A Special Needs Trust (or SNT) is a wonderful—and necessary—tool to protect your Special Needs Child’s public benefits, to protect their inheritance, and to provide them with the extra funds they will need to have a home and food and clothing.  But some parents still think it’s not enough.  They know that something more is needed if their child is going to be truly and comprehensively cared for.

Does this mean Special Needs Trusts are inadequate, or should be avoided?  Not at all!  Because an SNT goes hand in hand with something called a “Letter of Intent”.  Although the SNT carries all the legal weight, the letter of intent (which is not a legal document) will have the greatest impact on the day-to-day life of your child.  A letter of intent is your message to the people who will be caring for your child if something happens to you.  Consider the instructions you leave a babysitter when you leave your child for just a few hours.  What would you want to say to that person if you knew you wouldn’t be coming back?

A letter of intent should address ALL the areas of significance in your child’s life.  Here are just a few to get you started:

• A medical history and list of doctors and contact information
• Any allergies your child has
• A list of teachers, therapists, and any other important people
• Your child’s biographical information, including favorite foods and activities, likes and dislikes, best friends, and personality traits
• A rundown of your child’s daily and weekly routine
• Your family philosophy
• And most especially, your wishes for your child’s future

A letter of intent may not carry any specific legal weight, but it serves as more than just a list of instructions for your child’s caretaker, it also provides guidelines for your Trustee, the person who will be deciding how trust funds are going to be spent. The SNT and letter of instruction together provide a comprehensive security net for your Special Needs Child.  If you wouldn’t leave her alone in the house, don’t leave her alone in the world.  Create something lasting to protect her when you are gone.

Regardless of your political leanings, it is undeniable that the nomination of Sarah Palin as the Republican Vice Presidential candidate has brought the issues and concerns of parents of special needs children into the limelight.  Here at our office, we think that any media attention given to special needs families is for the better.

Most parents of a child with special needs know that they need to plan for that child’s future, but they don’t always know how.  Some think that their child will just have to rely on public benefits for the rest of his or her life, some mistakenly believe they can put money into a savings account for the child to use when the parents are gone, and worst of all, some parents will leave their estate to their special needs child as an inheritance.

All of these parents have the best intentions, but none of them are actually doing the best thing for their child. (The creation of a Special Needs Trust to provide for the expenses of the child while still preserving his or her public benefits is most often the best course of action.) Why is this?  It isn’t because the parents don’t care; it is because often they just aren’t informed.  Accurate information and caring guidance is not always easy for parents of special needs children to find.  Not only that, but these parents have much of their time taken up with more immediate tasks: the day-to-day care of a child with intensive and ongoing needs, working with school systems to ensure their child has fair treatment, keeping on top of government paperwork to get the resources they need to pay for necessary medical expenses.

We know these parents have a lot on their plates, which is why we want to help them in every way we can.  Call our office for legal guidance, referrals to qualified advisors, suggestions for further resources, or plain old-fashioned support.  Let us help you be informed and prepared.

What is the ideal future you imagine for your special needs child when you look ahead?  It might look something like the life of Frank Calloway; living to a contented old-age, spending time with memories of the past and engaged in an activity which brings great pleasure and peace.  Most of all, looked after by competent and caring individuals who are truly concerned with his best interests.

But how can this dream be achieved on the $2,000 total assets that Medicaid recipients are allowed to have without losing their government benefits?  How can responsible parents safely leave an inheritance to their special needs child?  For Frank Calloway, part of the answer to that question is having a special needs trust.

Unfortunately, according to this article by Ryan Ori, not all parents know about the benefits of a special needs trust, or how easy it can be to create one—with the right help.  A special needs trust is the vessel that will hold your child’s inheritance (from you or from another source such as grandma or grandpa) without disrupting that child’s government benefits. It gives your child the funds they need beyond the basic living expenses provided by SSI or Medicaid.

If you are interested in this tool, you will need to contact an attorney to help you with its creation.  A special needs trust is not the kind of document that can be found in a software package or created from a standard trust template.  The needs of your child are unique, and should be addressed as such.  And an attorney will know about any state-specific regulations that will affect your trust.