In this video, our special needs Champaign attorneys explain how to use Special Needs Trusts, also known as Supplemental Needs Trusts, in order to allow disabled individuals to accumulate assets and income in excess of these amounts without reducing the amount of SSI benefits that they are eligible to receive. Typically a loved one will create the trust and serve as trustee, with the disabled individual being the beneficiary.  A bank account will then be opened in the name of the trust.

In this video, our Champaign special needs attorneys discuss the main differences between the special needs funds to be that first party special needs trust is funded with assets owned by the beneficiary while a third party special needs trust is similar in purpose and structure to a first party, but is typically created and funded by family members who leave property through their estate plan (their will, life insurance benefits, etc.).

In this video, our special needs attorneys in Champaign explain that an ABLE account is The Federal Achieving a Better Life Experience (“ABLE”) Act. This account allows for tax advantaged bank accounts known as ABLE Accounts that can be used by individuals with disabilities to save money without decreasing the amount of their government benefits such as Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”).  Although the ABLE Act is a federal law, each state in which ABLE Accounts are available has its own rules for how ABLE Accounts in its jurisdiction work