Special needs need a special needs trust

As a young man, Norwood had been involved in a serious automobile accident. Unfortunately, he wasn't wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the car, suffering severe injuries to his head and neck. He never fully recovered. His mother, who was a widow and a saint, cared for him night and day for twenty-five years, but finally her health failed. Norwood had not received any kind of huge settlement from an insurance company, but his parents were well-off and he was well cared for.

With the failure of his mother's health, he had no one to care for him. He could not communicate hardly at all and spent his days watching TV or sitting in the garden. Unfortunately, he needed to be placed in a care center, where there was 24 hour care. Since he was an only child, there was no one left in his family who could help. His mother's failing health took all of the resources of the family and soon, Norwood was entirely dependent on public assistance through Medicaid.

Unfortunately, when his mother died, she left no will and no trust, Norwood inherited all of her substantial property. There was just one problem, all of the property was in real estate. He had no income, but because of his newly inherited wealth, he now did not qualify for Medicaid support. Norwood almost died before this legal tangle was unraveled.

How could things have been different? Norwood's mother could have created a special needs trust for Norwood. She could have also had a pour-over will, putting any and all property she had at the time of her death into the trust. Life would have been considerably different for Norwood at the time of his mother's death.

You may wish to read more at the Jackson White Website. Although this case study is fictional, the situations are real.