By Sandi Rosenbaum, Special Education/Special Needs Advocate Some students who receive special education services are indistinguishable from their typical peers once the school day is over. Others have physical, medical, or neurodevelopmental differences that affect their lives, and those of their families, every day. They require far more supervision and support than their same-aged peers,…

by Marion M. Walsh, Esq. The Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education (“OCR”) has delivered a Report on the disparate impacts of COVID-19 on students in K-12 and in higher education, Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students (“Report”). Not surprisingly the Report concludes that the…

By Brian L. Miller, Esq. With a new year upon us, we have new changes to the federal estate and gift tax limits, Medicare premiums, deductibles and co-insurance amounts for Medicare Part A and Part B programs, and the New York State Medicaid asset and income limits. FEDERAL ESTATE AND GIFT TAX LIMITS As of…

By Joel Krooks, Esq. Recently, the Uniform Law Commission formed a new committee to review the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act (UHCDA). Although, New York is not one of the states that follows the UHCDA, the potential changes the committee is discussing brings important issues to light. The states that do follow the UHCDA are…

By Amy C. O’Hara, Partner From recent experience in New York guardianship courts on applications where individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities may have some higher functioning capabilities, I find judges are often frustrated with the current 17-A guardianship law as it cannot be tailored to an individual’s needs and supports to enable them to retain certain…

By Bernard A. Krooks, Certified Elder Law Attorney It is not uncommon for younger family members to accompany a parent or other relative to an estate planning or elder law consultation with one of our attorneys at the firm. I have often observed that many of our clients are motivated to take action due to a family…

During a new estate planning consultation, I will always ask my client whether they own a long-term care (LTC) insurance policy. Whether a client has funds set aside through such policy to offset their long-term care needs is an important part of creating an appropriate and sound estate plan. It is our practice to review any policies our clients…

A guardian has been appointed for you.  What happens if you don’t like your guardian?  Guardianships, or conservatorships as they are referred to in some states, have come under intense scrutiny in light of the Britney Spears conservatorship.  There are numerous elements to Spears’ conservatorship to explore, including requesting authority to hire an attorney, removing…

by Arshi Pal, Esq. The pandemic has been a real eye-opener for many parents. As we transitioned to remote learning, many parents became part-time instructors to ensure that their children engaged in instruction and completed assignments. Many parents witnessed firsthand the struggles their children were having with paying attention, completing assignments, understanding concepts and communicating…

by Marion M. Walsh, Esq. In 1990, Congress officially established the first full week of October as Mental Illness Awareness Week.  The week runs through Sunday, October 10, which is World Mental Health Day. Mental Illness Awareness Week assumes more relevance today than ever, due to challenges raised by the pandemic and increased isolation and…