Tucson Elder Law Attorney

We are committed to helping seniors, individuals with disabilities, and their families and supporters make informed choices guiding them through some of life’s most important decisions. That may mean estate planning, special needs planning, guardianship, conservatorship, long-term care planning or probate. As Tucson Elder Law Attorney (s). That’s what we know.

Practice Areas

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Guardianship & Conservatorship

We represent guardians, conservators, and the subjects of proceedings when court involvement is required. We also act as guardian and conservator in appropriate cases.

Estate Planning

We counsel individuals about planning for tax, benefits eligibility and preparation for aging and disability. We understand that one important consideration for clients is the cost of effective planning. One common area we work in: special planning for family members with special needs.

Wills, Trusts & Powers of Attorney

We prepare documents to complete your estate plan. Most importantly, we help you determine whether you need a trust, and we counsel you on selection of agents, trustees and personal representatives.

Trust & Estate Administration

Once estate planning documents are in place, we help with administration of the trust or estate. We represent trustees, agents and personal representatives. We prepare accounts and taxes, or we oversee those administrative matters. We are particularly interested in helping with special needs trusts.

Long-Term Care (Medicaid) Planning

We are familiar with long-term care costs and eligibility for public benefits, and how to maximize benefits for a person dependent on the public system. We can prepare applications or process renewals for eligibility.

Private Fiduciary Services

In select cases (and usually when there is no other good alternative) we act as trustee, personal representative or agent. We handle financial and life decisions, prepare tax returns and keep interested parties in the loop.

Our Attorneys

Robert B. Fleming
Elizabeth Rollings Friman
Jacquelyne J. Mingle
Amy Farrell Matheson
Thomas A. Curti

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Curti regularly conducts useful CLE programs for lawyers in area related to trust administration and estate planning and is highly regarded.

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Fleming is an outstanding lawyer in the fields of trusts and estates, estate planning and elder law, and most lawyers in this community refer matters to him or call upon his expertise on a regular basis.

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Wonderful people who helped us through a very trying time.

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Tucson Elder Law Attorney Newsletter

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2020 COLA

Social Security’s 2020 COLA Increase

Each year the U.S. Social Security Administration calculates an adjustment in the cost of living (COLA). The 2020 COLA increase has now been set at 1.6%. That means that, starting January 1, 2020, a number of changes will cascade through the benefit structure. How will the 2020 COLA increase affect you, or your family member?…

DIY Estate Plans

DIY Estate Plans: Shortcuts That Shortchange

Can you write your own Will? Sure, Arizona law (like laws in many other states) allows you to write your wishes in your own handwriting and sign it. Such a DIY estate plan could be perfectly valid. You also can find all kinds of forms online not only for estate plans but for other legal…

Statutory health care power of attorney

Arizona’s Statutory Health Care Power of Attorney

Like many states, Arizona has included a statutory health care power of attorney in its law. That means the legislature has written a power of attorney form for you. You can fill it out, sign it and have it witnessed, and you have a completely valid document. The Arizona Attorney General’s office has even made…

September roundup

September Roundup: Watchdogs, Wealth Tax, and More

October is just around the corner, which means it’s time for our end-of-the-month collection of elder law news items. Some of the September roundup items challenge conventional assumptions about watchdogs, death at home, wealth taxes, and obituaries: Do Watchdog Agencies Protect Us? Many believe that if you lodge a complaint with a state agency about…

Third-party special needs trusts

Explaining Third-Party Special Needs Trusts

What is the difference between a third-party special needs trust and a self-settled trust? The distinction can be way more confusing than it ought to be. The trusts are similar in a number of ways, but there are important differences. A few months ago, we explained self-settled special needs trusts in this space. Those are…

Trustee's rules

Trustee’s Rules: It’s a Tough Job, and You Don’t Have to Do It

Let’s say you’ve discovered that a recently deceased loved one named you successor trustee. We have a message for you: You are not a dictator, you are not royalty, you do not have a license to torment the relatives who are beneficiaries, and you don’t have to accept. You will be governed by some trustee’s…

Hopeful planning

Hopeful Planning Fails in Two Special Needs Cases

Hopeful planning: when your estate plan is based around your hope that everything will turn out fine. We see it a lot. Often it works. Too often it does not. Two cases we read last week illustrate how hopeful planning can go wrong when facts change after the planner’s death. Both happened to be California…