Los Angeles Special Needs Trusts Lawyer

Providing for a loved one with a disability can become complicated, especially when you want to protect their access to needed government benefits. Stonewood Law Group P.C can help your family create a plan that provides additional resources without jeopardizing program eligibility. 

Our special needs trusts lawyer in Los Angeles communicates with clients in English, Spanish, Hebrew, and Armenian. When you work with us, you can count on receiving explanations, letters, and guidance throughout the process, so you are not left trying to manage everything alone. 

Call today at (213) 457-0497 to schedule an appointment.

Planning for a Loved One with Special Needs

A special needs trust is not simply a place to hold money. The right structure depends on where the assets come from, the beneficiary's circumstances, and how the trust should support that person over the long haul. 

Build the Plan Around the Person

One of the first questions is where the trust's funding will come from. A third-party special needs trust uses assets belonging to someone other than the beneficiary and generally is not subject to Medi-Cal recovery by the California Department of Health Care Services. 

A first-party trust, by contrast, uses assets belonging to the beneficiary and generally must include provisions allowing Medi-Cal recovery after the beneficiary's death or earlier termination.

That distinction can matter when a family is planning around an inheritance, personal injury settlement, or other significant asset. Families may also need to account for existing community and support resources while determining what the trust should provide.

Think About What Happens Later

Choosing a trustee and a successor trustee for administration is another important part of the plan. The person or institution managing the trust may need to make distributions, keep records, and make decisions consistent with both the trust terms and applicable benefit rules. 

Planning ahead gives your family an opportunity to address changing needs and decide who should step in rather than leaving those decisions to be made during a crisis.

Protect an Inheritance

An outright inheritance can create problems for someone receiving means-tested benefits because financial resources may affect eligibility. A properly structured special needs trust can hold assets for a beneficiary while allowing trust funds to supplement, rather than simply replace, other available support. The specific rules depend on the type of trust and the beneficiary's circumstances.

Give Your Family a Clearer Path Forward

Stonewood Law Group P.C offers free consultations for families considering how to provide for a loved one with special needs. With experience since 2015, our lawyer takes a hands-on, accessible approach and works with both straightforward and sophisticated estates while building relationships that can extend across generations. We can meet in person, and our process can also be done fully remote if that works better for your schedule. 

Call (213) 457-0497 or contact us online today. Located right where the 101 meets the 405, we serve clients across Greater Los Angeles.