Category Archives for 2020
Living In Covid-19 Time
Leisure time in the age of Covid-19 has definitely taken on a different meaning from the not so long ago past. Sometimes it seems we have been living in a time warp forever. Sometimes it seems only briefly. Then, often it appears we are walking in some sort of dream – or nightmare depending on […]
Continue readingHow To Vote Now With Pennsylvania’s Vote By Mail
The ordeal Wisconsin voters went through to be able to vote in person can sound as a warning to Pennsylvania voters and to those throughout the country. Although the Pennsylvania primary has been put off until June 2 we do not know what conditions await at the polls at that time and there is an […]
Continue readingWays To Handle Notarizations During Covid 19
Last week in my column I posed the question whether we need legislation to deal with notarization problems during Covid 19. Now, after having seen and reviewed the directive recently issued by Pennsylvania’s Department of State I recognize some progress toward remote notarization has been made. It deals with some electronic notarization questions but not […]
Continue readingDo We Need Legislation For Powers of Attorney During Covid-19
Almost exactly a year ago I wrote a column for publication on April 2, 2020 in West Chester’s Daily Local News and related publications titled “Will Your Bank Honor Your Power of Attorney?” If that one did not raise enough thought-provoking questions, now in the middle of a global pandemic the question could be rephrased […]
Continue readingHow Remote Care Can Help – Even With Covid-19
This morning I dressed to go to work, polished off my coffee, checked to see that my cell phone had been properly charged, and positioned myself in front of a laptop computer for another day of work as we now know it. This is a new day at “the office.” Understand that I am the […]
Continue readingWhat Working From Home and Social Distancing Is Like
It is amazing what difference a week can make in handling an elder law practice or any business for that matter. As I am sitting here in my home operating from a “remote location,” I consider how different the world can be from what we have been used to. In the past week several orders […]
Continue readingHow Planning Helps in Dealing With COVID-19
The current struggles dealing with COVID-19 bring to mind our vulnerabilities as a society but also cause reflection on how to deal with crisis and unexpected emergencies. I suggest it is by having a plan or maybe several plans depending on how circumstances play out. One of the problems we have had now nationally is […]
Continue readingWhat Is the Best State for Long Term Care
If your parents live in Connecticut, you live in Pennsylvania and your brothers and sisters live in California and New York, chances are you may have had “the conversation” discussing with your parents where they might live if one of them needs long term care. It is not just a question whether they might leave […]
Continue readingAssisting With Senior Care – Has Anything Changed?
On July 9, 2019, I submitted a column to the Daily Local News discussing changes, if any regarding payment for long term care for seniors. With another presidential election coming up I found the column again. This is what it said. Over the holiday weekend I had a chance to handle some cleanout at home including […]
Continue readingWhy You Need More to Retire Than You Think
Some people approach retirement planning like an extended math problem. Frankly, many financial advisors do as well and with good reason. There are so many “unknowables” that the only way to wrestle the decision to the ground is to make some general assumptions and then follow them down the line. For instance, in no particular […]
Continue readingWhy Smart People Don’t Recognize Financial Infidelity
I have to admit I never recognized the term “financial infidelity” until recently but it does make sense. The expression recognizes the blindness many of us have in relationships to the spending habits of partners and the effect it has on our own finances. Take the case of a recently widowed or divorced individual who […]
Continue readingE-Mail Estate Misinformation – Problems and Answers
Lately it has come to my attention that the most current methods of communication today not only can lead to confusion and misunderstanding but also unnecessary dissension and inefficiency. Twitter comes to mind but emails can be among the worst. It might seem this is not a problem for businesses or for attorneys but that […]
Continue readingWhat To Do When Inheriting a House
A recent article in Elder Law Answers, www.elderlawanswers.com, an online publication for lawyers and clients, caught my attention mostly because it raised issues I had not thought of explaining in detail to clients. The article was titled “When Inheriting Real Estate, Consider Your Options.” Sometimes we as estate attorneys deal with issues that are so […]
Continue readingMajor Changes to IRAs and Retirement Plans In Effect Now
The 2020 New Year brought with it major changes to IRA’s, 401(k)’s and retirement planning generally for millions of Americans. The SECURE Act, also known as Setting Every Community Up For Retirement Enhancement Act, was one of the few noteworthy changes of 2019 in the financial services industry, passing the U.S. House and then the […]
Continue readingClean Out – A New Year’s Resolution
New Year’s Resolutions have a way of repeating themselves. There are the healthy ones like the promise to exercise. The recent Peloton commercials with one fit woman, and now, women and men furiously riding their exercise bikes fit that category. Then there are resolutions to be kinder or to spend less and earn more and […]
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