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What Is Defined as Personal Injury?

Personal injury sounds self-explanatory, but it encompasses a wide range of injuries for which legal options may exist. Depending on the cause and severity of the injury, there can be potential for lawsuits and compensation to the injured person.

Types of Personal Injuries

Many people think personal injuries are physical in nature, such as a broken leg. But personal injury law defines personal injury as a much broader category. Legally, personal injury encompasses physical harm, emotional harm, or damage to a person’s reputation.

Physical Harm

This is perhaps the most straightforward category to understand. Someone (or some entity or organization) causes another person to be physically injured. Those injuries can range from minor (sprained ankle) to severe (paralysis, brain damage).

There are three categories of physical harm:

• Negligence. This means the injury occurred because proper care wasn’t taken to prevent it, but it likely wasn’t deliberate. That could include someone falling on an icy sidewalk where a homeowner hadn’t tried to remove the ice or salt it to make it safer or someone who is careless when handling a gun.
• Liability. This includes things like defective products that cause injuries. It doesn’t matter if the manufacturer, distributor, or retailer of the product was aware of the defect or not. Once the defect becomes known, they can still be held liable.
• Intentional injury. This category includes deliberate harm, such as battery and assault or false imprisonment.

Emotional Harm

Emotional harm comes into play when someone causes someone else debilitating emotional stress. That can go hand-in-hand with physical injuries, such as false imprisonment, or it can arise from emotional and verbal abuse or invasion of privacy.

Damaged Reputation

Damaged reputations that arise from things like defamation are considered personal injury. Examples include someone making false claims about someone else on social media that cause that person to lose standing in the community.

Let Me Advise You

If you or someone you know needs help exploring legal options for any type of personal injury, call me at 610-718-6368.

When to Get an In-Home Nurse for a Loved One

Many people would prefer not to leave their long-time homes, even as they age and it becomes more difficult for them to care for the home and themselves. But when medical issues crop up, especially chronic or long-term problems, they may be unable to manage their care themselves. One option is to bring in a skilled in-home nurse to care for them. Here’s what to know about timing.

Ongoing Care Is Needed

When someone has a medical condition that requires ongoing treatment, whether short- or long-term, but they’re physically unable to manage it alone, that’s an excellent time to seek out an in-home nurse. This can cover various conditions, including wound or sore management, physical or occupational therapy, or medication administration.

There Are Signs of Self-Neglect

If you’ve noticed the loved one is having trouble caring for themselves, it might be time to bring in a nurse, even if there isn’t a significant medical condition. Signs of self-neglect include decreased quality of cleanliness in the home, weight loss because they’re not cooking or eating what they need, or it’s apparent they haven’t kept themselves or their clothes clean.

Noticeable Memory Issues

Remember that memory degrades with age, so some memory loss is expected. But what could be cause for alarm is if the loved one has trouble following directions, gets lost easily in familiar places, forgets or mixes up medications, or repeats the same questions over and over. More profound memory loss can make it hard for your loved ones to properly care for themselves. An evaluation by a doctor is the first step, and then it might be time to bring in a nurse to keep things on track.

When You Can No Longer Be the Carer

If you’ve been the caregiver yourself, you may experience burnout and exhaustion, not to mention that if you’re not a nurse, you may struggle with some of the medical concerns. Taking care of yourself is as important as caring for your loved one. A skilled nurse can ease the burden and provide a high standard of care. Moreover, it gives your loved one an extra person to socialize with. Many homebound elderly experience loneliness, so adding a new face to the mix can be a day-brightener.

Let Me Advise You

If you or someone you know needs advice about setting up in-home medical care for a loved one, call me at 610-718-6368.

What Does an Elder Law Attorney Do?

As the American population enjoys longer life spans than previous generations, the role of elder law has become important in helping seniors live safely and prepare for the future as much as possible. An elder law attorney has numerous tools at his disposal to help manage various issues, including these:

Estate Planning

Estate planning is not just for the incredibly wealthy. Anyone with some assets, whether financial or real estate, should plan ahead for what happens to those assets after their death. An experienced elder law attorney has the knowledge and insight to make valuable suggestions that can make things easier, both for the person with the assets and for the future heirs. Services include wills, trusts, financial planning, estate tax issues, and powers of attorney.

Medical Planning

No one likes to think of facing medical crises at any point in life but planning ahead for them can make an enormous difference. An elder law attorney can help explain and plan for long-term care options, Medicare, patients’ rights, medical powers of attorney, and living wills or other medical directives (which legally state the patient’s wishes regarding treatments such as intubation and feeding tubes). Having these plans in place can reduce family conflict when a loved one is in crisis because the decisions have already been made. It can also prevent someone from being forced to accept medical treatment they don’t want simply because they can no longer express themselves.

Work With Housing Situations

An elder law attorney helps clients locate suitable assisted living, long-term care, dementia care, and nursing home housing. They also keep clients apprised of their rights in each of these types of facilities and can help manage costs and finances around them.

Let Me Advise You

If you or someone you know needs assistance with elder care issues and estate planning, call me at 610-718-6368.

Trusts can be a vital part of estate planning, as they’re an excellent legal means of managing and distributing assets before and after death. But before setting up a trust, it’s essential to understand the difference between revocable and irrevocable trusts and their pros and cons. Here are things to remember when planning to create and fund a trust.

Revocable Trust

A revocable trust is one that can be changed anytime by the person who created and funded the trust, known as the grantor (as long as they haven’t become mentally incapacitated). That means the grantor can add or remove assets or change beneficiaries at any point.

Pros:

1. Revocable trusts can be modified.
2. They’re easier to set up than irrevocable trusts.

Cons:

1. Assets in a revocable trust are not as protected from creditors as they are in an irrevocable trust.
2. There are few, if any, income or estate tax benefits with this type of trust.

Irrevocable Trust

As you might guess from the name, an irrevocable trust cannot be modified once it’s been created, and the assets transferred. It’s extremely rare for courts to agree to changes in these types of trusts once established. That’s why it’s critically important to be absolutely sure that the terms of the trust are correct and not something that could cause regrets later.

Pros:

1. Irrevocable trusts are not subject to estate taxes.
2. They’re protected from creditors seeking funds from the grantor.

Cons:

1. These types of trusts can very rarely be changed—they’re largely set in stone once completed.
2. They’re more difficult to set up than revocable trusts.

Let Me Advise You

If you or someone you know needs to pursue setting up a trust, call me at 610-718-6368.

 

Understanding Guardianship Laws in Pennsylvania

Guardianship is a serious matter that Pennsylvania courts don’t take lightly. That’s because it involves taking away rights from the person who needs the guardian. Understanding how guardianship works in Pennsylvania can help you determine if that’s the best course of action and what it takes to obtain it.

Who Is Guardianship For?

There are two categories of people for whom guardianship may be necessary: Minors under 18 whose parents are no longer living and adults who are mentally incapacitated in some way, whether temporarily or permanently. The latter could include people with progressing dementia who can no longer safely manage their lives or people who have been in a car accident with temporary cognitive issues. Minors who turn 18 and people whose temporary mental incapacity is resolved can be released from guardianship.

Within Pennsylvania law

Because it is a serious concern for the courts, Pennsylvania guardianship laws provide alternatives to guardianship. The goal of the courts is to see people retain their rights rather than lose them, so guardianship should be a last resort. Families or loved ones should consider the possibility of creating a funding a trust for the incapacitated person, filing for power of attorney (especially helpful to do before someone becomes incapacitated, so once that happens, a power of attorney is already in place and ready to be activated), or discuss whether or not the family can manage with their own resources. Pennsylvania courts will want to know that these have been considered and if they don’t work, why they don’t work. If none of these things are feasible or won’t suffice, it could be time to consider guardianship.

Becoming a Guardian in Pennsylvania

Several different entities can apply for guardianship under Pennsylvania law. Those include qualified individuals, nonprofits, county agencies, guardianship agencies, and corporate fiduciaries.

The courts can reject applications from guardians it deems inappropriate or has conflicts of interest. The court may also appoint a guardianship agency if no one steps up to become a guardian for a person who’s been medically diagnosed as needing one.

The first step is to file a petition in a Pennsylvania county court. That must include a sworn statement from a physician or psychologist who can explain why the incapacitated person needs a guardian. That statement needs to be heavily detailed. The court will issue a preliminary decree and set a hearing date, at which time the court will decide if the person is indeed incapacitated and if a guardian is needed. Then the court will determine who or which agency should become a guardian.

Let Me Advise You

If you or someone you know needs more information and assistance in guardianship matters, call me at 610-718-6368.

Why Should I Consider a Bank as a Trustee of My Trust?

Setting up a trust is an integral part of many people’s estate plans. When setting up the trust, one critical decision is who should be the trustee. That person or organization is responsible for managing the trust and caring for its finances, whether filing taxes, distributing assets to beneficiaries, or keeping detailed records.

Sometimes, having a trustworthy close family member or friend makes sense in the trustee role. But other organizations can also act as the trustee, including banks. Here’s why banks are worth considering for the trustee role.

Protection for the Trust and Beneficiaries

Banks have effective systems of checks and balances. It’s less likely that a bank trustee will misuse the funds or outright steal them. On the rare occasion that happens, banks usually have financial security and insurance that can make reimbursement of the trust a strong possibility. That’s in contrast to a trust run by a friend or family member where, if losses occur, it may not be possible to recoup them.

No Conflicts of Interest

Family and friends can easily have conflicts of interest that would make it difficult for them to manage the trust objectively and with everyone’s best interests at heart. Bank trustees don’t have those kinds of conflicts and can keep the trust’s best interests at the forefront.

Professionally Managed

A family member or friend is not likely to be a specialist in managing trusts and will have to learn as they go. That’s a process ripe for mistakes, which can be costly. Banks have entire trust departments that work only on trusts—it’s their job. They stay current on changes in trust laws and regulations, they have extensive experience that can be valuable for the trust, and they’ll understand all the financial implications, including taxes, of the trust.

Unbroken Continuity

If someone selects a family member for a trust that involves minor children, and that trustee passes away before the children become legal adults and are entitled to the trust, a new trustee must step in and take over. If it’s another family member or friend, a second learning curve could be involved. With a bank, the actual person overseeing the trust may change, but the bank will handle it and will appoint another knowledgeable, experienced employee as trustee.

Let me Advise You

If you or someone you know wants to investigate setting up trusts, call me at 610-718-6368.