Online resource center to help you explore these key issues, and others, regarding your estate.
Mr. Miller has many years of experience in designing and implementing a comprehensive variety of Trusts, Wills, and other estate planning documents, as well as settling estates in the most expedient and appropriate method. Further, he counsels and assists clients on becoming eligible for VA benefits and Medi-Cal.
Learn moreMr. Miller has been active in the area of VA Pension and Medi-Cal for well over a decade. He uses various specialized types of Trusts as well as non-trust strategies to gain eligibility for his clients and save the family money.
Learn moreMr. Miller has been settling estates (both simple and complex) for well over 40 years. The starting point is always to create a strategy to settle the estate in the most efficient manner possible with a minimum of taxes. Often times the strategy created allows the family to bypass Probate Court proceedings.
Learn moreDeciding how to dole out property after your death is neither an easy nor particularly fun task. As a result, many estate planners create their initial documents and then leave them alone, unchanged, for their remaining lives. However, all the documents in your estate plan should be reviewed regularly in order to avoid unfavorable consequences … Read more
Budget hawks have been harping on Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California). For the purpose of this article, I will distinguish the federal issues from the state issues by using Medicaid and Medi-Cal respectively) and Medicare spending over the past few years. Many political debates have focused on who is cutting what from which program, making it … Read more
Although the economy is finally beginning to rebound as home prices increase and more jobs are added, the last six years have been tough on families in the area. Pinching pennies took on new meaning as it became a necessary habit just to pay bills, but if you have some surplus in your monthly budget, … Read more
In the wake of a number of national tragedies, the gun control debate has made mental illness one of the focal points of the debate. However, mental illness is a much larger issue than a few national news stories. For many, suffering from mental illness is a daily war with themselves. In general, mentally ill … Read more
Most estate planning is centered around a few important goals: preserving as much of your estate for your heirs as possible, easing the transition of your assets, and preserving positive memories of your life. In most cases, a properly drafted trust can accomplish most of these goals. For example, by paying attention to the need … Read more
Don’t Leave Home Without It—-Travel Insurance–Part 2 Introduction Non-Emergency Medical Evacuation Insurance How To Purchase Geographic Coverage of Medical Expense Policies How Much To Purchase Where To Purchase This is a continuing series of articles with a number of “parts.” Search for “Don’t Leave Home Without Them” and “Don’t Leave Home Without It” They are … Read more
In 2011, California lawmakers passed AB 97, which would cut Medi-Cal reimbursement rates by 10% beginning June 2011. The California Hospital Association (CHA) and other Medi-Cal providers sued, alleging that the cuts violated other state and federal laws relating to appropriations, healthcare, and agency procedure. Since that time, the CHA has been successfully keeping the … Read more
Someone has won $590.5 million in a record Powerball drawing. So far, there are only two certainties about the winner: the person bought the ticket in Florida and the person has a lot of brand new tax issues to consider. In addition to the large chunk of money seized from the winnings for income tax, … Read more
Military service carries a number of benefits for veterans during and after their time in the service. As a nation we strive to take care of veterans, from education to medical care. As veterans, it is important to recognize and take advantage of the benefits that exist, such as VA Aid & Attendance Non-Service Connected … Read more
You’ve heard the expression, “He who pays the piper calls the tune.” Other similar iterations are “He who rents the flat chooses the curtains,” or simply, “The money talks.” Regardless of your choice of expression, they boil down to one thing: when money is involved, the person holding it makes the determination of how to … Read more
About Living Trusts is hosted by the Law Offices of Merwyn J. Miller, as your online resource center to help you explore these key issues, and others, regarding your estate.
Dear Mr. Miller: My mother is 82 and still lives alone. Over the last year, she has become noticeably more forgetful. She repeats stories, sometimes f...
Dear Mr. Miller: My mother passed away recently, and I have been named the Successor Trustee of her trust. I expected to be sad after losing her, but ...
Dear Mr. Miller: About ten years ago, my husband and I paid an attorney to create a Living Trust. We signed all the documents and put them in a safe p...
