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Special Needs Planning in Schertz, Texas
What Is Special Needs Planning?
Special needs planning is the process of creating an estate and financial plan customized to the circumstances of a loved one with disabilities. The goal is to ensure that they are cared for throughout their life without jeopardizing their eligibility for government programs such as Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Traditional inheritance methods—like leaving money outright in a will—can unintentionally disqualify a special needs individual from receiving important benefits. Special needs planning provides the tools and strategies to prevent this, offering security for both the individual and the family.
Why A Special Needs Plan May Be Right For Your Family
It can be difficult to strike a balance between care and independence. Without the right planning, a loved one with disabilities may:
Lose their benefits: If someone with special needs suddenly inherits money or property, it might make them ineligible for programs like Medicaid or SSI, which have strict income and asset limits.
Have a lack of financial structure: Without a plan in place, money could be spent too quickly or mishandled. This could leave the person without enough resources and at risk of being taken advantage of.
Have no designated caregiver: If no one is legally named to manage care or make decisions, the person’s daily routine and stability could be disrupted, since the court would have to step in and decide who takes responsibility.
Special needs planning ensures that your loved one continues to receive benefits, has access to additional resources, and is protected from potential financial problems. It also gives families structure and assurance that their loved one’s needs will be met in the long run.
What We Offer
Special Needs Trusts
A special needs trust (SNT) is the foundation of special needs planning. This legal arrangement allows you to set aside assets for your loved one without affecting their eligibility for government programs.
Special needs trusts can cover:
- Medical and dental expenses that are already not covered by insurance
- Education and vocational training
- Housing and transportation costs
- Recreational and enrichment activities
- Emergency or unexpected expenses
We’ll help you decide which type of trust fits your situation best—whether it’s a first-party trust (funded with your loved one’s own assets) or a third-party trust (funded by parents or other relatives). Once in place, the trust can cover essential needs like housing, education, medical costs, and even quality-of-life expenses such as recreation and travel—all without threatening benefits.
Guardianship and Conservatorship
When a loved one cannot fully manage their own care or finances, Texas courts may require legal guardianship or conservatorship. A guardian makes decisions about healthcare, education, and day-to-day life, while a conservator manages finances and assets.
We’ll walk you through when guardianship or conservatorship might be needed, help you understand your responsibilities, and assist with the legal process of being appointed. Taking these steps early ensures your loved one has consistent, trusted decision-makers in place.
Powers of Attorney and Advance Directives
Emergencies can happen at any time. If you are unavailable or incapacitated, your loved one still needs someone who can step in and make decisions.
We’ll help you set up:
- Powers of attorney so a trusted individual can handle financial and medical matters.
- Advance healthcare directives that make your wishes clear about medical treatment and care decisions.
This planning prevents confusion or conflict during stressful times and ensures your loved one’s well-being remains the top priority.
Coordinating Government Benefits
Government programs like Medicaid and SSI are often lifelines for families, but the rules are strict. Even small mistakes in inheritance or trust setup can lead to the loss of vital support.
We’ll carefully structure your plan so it aligns with both Texas and federal law, protecting your loved one’s access to benefits while also giving them access to additional resources for comfort.
How Cludius Law Helps Families in Schertz
Special needs planning requires experience and attention to detail. We provide:
- Comprehensive trust planning – Drafting and funding special needs trusts that protect assets and benefits.
- Guardianship and conservatorship guidance – Ensuring legal authority for caregivers when needed.
- Benefit coordination – Making sure your loved one maintains eligibility for government programs.
- Ongoing support – Updating plans as laws, family circumstances, or needs change.
We focus on clear communication and practical solutions, so families feel confident that their loved ones will be protected no matter what the future brings.
Get Started Today
Planning for a loved one with special needs is a lifelong responsibility, but you don’t have to face it alone. With the right legal guidance, families can secure a stable future for those who depend on them. Contact us to schedule a consultation. We’ll help you understand your options, create a customized plan, and ensure your loved one has the protections and support they need—today and for years to come.
You Don’t Want To End Up A Statistic
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U.S. Adults Without A Last WillAccording to Gallup.comDying without a Will means a stranger – a probate judge – makes all of the decisions for your family during a time of grief, including potentially who should be guardian of your minor children. -
In Unclaimed Property In The U.S.According to Forbes.comWhen you do not leave a current inventory of your assets that your family can easily find when something happens, your assets could go unclaimed, never even benefitting your family. -
Average Time Families Spend In Probate CourtAccording to LegalMatch.comProbate is a lengthy process, ranging from six months up to 5-10 years, or longer depending the case. On average, families spend two years in probate court that could have been avoided.
Schedule Your Free 15-Minute Consult
The life and legacy planning model helps you confidently make legal and financial decisions so you know you have a plan to keep everyone you love out of court and out of conflict after you pass.
About Fred Cludius
Hello, I am your neighborhood Personal Family Lawyer.
What I know is that your legacy is about more than wills and trusts, and it is about more than money. As your trusted advisor, I help you make the very best legal decisions for your family with the kind of guidance usually reserved for only very high net worth individuals.
The life and legacy planning model covers not just what happens with your assets, but sets you up to pass on what matters most to you: Your values.
Your priorities. Your relationships. Your life. Your legacy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Your Last Will is a legal document through which you distribute some of your assets upon death. Other assets will be distributed not based on your Last Will but on your beneficiary designations, depending on the situation. Over two-thirds of the U.S. adult population does not have a last will, and for those who do, most Last Wills do not fully cover their situation. Upon death, the only want to make a Last Will valid is to file it in the probate court, a public and normally lengthy process that delays your family access to what you have left behind.
In the world of estate planning, the best outcome for you, your family, and your loved ones will be achieved only by working with a lawyer who encounters estate planning situations daily. You have worked your whole life for what you have and the relationships you have created. Unfortunately, some families collapse after the death of a loved one because they either did no planning at all, or if they did, it was through an online platform that knew nothing about their family or circumstances and that ultimately failed them when their family needed help the most. We encourage a lifelong relationship between you and your estate planning attorney so that you have a lawyer for life to be there for your family when you cannot be.
This is the most often asked question in estate planning, and that is okay – we know the topic of cost is a sensitive one when it comes to choosing a professional to guide you, and we have designed our fees on a flat-fee basis only so that you know exactly what you are committing to – and there are no surprises. While we cannot quote fees online or over the phone, we invite you to check out our upcoming educational events where we teach you things about estate planning you do not even know to ask, plus we will cover during our next event our unique meeting process and fee schedule so that you know exactly how to take the next steps at the best time for you and your family.
Think of a Trust as a “Will substitute.” What we mean is that just as a Last Will distributes your assets upon death, a Revocable Living Trust does the same. The upside of a Trust over a Will is that a Trust need not be filed with the probate court to be effective, whereas a Last Will must be filed with the probate court to have any effect. As a result, a Trust remains a private document pertaining to your private affairs, whereas a Last Will becomes a public document after you pass away no matter how private you were during your lifetime. Of course, there are additional types of trusts as well that serve different purposes, and each family’s unique situation must be taken into account to design the right overall estate plan, which may include one or more Trusts.
No, of course not! After you are gone, your loved ones will miss you deeply – they will long for your words of counsel and concern, and hearing an old voicemail or reading a letter from you again would be a tremendous gift. This has nothing to do with money. Through our unique life and legacy planning process, you can give your loved ones the most precious gift of all – a lasting expression of your love. This is because we believe estate planning is not just about transferring your financial assets and personal belongings. It is equally about capturing and transferring your valuable intangible gifts: your values, insights, stories, and experiences. What could be more valuable? Estate planning is not only for those rich with money. Everyone we know already has an estate as valuable as anything in the world and that they should protect.
Your estate plan works no matter where in the U.S. you might physically be (such as on vacation) or might move to. This said, we always recommend finding your neighborhood Personal Family Lawyer to review your out-of-state plan to help you ensure you make any necessary updates based on differences in state law.
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