday, which was formalized by the Act of 1938.

Since Armistice Day only honored service members from WWI, recognition of veterans serving in WWII and Korea became an interest. Thus, in 1954, Congress amended the Act of 1938 to change the word Armistice to Veterans to honor American Veterans of all wars.  

Lawyers with Purpose and Lawyers for Wartime Veterans thank you for your service and sacrifice to our great nation.

Victoria L. Collier, CELA, Elder Care Attorney, Co-Founder of Lawyers for Wartime Veterans and Lawyers with Purpose, Veteran, author of 47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors and most recent book, Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit.  

What is the greatest success you’ve had since joining LWP?

Doing the workshops has been very helpful to us.  The workshops are easy to fill and have been well received.

What is your favorite LWP tool?

The greatest tool is that the tools work together – the Vision Clarifier and Med Qual Worksheet are wonderful tools!

How has being a part of LWP impacted your team and your practice?

Joining LWP has created positive energy and a renewed enthusiasm for the practice of law here at our office.

LWP has been a life saver for our practice.  We were burned out and stressed out after doing litigation for several years.  We have been trying to get into Elder law and Estate Planning.  LWP has given us the systems, support and knowledge we needed to speed up the conversion process.

No.  While the veteran is alive, the claim is the veteran’s.  In cases where the Veteran is over 65 and healthy, but the Veteran’s Spouse is ill, the best that the couple can qualify for is the base pension amount. 

When determining which level of benefit that would be awarded, whether improved pension, housebound, or aid and attendance, the VA will look at the health of the Veteran alone.  The health of the Spouse does not matter.  Assuming a Veteran over 65, the Veteran meets the VA’s initial definition of disabled.  This places the Veteran at the base pension level.  Unless the Veteran has more medical issues, there is no eligibility for housebound or aid and attendance.  Again while the Veteran is alive, the health of the Spouse does not matter at this point. 

But once the initial level is determined and eligibility is established based on the health of the Veteran, the fact that the Spouse resides in an assisted living is relevant for the income eligibility test.  Currently a Veteran and Spouse can receive $1,380 / month in Veteran’s Benefits at the base pension level.  If the Veteran and Spouse’s combined income exceeds this amount, they do not qualify unless their medical expenses outweigh their income. 

It is at this point that the Spouse’s assisted living expenses become relevant because the expenses are used in making the income eligibility determination.  In order for those expenses to be an approved medical expense, the spouse needs to be examined by a doctor and a form 21-2680 must be filled out and turned in along with the application. While the form 21-2680 is entitled “Examination For Housebound Status Or Permanent Need For Regular Aid And Attendance” and is primarily used to establish housebound or aid and attendance if filled out for the veteran, it is used to help verify the spouse’s assisted living costs as a valid medical expense, not turn in a housebound or assisted living claim for the spouse.  Once the medical expense is established, the assisted living costs can then be offset from the Veteran and Spouse’s joint income in order to try to meet the income eligibility test.

Victoria L. Collier, CELA, Elder Care Attorney, Co-Founder of Lawyers for Wartime Veterans and Lawyers with Purpose, Veteran, author of 47 Secret Veterans Benefits for Seniors and most recent book, Paying for Long Term Care: Financial Help for Wartime Veterans: The VA Aid & Attendance Benefit.  

Sitting in the airport restaurant next to the gate for my flight home, I was physically exhausted after two weeks of travel, but mentally I was pumped!  While I was excited to go home to my family, my mind was spinning as I was forced to sit still for some time while waiting for boarding to begin.   

Grabbing a notebook from my bag, I began reflecting and “dumping down” all my takeaways.  I wanted to be sure to capture all the things I knew I needed to work on to “knock it out of the ball park” for the final two months of 2014. 

Below are my top five takeaways after spending a week of legal technical support training, marketing, coaching and team training with our members.  The members and their teams always inspire me so much with their focus and commitment to put their heads down and work hard with their teams to reach the goals they declare on their Money Plans. 

• Two and a half days on Medicaid planning, asset protection, Veteran’s benefits, marketing your practice and every question asked along the way in Practice With Purpose.  Every moment was about the best approach to serving clients in the most effective way, while members added to their growth and understanding of estate & elder law planning.  Case studies were analyzed that probably mirror those sitting on attorney desks awaiting each attorney’s return. 

• The arrival of the members and their teams on Wednesday for our highest attended Tri-Annual Retreat ever.  Attorneys and their teams started to trickle into the hotel and everyone hugged each other.  There were a few handshakes but most were hugs.  The LWP membership is a national group of attorneys and team members who hug when we see each other.  We know each other and grow together.  This warms my heart.

• The breakout sessions.  An entire track each day was dedicated to either (1) technical legal; (2) marketing; or, (3) team development.  Just look at the titles of the sessions:
  • Key Features to the Trust Drafting Software You Need to Know
  • Busting Financial Planner Myths
  • You’ve Defined Roles, Now What?
  • Business Succession Planning
  • Community Presentations & Relations
  • What’s Happening in the Conference Room – The Signing & Funding Meetings
  • Post Death Trust Administration
  • How to Generate Facility Revenue: Getting & Staying in the Door with Nursing Homes
  • Communication Skills 

• Firm Retreats.  We kicked off the firm retreats with each firm sharing a win since the last retreat in Orlando.  The shares were all HUGE in my personal opinion.  A common theme was that they all had more than one thing to share – but since we were limited to one – it was hard to decide which one to share with their mic in hand.  So much building and growing toward the practice of their dreams had happened.

• The Why Coaching Day.  Breakthroughs from The Why Coaching Day were kicked off by Dave with a high level overview of every single conversation we’ve had in the Why program since Day 1, January 29, 2013, just 21 months ago. Going through the activity of “Where were you ten years ago?” to putting down “How you can be now to assure a future and present you love!”  My favorite share came from a team member who said that she’s doubted herself as a “leader” in the firm but now has 100% confidence that she IS and WILL be a leader in the firm – all said with tears in her eyes (and mine too).

It felt as though the focus in the room was completely on point. After being on implementation calls this past week with so many of our members, I know one thing for certain … there is a level of focus and determination among our members I’ve not seen before.  Drive, determination and commitment to “hitting it out of the ball park” for the future was defined for members both personally and professionally. 

I can’t wait for the February 2015 shares in Charlotte. 

Roslyn Drotar – Lawyers With Purpose, Coaching, Consulting & Implementation, Marketing & Social Strategist.