THE INTERSECTION BETWEEN FAMILY LAW AND ELDER LAW

1 THE INTERSECTION BETWEEN FAMILY LAW AND ELDER LAW by Phoebe P. Hall Hall & Hall, PLC 1401 Huguenot Road i Midlothian, Virginia 23113 (804)897-1515 February 2013 I. INTRODUCTION Family Law and Elder Law are closely related fields sharing a focus on assisting individuals and their family members with legal issues and planning opportunities that arise at critical times in their lives. The specialized knowledge of an attorney in each of these fields can be beneficial to clients seeking advice and guidance with decision-making or when performing advance planning with regard to future needs, particularly when they involve seniors or persons with disabilities. II. IMPORTANT MATTERS RELATING TO SEPARATION AND DIVORCE FOR SENIORS For an individual contemplating separation or divorce, making vital decisions and taking important steps with long term consequences, it can be instructive and helpful to obtain the advice and guidance or collaborative assistance of both a family law attorney and an elder law attorney. These efforts can be particularly beneficial with matters such as prenuptial agreements, separation, divorce, separate maintenance, spousal support (alimony), property division, and long term care planning for seniors, especially those who might need government benefits to help pay for long term care. III. IMPORTANT MATTERS IN RELATION TO SEPARATION, DIVORCE, AND POST DIVORCE MATTERS WHEN A SPOUSE, PARENT, OR CHILD IS DISABLED. Family law attorneys are increasingly facing cases involving special needs children, disabled parents, or spouses with disabilities. Evaluating and handling these cases requires specialized knowledge and skills and often requires collaboration between family law attorneys and elder law attorneys. These cases arise in the context of separation, divorce, and post-divorce situations. They may involve child support, custody and visitation, spousal support, property division, estate matters, special needs planning, special needs trusts, agreements, litigation, divorce, modification of existing orders, and issues of extension of support beyond age 18. There may be issues related to the capacity of a disabled parent to participate in the proceeding and/ or to handle custody and/or visitation. The Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”) may come into play,

THE INTERSECTION BETWEEN FAMILY LAW AND ELDER LAW

Documents

family law

family

elder law

elder rights

rights of elder

elder abuse

older people