Andrews & Young PC

12/05/2023

Getting into Trouble Helping Others: One way this happens is when a person has been named to act as a person’s agent under power of attorney (some would say to act as a persons power of attorney), and performs in that role in good faith and with good intentions, but in a way that may harm the person who appointed them, or puts themselves at risk.

One way this happens is when a person has been named to act as a person’s agent under power of attorney (some would say to act as a persons power of attorney), and performs in that role in good faith…

11/04/2022

As you may know, businesses and large companies often to try to avoid exposure to the courts, by including in their lengthy agreements with customers an often unread provision that requires a customer to go through arbitration instead of the courts, to seek remedy when harmed. Is arbitration required for claims of injury by a nursing home or assisted living facility resident?

As you may know, businesses and large companies often try to avoid exposure to the courts, by including in their lengthy agreements with customers an often unread provision that requires a customer to go through arbitration instead of the courts,…

09/07/2022

Following the death of a family member, you may find yourself needing to sort through many possessions accumulated over the deceased's lifetime. An estate sale is one way to distribute those items that you do not want or need quickly and efficiently. Our article "The Ins and Outs of Estate Sales" may give you some things to keep in mind when getting ready for an estate sale.

Following the death of a family member, you may find yourself needing to sort through many possessions accumulated over the deceased’s lifetime. An estate sale is one way to distribute those items that you do not want or need quickly…

08/25/2022

Uncomfortable conversations... of the many worth having, here's one.
While a large percentage of Americans do not have any estate plan documents, I suspect that percentage is particularly large for young, single, adults.

Uncomfortable conversations… of the many worth having, here’s one. While a large percentage of Americans do not have any estate plan documents, I suspect that percentage is particularly large for young, single, adults. We have seen a number of difficult…

07/19/2022

Parents usually want to leave their children equal shares of their estate, but equal isn't always fair. If you plan to provide more/less for one child in your estate plan, preparation in important.

Parents usually want to leave their children equal shares of their estate, but equal isn’t always fair. If you plan to provide more (or less) for one child in your estate plan, preparation is important. It is natural for parents…

03/14/2022

Gifting assets to your grandchildren can do more than help your descendants get a good start in life - it can also reduce the size of your estate and the tax that will be due upon your death.

The article below, "How to Give Gifts to your Grandchildren", discusses this topic in more detail.

02/23/2022

"Today the legislature will hold a hearing on this year’s version of a compassionate aid in dying bill. Many of you know that for many years I have advocated for the adoption of such a law, similar to those in effect in ten other states and Washington, DC, that would allow a terminally ill person who meets the eligibility standards in the law, to obtain a prescription from a willing physician, to ingest that would end the life of the person without enduring the entire course of a natural disease process. You can likely find a copy of this year’s bill, by googling Connecticut Raised Bill No. 88 2002. If you contact me I can e mail you a copy. If you are familiar with prior year’s bills, this is similar. Such laws have been in force in other states for many years, without being abused. If you want to submit testimony on this bill, feel free to reach out to me and I will see if I can help you. I am told written testimony can be submitted for a day after the public hearing." - Attorney Jim Young

01/05/2022

Make Sure Your Estate Plan and Other Essential Documents are Safe from Disasters

It’s an unfortunate reality that with the increasing number of natural disasters across the country, including fires, floods, and hurricanes, the chance that you could lose your house and possessions has become more likely. In the event of such a calamity, it is important that your estate planning and other important documents are beyond reach and easily retrievable.

It’s an unfortunate reality that with the increasing number of natural disasters across the country, including fires, floods, and hurricanes, the chance that you could lose your house and possessions has become more likely. In the event of such a…

08/31/2021

We learned recently that the Governor failed to sign a law adopted by the legislature in the last session, that would have required state agencies to comply with orders of the Probate Court. (Raised SB No. 940) Now, you may have thought state agencies given notice of a proceeding and an opportunity to participate, would be bound by the result of a court hearing, which is largely what a Connecticut Supreme Court case said a few years ago under a particular set of facts in a conservatorship proceeding. Advocates thought that the passage of the law mostly codified that decision, which to many simply made sense, and reduced the potential for a person relying on a probate court order only to find later that a state agency refuses to acknowledge the court ruling. The Governor’s reasoning for refusing to sign, at least as we read in a press release, seemed ill founded. Hopefully the bill can be passed again, and become law.

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Andrews & Young, PC is dedicated to protecting our clients’ interests through high quality legal services with offices in Groton & Waterford, Connecticut.

08/06/2021

Younger Adults Now More Likely to Have a Will, According to Survey

A new survey has found that motivated in part by the coronavirus pandemic, younger adults are now more likely to have a will than middle-aged adults. Nevertheless, the overall percentage of Americans with a will has dropped over the past several years.
Caring.com’s 2021 estate planning survey found that for the first time since the survey began in 2015, 18- to 34-year-olds are more likely to have a will than 35- to 54-year-olds, with 26.8 percent in the younger cohort saying they have estate planning documents compared to 22.5 percent in the older group. Some 35 percent of all 18- to 34-year-olds responded that they were motivated by COVID-19 to start the estate planning process, leading to a 63 percent increase in the number of young adults with a will than pre-pandemic.
The pandemic did not have the same effect on middle-aged and older adults. The survey found that the number of people aged 35 and up with estate planning documents went down this year, continuing a trend. The number of 35- to 54-year-olds with a will has decreased by 39 percent since 2019 and the number of people aged 55 or older with a will shrank 27 percent. While the overall percentage of respondents with a will in 2021 remains basically unchanged from 2020, the number of respondents with a will dropped from 40 percent in 2019 to 32.9 percent in 2021.
The most common reason respondents gave for why they did not have a will was that they “haven’t gotten around to it,” (34.2 percent), followed by they “don’t have enough assets” (28.1 percent). The number of respondents saying they didn’t know how to get a will increased from 6.3 percent to 7.6 percent, but the percentage of people citing the expense as an excuse fell from 6.8 percent to 5.6 percent.
For the full survey results, click below.

Caring.com's 2021 Wills and Estate Planning Study finds that younger Americans are more likely than middle-aged Americans to have a will in 2021.

06/09/2021

Over the past year, many attorneys took steps to modify their offices to follow CDC social distancing guidelines. Although we are keeping some of the changes, we are removing others. For example, we built a large partition between two staff work spaces which was unsightly and interfered with efficient communication. This has been removed. However, we installed a large plexiglass / lexan shield over our conference room table, and this will remain for a while.

While we continue to offer meetings over ZOOM and other video conferencing formats, in person meetings have resumed at both offices. We purchased an air cleaner and continue to ask clients to arrive wearing masks.

04/23/2021

Estate Planning to Enhance Medicaid Eligibility

Long-term care involves not only a loss of personal autonomy; it also comes at a tremendous financial price. Proper planning can help your family prepare for the financial toll and protect assets for future generations.

The following article discusses some tools that can be used in an estate plan to prepare for Medicaid.

Long-term care involves not only a loss of personal autonomy; it also comes at a tremendous financial price. Proper planning can help your family prepare for the financial toll and protect assets for future generations. Long-term care can be very…