Disabilities, Personal Injury Settlement, and Trusts

If your loved one has recently suffered a lifelong disability from someone else's negligence, it's likely that you are settling or have settled a personal injury award that will help compensate you to care for your loved one over the course of their lifetime.

Taking care of such funds can be overwhelming, though, especially if your loved one is now unable to manage the funds on their own.

A disability trust set up after a personal injury settlement is one of the most practical ways to conserve resources from a settlement in order to care for a person's disability over the course of a lifetime. If the disabled person is receiving benefits from state or federal programs such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Medicare, a trust can be a way to provide for the disable person's discretionary needs without planting a large cash asset in their bank account, disqualifying them from social programs.

Besides basic provisions such as shelter and food, trusts can be used to provide for a large number of needs that the disabled person may encounter over the course of their lifetime:

· Physical Accommodation Needs: Trust funds can be used to modify homes or automobiles in order to make them user-friendly.

· Education Needs

· Non-medical companion or attendant services

· Physical Needs: Funds can be used for wheelchairs, glasses, or clothing

· Travel and Entertainment

Trusts are very flexible, but they need to be set up appropriately in order to maximize their potential. The first step is to choose a trust that meets your needs. There are several different types of trusts that can be used to preserve the money from a personal injury settlement or other funds that people may wish to gift to the disabled person.

Each one comes with a certain structure and specific restrictions:

· Supplemental Needs Trust- Set up by a third party, this trust kind of trust is used to assist a disabled person with discretionary needs

· Solo- Benefit/Disability Trust- This type of trust is set up with the personal funds of a disabled person, usually from a personal injury settlement. It can ensure eligibility for Medicaid. The money remaining at the end of a lifetime is usually paid back to the state.

· Pooled Trust-These types of trusts are managed by a nonprofit for disabled individuals and can be set up by the beneficiary or a third-party. At the end of the lifetime, remaining assets are usually used to care for other disabled individuals rather than paid back to the state.

You should talk to your attorney to see if they are familiar with how trusts work. If not, ask for a referral to an attorney specializing in wills and trusts. A familiar attorney will be able to educate you about the different types of trusts available and will help you choose the best kind for your situation.

Trusts can make sure that personal injury settlement funds or other funds that people may want to provide for a disabled person are neither squandered nor consumed by taxes. If your attorney hasn't yet recommended a trust, ask them today or seek the council of another personal injury attorney familiar with how trusts work.

DUI Lawyers - Helping You In Legal Defense

Do you know that famous Hollywood actor Mel Gibson was arrested on 28th July 2006 for driving under the influence (DUI)?

Gibson was driving a Lexus LS 430 when he was stopped and breathalyzed by the Los Angeles county Sherriffs, and was found to have a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.12% which surpassed the legal limit of 0.08%. Gibson was granted bail set at ,000 and released, but what would you do if you face a DUI arrest?

Under such situations your best bet would be consulting DUI lawyers. Valencia (CA), Agoura Hills (CA), and Calabasas (CA) are some of the places in US where more people are seeking assistance from DUI attorneys after facing an arrest or being charged for criminal offense. Popularity of DUI attorneys has catapulted to a high pedestal in California owing to the high percentage of driving under the influence arrests.

When can you face a DUI arrest?

You can face DUI or DWI arrests for driving under the influence, which basically refers to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated.

In a broader sense, these terms are used to typify criminal offense for any form of impaired driving. You can face arrest for driving your car after uncontrolled consumption of alcohol or drugs or sometimes a combination of both. Such an arrest is made after establishing guilt based on observation of driving symptoms, such as weaving. It is important for you to know that these arrests are always made after administering 'field sobriety tests' such a breathalyzer test.

How can DUI attorneys help you?

If you are charged with criminal offense for driving under the influence, you need to search for DUI Lawyers. Valencia (CA), Simi Valley (CA), and Burbank (CA) are some popular cities in California where several DUI attorney offices have been established in recent past. In California there are strict laws for individuals under 21 who are arrested for DUI. In most events, a person charged for impaired driving faces criminal court trials where they are fined, imprisoned, or given alcohol education classes.

California's "Zero Tolerance " laws always ensure that stringent penalties are imposed on under 21 individuals who are caught for drunken driving or any form of impaired driving.