Life Becomes More Complicated, a column authored by Attorney Michael Hooker is a wealth of information. He covers everything from living wills to nursing home costs. We are happy to provide copies of his articles here.
The Massachusetts legislature enacted, as of July, a sweeping new law regarding guardianships in the probate court. The changes were made at least in part because of perceived abuses highlighted in a Boston Globe spotlight article a while back.
While it is always a good practice to have a will, a will does not protect your assets from catastrophic health care costs. Medicare, federal health in- surance1 pays for some nursing home stays, but not long- term care.
When you don’t have cash to buy a house (and who does?) you go to a bank and borrow the money. You sign a Promissory Note to pay the bank back periodically. They in turn file a mortgage at the Registry of Deeds to protect their loan. T
There is a complex framework and formula for how much a surviving spouse inherits where the decedent left no Will. In order to avoid such complexity and potentially unfair disposition, it is critical that a second marriage elder engage in estate planning.
