The Estate Planning & Elder Law Group

10/19/2026

The best time to answer the question, “Who can act for me?” is before anyone actually needs the answer.

Most families know each other incredibly well. Your spouse probably knows what you would want. Your children probably know who you trust. Everyone may know who normally handles the bills, who should be called first, and who you would want making decisions.

But a hospital, bank, or financial institution is not asking who knows you best. They are asking who actually has the legal authority to act.

That difference can become very important after an accident, a hospitalization, a diagnosis, or a sudden loss of capacity.

And that is why the boring, uneventful days are often the best days to plan. You have time to make choices, name the right people, choose backups, ask questions, and change your mind.

You are still making the decisions instead of asking your family to figure them out during a crisis.

If your estate plan has been sitting on the “someday” list, this may be the reminder to move it up.

Request a consultation:
https://aljlaw.com/contact/

10/16/2026

Thank you to everyone who participated in Montefiore Einstein’s Case Management Week 2026 session, Empower & Elevate: 2026 Estate Planning & Medicaid Updates, presented by The Estate Planning & Elder Law Group’s Andrew L. Jaloza, Esq.

Special thanks to Montefiore Einstein for fostering collaboration, advancing education, and supporting professional development.

We appreciate everyone’s engagement and commitment to improving outcomes for the older adults and families we serve!

10/16/2026

10/16/2026

The real gift of planning ahead is not the paperwork.

It is making sure your family has fewer decisions to figure out during one of the hardest moments of their lives.

If something happens to you, the people who love you may already be scared, overwhelmed, or grieving. They may be sitting in a hospital, trying to understand a diagnosis, caring for children, or worrying about an aging parent at the same time.

What they should not also have to do is guess who you trusted, what you would have wanted, where the documents are, or who is supposed to take charge.

Planning cannot remove every difficult moment from a family’s life. But it can remove some of the uncertainty.

And sometimes that is one of the kindest things you can do for the people who would be standing beside you when life gets hard.

For so many Queens and Long Island families, parents, children, and grandparents are deeply connected. A good estate plan helps protect those relationships by giving everyone something incredibly valuable: clarity.

Share this with the parent, spouse, or adult child you have been meaning to have this conversation with.

10/15/2026

We’re getting ready to Empower & Elevate!

Today, The Estate Planning & Elder Law Group’s Andrew L. Jaloza, Esq., will present an educational session on 2026 Estate Planning & Medicaid Updates during Montefiore Einstein Case Management Week.

We’re excited to collaborate with the Montefiore Einstein community to share knowledge, empower professionals, and support better outcomes for the older adults and families we serve.

10/15/2026

Your parent trusted you enough to name you executor. They did not expect you to magically know everything.

But that is often how the responsibility feels.

You may be grieving while also answering questions from siblings. Looking for documents. Calling banks. Handling bills. Managing property. Trying to understand court deadlines. Keeping beneficiaries informed.

And wondering whether every decision you make is the right one.

That is a lot to carry at the same time.

Being the executor does not mean you have to already know how probate works. And asking for guidance does not mean you are failing at the job. Sometimes taking the responsibility seriously means knowing when you need help.

Your parent chose you because they trusted your judgment.

Part of good judgment is recognizing when a situation is outside your experience.

Read more on our blog: https://aljlaw.com/do-you-need-a-probate-attorney-or-can-you-handle-probate-yourself/

If someone you know has recently taken on responsibility for an estate, send them this post.

Sometimes they need to hear that they are not expected to figure out every piece alone.

10/14/2026

Good estate planning is partly about making your future executor’s job easier.

Most people think about estate planning in terms of who gets the house, who gets the accounts, and what should happen to everything they own.

Those are important questions, but there is another side of planning that often gets overlooked: what will the person in charge actually have to deal with after you are gone?

Will they know where the important documents are? Are the assets titled the way you intended? Do beneficiary designations line up with the rest of the plan? Will they know who to contact, and will your instructions be clear?

Or will they spend weeks trying to piece everything together?

Estate planning is not only about deciding where things go. It is also about making the process clearer for the people you leave behind.

That is one of the practical conversations we have during our estate planning workshops.

If you have been meaning to get your planning handled, come learn how the decisions you make today can make things easier for your family later.

See upcoming workshop options here:
https://aljlaw.com/workshops/

10/14/2026

The Estate Planning & Elder Law Group extends our sincere gratitude to Inspir Carnegie Hill for hosting our October 13 CEU presentation and Affirmed Home Care for sponsoring this important educational program.

Your partnership helps advance our mission to uplift, educate, and unite communities by equipping social workers, case managers, and healthcare professionals with valuable insights into supporting older adults with limited family or support systems.

Together, we're strengthening professional collaboration, building stronger support networks, and promoting dignity and better outcomes for older adults.
Want to join us for an upcoming workshop or in-person event?

📅 Register for an upcoming workshop to continue learning, connecting, and growing with us.

Stay connected with The Estate Planning & Elder Law Group for announcements about our next workshops and in-person events!

We look forward to seeing you there! 💙

10/13/2026

Aging alone is a planning consideration, not a diagnosis.

Every older adult deserves autonomy, dignity, and the right to make their own decisions.

Today, The Estate Planning & Elder Law Group presents a 2-credit CEU program led by Attorney Andrew Jaloza, exploring legal, ethical, and practical strategies for supporting older adults with limited family or support systems.

We’re excited to raise awareness, strengthen professional collaboration, and promote better outcomes for the older adults our communities serve.

10/12/2026

You do not need to walk into an estate planning meeting already knowing whether you need a will, a trust, or something more complicated.

That is not your job.

A better place to start is with your life.

Who would need to step in if you suddenly could not make decisions for yourself?

Who depends on you?

What would become difficult for your family if something happened tomorrow?

What assets, accounts, property, or responsibilities would someone need to manage?

Those questions tell us much more than simply asking, “Do I need a trust?”

The documents come later.

First, we need to understand the people, responsibilities, and problems your plan needs to address.

If estate planning has been sitting on your to-do list because you do not know where to begin, our Estate Planning Guide can help you start thinking through the right questions.

Download it here: https://aljlaw.com/estate-planning-guide/