When your elderly parent loses the ability to think clearly and make meaningful decisions independently, it makes them quite vulnerable. It may be due to a serious brain injury or health issues like dementia and stroke. Either way, you should take charge to protect...
After working for many years, you deserve quality health care services and a comfortable life. Virginia Health Information (VHI) has a consumer guide that provides in-depth information to those needing long-term care and their loved ones. Several options are...
If you think that an estate plan is just a simple will, think again: These days, even a basic estate plan needs a will, advance directives and powers of attorney designations, and many ordinary people are exploring things like living trusts, Medicaid planning and...
Undue influence is one of the few valid grounds on which a court will accept a challenge to a deceased person’s estate plan. It means that one person used their position to exert influence to get someone to change their estate plan in their favor. When might people...
If you’ve been named the executor (sometimes known as administrator or personal representative) of a loved one’s or friend’s estate, one of the first things you need to do after they pass away is to determine what debts they left. Certainly, this needs to be done...
If you and your spouse have been married for decades and fully intend to remain together for the rest of your lives, you may think the easiest way to handle your estate plan is with a joint will. A true joint will for a married couple is one document signed by both...
Many couples remain lifelong partners without ever getting married. While you may not feel like you need a marriage certificate, if you want to ensure that you and your partner provide for each other after one of you passes away, you need to put an estate plan in...
One of the key components of an estate plan is a will. Through this document, inheritances can be passed on to cherished family members, gifts can be given to charity and guardians can even be named for minor children. For a will to be valid, certain protocols have to...
Your will is an important part of a bigger estate plan. It allows you to designate who gets what when you die and name someone as a guardian for your minor children. However, a will isn’t for everything. This document has limits, and some things should be left out....
When you were a child, your parents would have handled matters for you that you were not yet mature enough to deal with. On becoming an adult, you start to gain your independence. Unfortunately, as you approach your elderly years this process starts to reverse and you...