Social Security survivor's benefits provide a safety net to widows and widowers. But to get the most out of the benefit, you need to know the right time to claim. While you can claim survivor's benefits as early as age 60, if you claim benefits before your full retirement age, your benefits will be permanently reduced. If you claim benefits at your full retirement age, you will receive 100 percent of your spouse's benefit or, if your spouse died before collecting benefits, 100 percent of what [...]

The impaired may not be the only party you can recover from.             Dram shop acts, named after a historical unit of measurement for liquors, are now present in the vast majority of states. New York’s dram shop law gives those who are harmed by the actions of an intoxicated person a right to recover damages against “any person who shall, by unlawful selling to or unlawfully assisting in procuring liquor for such intoxicated [...]

Hospital patients who need additional care after being discharged from the hospital are usually sent to either an inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) or a skilled nursing facility (SNF). Although these facilities may look similar from the outside, Medicare offers very different coverage for each. While you may not have complete say in where you go after a hospital stay, understanding the difference between the two facilities can help you advocate for what you need and know what to expect [...]

In order to be eligible for Medicaid, you cannot have recently transferred assets. Congress does not want you to move into a nursing home on Monday, give all your money to your children (or whomever) on Tuesday, and qualify for Medicaid on Wednesday. So it has imposed a penalty on people who transfer assets without receiving fair value in return. This penalty is a period of time during which the person transferring the assets will be ineligible for Medicaid. The penalty period is determined by [...]

If you have been appointed the trustee of a trust, it is a strong vote of confidence in your judgment and trustworthiness. It is also a major responsibility. A trust is a legal arrangement through which one person (or an institution, such as a bank or law firm), called a "trustee," holds legal title to property for another person, called a "beneficiary." The following is a brief overview of a trustee's duties: Fiduciary Responsibility. As a trustee, you stand in a "fiduciary" role with respect [...]