After any kind of serious accident, a Beaumont resident or their family may be entitled to compensation.
Sometimes, this compensation will come through a personal injury claim against the person or business responsible for the accident.
Moreover, a victim, including surviving family members, could also receive compensation from Social Security or from other sources.
Collecting this compensation is an important and complicated legal step. When another person is responsible to pay compensation after an accident, collecting will require an extensive knowledge of Texas’s laws about negligence.
Collecting is important because families will use this money to provide for the care of a seriously injured victim. This compensation also covers lost wages and other costs and damages as well.
However, a family will also need to put together a proper estate plan to make sure that the money they collect lasts long enough to provide for the victim’s needs, is safe from being taken by creditors and will not affect the victim’s ability to get ongoing public assistance.
Handling personal injury compensation may involve detailed estate planning
There are a number of estate planning and administration considerations that a family will need to think over if a loved one is receiving a large settlement from a personal injury claim.
- The family will need to think about the legal and financial consequences of how they receive their payment. They may, for example, choose to accept payment in the form of a structured settlement annuity.
- They will need to think about how best to protect the settlement payment from unforeseen creditors, including government agencies. On a related point, they may also want to be sure that the settlement proceeds to stay safe from unwise financial decisions by the victim or family members.
- They will need to think about tax implications and the impact the settlement will have on government benefits, such as Medicaid.
- The family may need to set up a guardianship for the victim in order to manage the proceeds, especially if the victim is a minor or has suffered a serious intellectual disability.
Collecting compensation after a loved one suffers a serious injury is only a first step in a long and detailed legal process. A family should also understand their legal options for managing these proceeds.