Estate Planning and Asset Protection

For our estate planning and asset protection services, we charge flat fees based on the comprehensive planning services that are appropriate for each particular client.  We generaly do not offer "piecemeal" or partial solutions, as we have seen numerous problems with piecemeal services and we want to make sure that a client does not limit the scope of planning services needed simply because of cost. Worse yet, piecemeal services can result in gaps in protection.

Please fill out our Fee Inquiry Form and we will be happy to provide you with a copy of our basic fee schedule for Estate Planning and Asset Protection. 

Life Care Planning and Medicaid Planning

Our flat fees for Life Care Planning and Medicaid Planning can be discussed at your first meeting with Mr. Farr.  During the initial consultation, Mr. Farr can assess your needs and give you an estimate of the fee for the services that you need. 

Your particular fee for a Life Care Plan or a Medicaid Plan will be set in advance based upon the following factors:

• Are we planning for a married couple or an individual? Planning for two persons is almost always more complex than for one.
• Is this is a crisis situation? Is nursing home care actual or imminent? Or do we have time to plan?
• How complex will the planning be?
• How difficult will it be to access public benefits such as Medicaid?

Our goal is always to help preserve the best possible quality of life for the Elders we serve. We offer holistic services that include not only the services of Evan H. Farr, Certified Elder Law Attorney, but also the services of the rest of our firm, including our Estate Planning Paralegal, our Eldercare Coordinator, and our Asset Protection Case Manager, all of whom work directly under the supervision of Mr. Farr.  If appropriate for your situation, our Eldercare Coordinator will: work with you to assess your residential living needs and to help determine the type of residential placement or long-term care services that you may require; will assist with nursing home selection and/or the selection of appropriate alternative long-term care facilities; and will assist with the selection of, and help make appropriate arrangements with, other service providers, such as Geriatric Care Managers, Home Health Aides, and Daily Money Managers.

The services that we will provide to you under this type of planning will typically include:

• Unlimited consultations between the attorneys and other employees in our firm and you and/or your representative(s) as necessary to design, create, and implement an Estate Plan and Life Care Plan (hereinafter referred to as “the Plan”) consistent with your goals, desires, and intentions. 
• As part of the Plan, we will prepare all appropriate estate planning documents, including the following: Will; Living Will / Advance Medical Directive; Long-Term Care Directive; Medical Power of Attorney; General Power of Attorney; HIPAA Authorization; Advance Care Plan; Living Trust if appropriate; Special Power of Attorney for Real Estate if appropriate.
• After your approval of the Plan, we will prepare all additional documents required under the Plan (which may include, for example: deeds, contracts, trusts, promissory notes, transfer documents, title documents), regardless of how many documents are required.
• If an irrevocable trust is called for as part of the Plan, we will prepare such trust and our fee will include the services of Evan H. Farr acting as Trust Protector for your protection.  Evan H. Farr is also available to serve as Trustee of the Trust for an additional annual fee.
• We will provide all research, conferences, telephone calls, document review, and document preparation necessary to implement and monitor the Plan.
• We will supervise and attend to your execution of all documents required under the Plan.
• We will obtain when possible, and complete, for your signature, all asset transfer forms required under the Plan.
• If your Plan calls for you to deal with financial institutions or insurance companies, we will assist you and, when possible, obtain the required forms for your signature.
• If your Plan calls for the purchase of an annuity, we will assist you in dealing with the insurance company to be sure that a policy is furnished that will meet the ever-changing Medicaid annuity requirements.
• We will adjust the Plan as often as necessary -- for example, if your financial circumstances change, if your living arrangements change, or if your health needs change.
• If you are still able to effectively communicate your desires, our Eldercare Coordinator will assist you, if necessary, in the creation of an Advance Care Plan to help provide you with the highest quality of life possible if and when you are in need of long-term care services and can no longer effectively communicate your own desires.
• If you are not already in a long-term care facility, we will assist you with selection of appropriate long-term care facilities.
• We will review, prior to you or your agent signing, all admission documents when you enter or are about to enter into any type of long-term care facility.
• We will prepare, file, and process to completion a Medicaid Application for you, including representing you and attending any and all Medicaid application interviews with you.
• We will represent you  in connection with any Medicaid appeals. We will represent you through the trial court level to determine the validity of any strategy that you follow at our advice in order to qualify for Medicaid nursing home benefits and protect your assets from Medicaid estate recovery.
• After an initial approval for Virginia Medicaid, an annual Redetermination of Eligibility form must be completed and filed to remain on Medicaid. We will prepare and file the annual Redetermination of Eligibility form, and represent you in connection with said annual redetermination of eligibility.
• We will continue to render the above-listed services until your death, provided that our obligation to perform services under this Agreement will terminate prior to your death if you move permanently out of Virginia.
• The fee you pay includes a “final meeting.” This meeting takes place with your family or other representatives after your death. At the final meeting, we review what needs to be done (if anything) to administer your estate and will offer our assistance if your family needs our services with those things, such as title transfers, probate or trust administration, and the like. However, as explained below, the fee you pay under this Agreement does not cover these potential future services.