Life Care Planning: The Intersection of Legal and Care Planning (Self-Study)

Course Description

Traditional elder law focuses on the way property is passed from one generation to the next.  It may provide a foundation for financial and care decision-making through Powers of Attorney, but it does not meet the full range of care needs (including how to pay for long-term care) associated with aging and disability.  A newer model called Life Care Planning is based on a more comprehensive approach to the legal and financial challenges of long-term care.  Families with loved ones in care crisis situations benefit from a single point of contact that addresses a wide range of their concerns and relieves decision-making burdens.  Benefits to the legal practitioner include greater satisfaction in solving complex problems for clients, long-term relationships with families, and the creation of recurring revenue streams.

Principles

• How does Life Care Planning combine legal, care, and public benefits strategies?
• What firm personnel are required to practice Life Care Planning?
• Who is the ideal Life Care Plan client?
• What are the benefits of Life Care Planning?
• Why is a comprehensive approach important?

Syllabus

1. Overview of the Life Care Plan model, including tools used to evaluate clients’ situations, key personnel, and workflow.
2. Discussion of the costs of long-term care and potential payor sources (private resources, Medicaid, and VA).
3. Description of proactive and crisis Life Care Planning scenarios and strategies available to clients: how do care needs, financial needs, and public benefits options impact the strategy?
4. Case studies for proactive Life Care Planning and crisis Life Care Planning.
5. Discussion of how Life Care Planning benefits the client and his or her family.
6. Description of how Life Care Planning benefits the legal practitioner.
7. Summary: how Life Care Planning fills gaps between legal practice, care providers, and benefits agencies.

Instructor

Bailey Schiermeyer, Esq.