Home
In this issue
Nov. 24, 2009
Rabbi Avi Shafran : The Atheists' unintended gift
JWisdom.com: You are a Philanthropist with Aliza Bulow (5 minutes)
Nov. 23, 2009
JWisdom.com: Actually, it really is all about you with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff
Nov. 20, 2009
Rabbi David Aaron: How to make every second of your life come first
Caroline B. Glick: Whither American Jewry
Nov. 19, 2009
Binyamin L. Jolkovsky: Please Listen to this Godcast (5 minutes)
Jonathan Tobin: ADL Crosses the Line with Report Bashing Obama Critics
Nov. 18, 2009
Rabbi Yonason Goldson: What Judaism has to say about the secret of the Mona Lisa's smile
JWisdom.com: The (Jewish) Dating Game with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (8 minutes)
Nov. 17, 2009
Steven Emerson: How Does the 4th Amendment Impact Terror Finance Investigations?
JWisdom.com: If Frank Sinatra married Edith Piaf with Rabbi Y.Y. Rubinstein (2 minutes) Life lessons from what would be regarded as the most inappropriate lyrics ever sung
Nov. 16, 2009
The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : When borrowing is stealing
JWisdom.com: Deconstructing faith with Rabbi Warren Goldstein (9 minutes)
Nov. 13, 2009
JWisdom.com Sarah's subjective reality with Rabbi Sroy Levitansky ( 6 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick: Obama's failure, Netanyahu's opportunity
Nov. 12, 2009
The Kosher Gourmet By Marialisa Calta : A sweet sweet potato treat
JWisdom.com Does God get tired? with Rabbi Harvey Belovski ( 5 minutes)
Nov. 11, 2009
Rabbi Avi Shafran: Jews and money: When anti-Semitism isn't
JWisdom.com Marriages are not made in Heaven with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (VERY fast 15 minutes)
Nov. 10, 2009
Michael Doyle: Author of book exposing CAIR ordered to remove supporting documents from Web
JWisdom.com If the creation so loudly shouts the existence of the Creator, why aren't more people believers? with Rabbi Naftali Brawer (9 minutes)
Nov. 9, 2009
Mark Steyn: Shooter exposes hole in U.S. terror strategy
JWisdom.com It's never too late to have a happy childhood with Sarah Chana Radcliffe (5 minutes)
Nov. 6, 2009
Rabbi Berel Wein: Choosing to hear
JWisdom.com Zero to 1/60th: How to Empower An Hour with Gavriel Aryeh Sande (7 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick The mullahs' big week
Suzanne Fields A Fallen Wall for Fallen Man
Nov. 5, 2009
The Kosher Gourmet: Three scrumptious -- but simple -- butternut squash dishes
JWisdom.com Hidden Hints: Unlocking Faith & Prayer with Rabbi Jay Yaacov Schwartz (10 minutes)
Nov. 4, 2009
Tom Hamburger and Kim Geiger: Should prayers be covered?
JWisdom.com When God played peacemaker With Rabbi Sroy Levitansky (5 minutes)
Nov. 3, 2009
Martin Peretz: Beware, Barack. Beware, Rahm. Beware, Axelrod
JWisdom.com Are you are closet idolater? With Sara Yoheved Rigler (10 minutes)
Nov. 2, 2009
Paul Greenberg: The Holocaust is now on Facebook
JWisdom.com Abraham's Strange Change With Rabbi Yitzchok Fingerer (5 minutes)
Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review April 28, 2005 / 19 Nisan, 5765

How do I protect my slacker son's inheritance?; Curbing Medicare costs

By Jan L. Warner & Jan Collins


Printer Friendly Version
Email this article

http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Q: My husband and I have two sons who are exact opposites. One is 45, married to a teacher, has two children and never misses a day of work.

The other is 38, can't hold down a steady job, has been married three times (resulting in five children), is always behind on his child support and is usually broke. We have a wonderful relationship with our older son's children, but never see our younger son's because he is always behind on his support payments.

Assuming there is something left to leave when the second of us dies, we want our assets to be divided equally between our sons. But we're concerned that our younger son will either blow what he inherits or a creditor will take his funds. Is there a way to protect our younger son from himself?

A: When your child or another potential beneficiary of your estate is a spendthrift, and you want to make sure that the funds you leave will be used as you intend, it is wise to include a "spendthrift" provision in your trust.

For hundreds of years, "spendthrift" trusts were used by the English to limit beneficiaries' access to money so they could not squander it and their creditors could not touch it. These trusts were used by anxious fathers to keep inheritances, designed to benefit their married daughters, away from their sons-in-law and creditors (because, in those days, married women could not own property in their own names).

Today, every trust created by one person for the benefit of another should contain a spendthrift provision directing the trustee not to distribute any sums to a creditor of the beneficiary. In some trusts, the spendthrift provision has been expanded to direct that the trustee pay "necessaries" for the beneficiary by making payments directly to third-person providers for the beneficiary. Necessaries include such expenses as food, shelter, utilities, medical and dental care. This way, the funds never touch the beneficiary's hands and generally can't be grabbed by creditors before the monthly expenses are paid.

While a spendthrift clause may help beneficiaries who are unemployed, have creditor problems or, like your son, many former wives, state law may limit the applicability. For example, some states don't allow these provisions, while others place limits on the amount that can be protected from creditors. A number of states permit those vendors who supply necessaries to make claims against the trust. Still others permit enforcement of valid court orders and judgments for alimony and child support.

No spendthrift provision protects the trust's assets from claims by the Internal Revenue Service or state departments of revenue for past-due taxes, penalties and interest. And whether these provisions protect trust funds from plaintiffs in personal injury lawsuits is in flux.

Talk to a lawyer in your area who is knowledgeable about your state laws, and then take the steps that will provide as much protection as available.

CURBING MEDICAID COSTS

The governors of our 50 states have been working feverishly to present a Medicaid reform proposal to Congress that will reduce the benefits of a program now covering 53 million poor Americans. Despite the ever-increasing numbers of seniors on fixed incomes who become chronically ill, the governors are trying to reduce the number of people who seek Medicaid benefits, but not a word has been said about the growing number of illegals who come into this country and take advantage of these programs each year.

This new package will probably offer even fewer benefits to the working poor and uninsured, meaning that some people will not get treated, and those of us who use traditional health coverage will continue to be gouged by higher premiums. Moreover, to reduce the states' expenditures on long-term care and nursing homes, the governors plan to "clamp down" on what they refer to as "wealthy seniors" who transfer assets to qualify for Medicaid.

The governors' solution for these "wealthy seniors" of undefined means? Give them tax credits to buy long-term care insurance (which most can't qualify for or afford), and allow them to "... keep some percentage of their home, some amount of fixed dollars that they can pass on (to their children) and then encourage reverse mortgages to pay for their long-term care." Reverse mortgages, governors, can't be used when folks are in nursing homes and the house is empty. And why not suggest instead that the more than $22 billion per year that will be lost if estate taxes for the really wealthy (the richest 1 percent of Americans) are repealed be used shore up programs for the less fortunate?

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

JAN L. WARNER received his A.B. and J.D. degrees from the University of South Carolina and earned a Master of Legal Letters (L.L.M.) in Taxation from the Emory University School of Law in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a frequent lecturer at legal education and public information programs throughout the United States. His articles have been published in national and state legal publications. Jan Collins began co-authoring Flying SoloŽ in 1989. She has more than 27 years of experience as a journalist, writer, and editor. To comment or ask a question, please click here.

Archives

© 2005, Jan Warner

Insight (Our Columnists)

 Arnold Ahlert
 Mitch Albom
 Michael Barone
  Dave Barry
 Tony Blankley
 Andy Borowitz
 David Broder
 Stratfor Briefing
 Mona Charen
 Linda Chavez
 Ann Coulter
 Greg Crosby
 Larry Elder
 Suzanne Fields
 John Fund
 Frank J. Gaffney
 Lloyd Garver
 Jonah Goldberg
 Julia Gorin
 Jonathan Gurwitz
 Paul Greenberg
 Lewis Grossberger
 Victor Davis Hanson
 Betsy Hart
 Nat Hentoff
 David Horowitz
 Laura Ingraham
 Cheri Jacobus
Jeff Jacoby
 Paul Johnson
 Jack Kelly
 Ed Koch
 Ch. Krauthammer
 Michael Ledeen
 John Leo
 David Limbaugh
 Kathryn Lopez
 Rich Lowry
 Michelle Malkin
 Jackie Mason
 Dick Morris
 Bill O'Reilly
 Jim Mullen
 Clarence Page
 Kathleen Parker
 Dennis Prager
 Wesley Pruden
 Tom Purcell
 Jonathan Rauch
 Celia Rivenbark
 Robert Robb
 Cokie & Steve Roberts
 Pat Sajak
 Debra J. Saunders
 Culture Shlock
 Roger Simon
 Michael Smerconish
 Thomas Sowell
 Mark Steyn
 John Stossel
 Cal Thomas
 Bob Tyrrell
 Diana West
 Dave Weinbaum
 George Will
 Walter Williams
 Byron York
 Mort Zuckerman

'Toons
 Robert Arial
 Chuck Asay
 Baloo
 Chip Bok
 Dry Bones
  Lisa Benson
 John Branch
 Gary Brookins
 John Cole
 J. D. Crowe
 John Deering
 Brian Duffy
 Everything's Relative
 Mallard Fillmore
 Jake Fuller
 Bob Gorrel
 Joe Heller
 David Hitch
 Jerry Holber
 Steve Kelley
 Jeff Koterba
 Dick Locher
 Chan Lowe
 Ranan R. Lurie
 Jimmy Margulies
 Rick McKee
 Michael Ramirez
 Kevin Siers
 Jeff Stahler
 Ed Stein
 Danna Summers
 John Trever
 Gary Varvel
 Kirk Walters

Lifestyles
 How 2
 Lori Borgman
 The Savvy Consumer
 Elder matters
 Fixit
 Dr. Peter Gott
 GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
 Richard Lederer
 Tech Maven
 Every Monday Matters
 Nutrition Myths
 Bookmark These
 Bruce Williams
 How Stuff Works