Parents and/or grandparents of children with special needs should have the peace of mind of knowing that their children or grandchildren will be adequately provided for when the parent or grandparent dies or becomes disabled. Yet, such peace of mind is often elusive.
So much of the information imparted by attorneys, financial planners and even well-meaning friends within the special needs community is unnecessarily complicated, confusing and, in some instances, just plain wrong. For example, many people are told that trusts available to hold and manage funds for people with special needs, must be extremely restrictive, to the point of absolutely prohibiting certain types of distributions to or for the benefit of the person with special needs. In fact, John J. Ross has reviewed trusts prepared by attorneys that contain unnecessary restrictions.
Such restrictions are not only unnecessary, but they are also often ill-advised. Mr. Ross has worked with numerous families with special needs children who want to do everything possible to help the child realize his or her full potential. Therefore, it makes little sense to place a child’s inheritance into an unnecessarily restrictive trust that limits how the funds can be used for the remaining decades of the child’s life
If you confer with John J. Ross about special needs planning, he will make sure that you fully understand the options available to you and, as a result, help you create and implement a plan that will truly advance your goals and expectations with respect to your child or grandchild.