Special Needs Trusts in Havre de Grace, MD

Legal help with special needs trusts for Havre de Grace, Maryland residents from The Law Office of Thomas K. Mallon in Towson.

Service areas / Havre de Grace / Special Needs Trusts

The Law Office of Thomas K. Mallon, LLC provides special needs trusts assistance for people in Havre de Grace. The information below explains the issues to discuss with an attorney and connects you with the firm’s original Maryland service guide.

Working with our Towson office from Havre de Grace

Havre de Grace is in Harford County, Maryland. The Law Office of Thomas K. Mallon, LLC serves this area from 1107 Kenilworth Drive, Suite 305, Towson, MD 21204. This is the firm’s Towson office, not a separate office in this community.

Maryland law applies throughout the service area. Where a matter must be filed depends on the type of proceeding and the facts, not simply on the location of the attorney’s office. Discuss residence, existing orders, and any pending case at your consultation.

Read the Harford County service-area guide for the original local context.

Means-tested benefits such as Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid have strict asset limits. A well-intentioned inheritance, or a personal injury settlement, can push someone over those limits and end the benefits they rely on for medical care and daily support.

A special needs trust, sometimes called a supplemental needs trust, holds assets for that person’s benefit without those assets counting as theirs for eligibility purposes.

The mistake this prevents

The most common and most damaging error in this area is leaving money directly to a family member with a disability, whether by will, by beneficiary designation, or by a well-meaning grandparent who did their own planning. Disinheriting them instead, and relying on a sibling to “take care of it,” is not a solution either: those funds belong to the sibling, and are exposed to the sibling’s divorce, creditors and death.

The three kinds

Third-party trust

Funded with someone else’s assets, typically a parent’s or grandparent’s, for the benefit of the person with a disability. This is the planning tool of choice, because there is no requirement to repay the state on the beneficiary’s death. Whatever remains can pass to other family members.

First-party trust

Funded with the beneficiary’s own assets, such as a personal injury settlement or an inheritance received outright. Federal law permits these for a person with a disability under 65, and requires that on the beneficiary’s death the state be repaid for Medicaid benefits provided. That payback requirement is why a third-party trust is preferable when there is a choice.

Pooled trust

Managed by a nonprofit that pools funds from many beneficiaries for investment while keeping separate accounts. Often the practical option for smaller amounts, or where no suitable individual trustee exists.

What the trust can pay for

The point is to supplement benefits, not replace them. Distributions are generally used for things public benefits do not cover: therapies, education, adapted equipment, travel, recreation, personal care and quality of life. Distributions handled carelessly, particularly direct cash to the beneficiary or payment of food and shelter, can reduce benefits, which is why the trustee’s role here is more demanding than in an ordinary trust.

Choosing a trustee

The trustee needs to understand benefit rules, keep records, and be willing to serve for what may be decades. Many families name a professional trustee, or a family member with a professional co-trustee.

Coordinate the whole family

A special needs trust only works if everyone’s plan points to it. Grandparents’ wills, beneficiary designations and gifts all need to name the trust rather than the individual. That coordination is part of the work.

Eligibility rules are federal and state-administered and they change, so a plan in this area is worth reviewing periodically rather than filing away.

Official resources

Talk with a Towson attorney

The Law Office of Thomas K. Mallon, LLC offers a free consultation. Call (410) 847-9075 or request a consultation online. The office is at 1107 Kenilworth Drive, Suite 305, Towson, MD 21204.

This page provides general information about Maryland law. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Maryland law changes, and how it applies depends on the facts of your situation.

Special Needs Trusts resources

Read the full Maryland special needs trusts guide. Bring relevant agreements, court papers, financial records, and a list of questions that relate to your situation. If you have received papers with a deadline, tell the office when you contact us.

Other services in Havre de Grace

Discuss your situation

or call (410) 847-9075. Advice about your particular matter requires a consultation. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.

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