How Top-Ranked Law Schools Got That Way, Pt. 3

Part one and part two of this series focused on the top law schools in U.S. News and World Report's 2010 rankings, offering graphs and analysis to explain why those schools did so well. This part rounds out the series by way of contrast. Here, we focus on the law schools that ranked 41-51 in the most recent USN&WR rankings, those that ranked 94-100, and the eight schools that filled out the bottom of the rankings.



The above chart shows the weighted and itemized z-scores of law schools about 1/3rd of the way from the top of the 2010 USN&WR rankings. Note the sharp downward jog at Over$/Stu—a residual effect, perhaps, of the stupendously large Over$/Stu numbers we earlier saw among the very top schools. Note, too, that three schools here—GMU, BYU, and American U.—buck the prevailing trend by earning lower scores under PeerRep than under BarRep (GMU's line hides behind BYU's). As you work down from the top of the rankings, GMU offers the first instance of that sort of inversion; all of the more highly ranked schools have larger itemized z-scores for PeerRep than for BarRep. It raises an interesting question; Why did lawyers and judges rank those schools so much more highly than fellow academics did?




The above chart shows the weighted, itemized z-scores of the law schools ranked 94-100 in the 2010 USN&WR rankings—about the middle of all of the 182 schools in the rankings. As we might have expected, the lines bounce around more wildly on the left, where they trace the impact of the more heavily weighted z-scores, than on the right, where z-scores matter relatively little, pro or con. Beyond that, however, no one pattern characterizes schools in this range.




The above chart shows the weighted and itemized z-scores of law schools that probably did the worst in the 2010 USN&WR rankings. I say, "probably," because USN&WR does not reveal the scores of schools in the bottom two tiers of its rankings; these eight schools did the worst in my model of the rankings. Given that uncertainty, as well as for reasons explained elsewhere, I decline to name these schools.

Here, as with the schools at the very top of the rankings, we see a relatively uniform set of lines. All of the lines trend upward, of course. These schools did badly in the rankings exactly because they earned strongly negative z-scores in the most heavily weighted categories, displayed to the left. Several of these schools did very badly on the Emp9 measure, and one had a materially poor BarPass score. Another of them did surprisingly well on Over$/Stu, perhaps demonstrating that, while the very top schools boasted very high Over$/Stu scores, no amount of expenditures-per-student can salvage otherwise dismal z-scores.

[Crossposted at Agoraphilia, MoneyLaw.]

Best Value Law Schools

The National Jurist has released its ranking of the Best Value Law Schools in the September 2009 issue:

The National Jurist identified 65 law schools that carry a low price tag and are able to prepare their students incredibly well for today's competitive job market. In determining what makes a law school a "best value," we first looked at tuition, considering only public schools with an in-state tuition less than $25,000, and private schools with an annual tuition that comes in under $30,000. We then narrowed the playing field again by including only schools that had an employment rate of at least 85% and a school bar psasage rate that was higher than their state average. We then ranked schools, giving greatest weight to tuition, followed closely by employment statistics.

For a chart of the Top 25 Value Law Schools, and a chart of the Top 65 Value Law Schools with their corresponding U.S. News rank, see here.

"Annual" Multiple Choice Testing Post

It's been nearly two years since my "annual" post opposing multiple choice examinations for law students. The last one generated some good comments and can be found here. I still find the question intriguing. Before going on a bit, some basics. First, I am writing about machine graded exams; not multiple choice or true/false with explanation questions which are actually short essays that focus the students on specific topics. Second, I am not really writing about the mixed exam in which some "objective" (what a crazy thing to call them) questions are included with the essays. Third, I sincerely want the multiple choice machine graded (MCMG) supporters to be right. I hate grading more than anything else associated with my job. Finally, I think the whole matter presents a wonderful opportunity to examine self governance. More specifically, has anyone actually studied the effects of MCMG exams as opposed to essay exams or is the trend toward MCMG exams strictly a matter of convenience?

Here is what I like to know: If you use MCMG aren't you teaching a different course than if you use essay exams. I am not saying the teacher is doing anything differently but aren't the students "hearing" and making note of different things? Which course should be taught?

Do teachers at the fancy schools use MCMG exams? If so, does that mean the today's law schools are hiring people who are good at MCMG exams? If so, is that reflected in their teaching, testing and ultimately their evaluation of today's students?

What does it mean when someone defends MCMG by saying it produced a "great curve" or a "normal distribution." Does that mean the students were tested on the right things, whatever they are? I suppose you would get a normal distribution if you used a soft-ball throwing contest.

What does it mean when someone defends MCMG by saying the same students do well on both types of tests. What is the connection between that and what they are learning and teaching effectiveness?

Has anyone using MCMG exams actually studied how to write "good" multiple choice questions?
As a comment to my last post on this, Nancy Rappaport had some interesting views.

If you use MCMG exams, how do you perform the diagnostic element of teaching and testing? By that I mean the process of identifying individual and group weaknesses in reasoning and expression so you can adjust your teaching the next time around.

Having said all this and revealed my distrust if MCMG exams, I realize that some of the same questions could be asked about essay exams. What is the connection between good essay exam writing and a student's potential as an attorney, judge or law professor? I think I have a better chance of spotting the ones with great potential when they are forced to reveal themselves in an essay. But, that too has not been tested. In effect, our testing needs to be tested.

At one level what worries me the most is the thought that if essay exams could be graded even faster than MCMG exams, a fair number of law professors would switch back and then defend the new position as consistent with good teaching and evaluation.

Elaine Brown: "Prepare for full blown slavery!"

In Print or On-Line? Where Should those Directory Dollars Go?

One of the questions that consistently comes up these days is how law practices should allocate or rather reallocate their advertising funds between print directories versus directories of the on-line variety.

The issue is a rather complicated one and much depends on the nature of the firm, its areas of emphasis, the types of clients it is seeking to attract, the amount of funds available, competitive activity, etc.

Having said that, it is important to recognize that the pendulum is certainly shifting towards on-line usage (up approximately 70%) vs. print directory usage (down up 40%). A look at one’s own media consumption habits would probably reveal that if you’re a baby boomer or younger, you use the internet more often when seeking contact information about a company. It’s usually more accessible (computer’s right there), and quicker (not to mention a whole lot less heavy). If desired, you can also immediately find out a great deal more information about a company or firm. In addition, for law firms with a business-to-business focus, or for those who enjoy a broader geographical service area, the print directories may be less influential.

Yet the world is filled with highly successful Personal Injury attorneys for example, who have done quite well for themselves through traditional “yellow page” advertising. Their track record speaks for themselves. But analysis of that track record needs to ascertain at exactly what level that advertising effort paid out. Individuals perusing through what are largely indistinguishable full page or double-truck ads for what should be a serious purchase may be “fishing.” Print directories may offer more prospects, but are they “qualified” prospects? There is a cost in screening out the wheat from the chaff.

In addition to the PI area, print directories may be useful for some of the more consumer-oriented practice areas such as family law and in particular, elder law, where one of the target groups (the elderly) may not be as comfortable with the new technologies.

Probably the best advice one can give is to test, test, test. Determine the cost vs. benefit scenario for alternative scenarios (including maintaining print presence, but perhaps reducing ad size). This may take some time (and effort in terms of tracking), but it will allow the firm to move forward more confidently with its directory program.

How Top-Ranked Law Schools Got That Way, Pt. 2

In the first post in this series, I discussed the mysterious distribution of maximum z-scores in the top two tiers of law schools in U.S. News & World Report's 2010 rankings, and focused on the top-12 schools to solve that mystery. In brief, among the very top schools, employment nine months after graduation" ("Emp9") varies too little to make much of a difference in the schools' overall scores, whereas overhead expenditures/student ("Over$/Stu") varies so greatly as to almost swamp the impact of the other factors that USN&WR uses in its rankings. Here, in part two, I focus on the top 22 law schools in USN&WR's 2010 rankings. In addition to the Emp9 and Over$/Stu effects observed earlier, this wider study uncovers some other interesting patterns.



The above graph, "Weighted & Itemized Z-Scores, 2010 Model, Top-22 Schools," offers a snapshot comparison of how a wide swath of the top schools performed in the most recent USN&WR rankings. It reveals that the same effects we observed earlier, among just the top-12 schools, reach at least another ten schools down in the rankings. With the exception of Emory and Georgetown, Emp9 scores (indicated by the dark blue band) barely change from one top-22 school to another. Over$/Stu scores, in contrast (indicated by the middle green hue), vary widely; compare Yale's extraordinary performance on that measure with, for instance, Boston University's.

This graph also reveals some other interesting effects. Like the Emp9 measure, the Emp0 measure (for "Employment at Graduation," indicated in yellow-green) varies little from school to school. Indeed, it varies even less than the Emp9 measure does. Why so? Because all of these top schools reported such high employment rates. All but Minnesota reported Emp0 rates above 90%, and all but Georgetown, USC, and Washington U. reported rates above 95%.

These top 22 schools also reported very similar LSATs. Their weighted z-scores for that measure, indicated here in light blue, range from only.20 to .15. The weighed z-scores for GPA, in contrast, marked in dark green, range from .24 to .06.

As the graph indicates, the measures worth 3% or less of a school's overall score—student/faculty ratio, acceptance rate, Bar exam pass rate, financial aid expenditures/student, and library volumes and equivalents—in general make very little difference in the ranking of these schools. One exception to that rule pops up in the BarPass scores (in dark orange) of the California schools, which benefit from a quirk in the way that USN&WR measures Bar Pass rates. Another interesting exception appears in Harvard's Lib score (in white)—only thanks to its vastly larger law library does Harvard edge out Stanford in this ranking.

To best understand how a few law schools made it to the top of USN&WR's rankings, we should contrast their performances with those of the many schools that did not do as well. I'll thus sample the statistics of the law schools that ranked 41-51 in the most recent USN&WR rankings, those that ranked 94-100, and the eight schools that filled out the bottom of the rankings. Please look for that in the next post.

[Crossposted at Agoraphilia, MoneyLaw.]

How Top-Ranked Law Schools Got That Way, Pt. 1

How do law schools make it to the top of the U.S. News & World Report rankings? USN&WR ranks law schools based on 12 factors, each of which counts for a certain percentage of a school's total score. Peer Reputation counts for 25% of each law school's overall score, for instance, whereas Bar Passage Rate counts for only 2%. More precisely, USN&WR calculates z-scores (dimensionless statistical measures of relative performance) for each of the 12 factors for each school, multiplies those z-scores by various percentages, and sums each school's weighted, itemized z-scores to generate an overall score the school. USN&WR then rescales the scores to run from 100 to zero and ranks law schools accordingly.

In earlier posts I described my model of the most recent U.S. News & World Report law school rankings (the "2010 Rankings"), quantified its accuracy, and published itemized z-scores for the top two tiers of schools. (Separately, I also suggested some reforms that might improve the rankings.) Studying those z-scores reveals a great deal about how the top-ranked law schools got that way. The lessons hardly jump out from the table of numbers, though, so allow me to here offer some illustrative graphs.



The above graph, "Weighted & Itemized Z-Scores of Top 100 Law Schools in Model of 2010 USN&WR Rankings," reveals an interesting phenomenon. The items on the left of the graph count for more of each school's overall score, whereas the items on right count for less. We would thus expect the line tracing the maximum weighted z-scores for each item to drop from a high, at PeerRep (a measure of a school's reputation, worth 25% of its overall score), to a low, at Lib (a measure of library volumes and equivalents, worth only .75%). Instead, however, the maximum line droops at Emp9 (employment nine months after graduation) and soars at Over$/Stu (overhead expenditures per student). The next graph helps to explain that mystery.



The above graph, "Weighted & Itemized Z-Scores, 2010 Model, Top-12 Schools," reveals two notable phenomena. First, the Emp9 z-scores, despite potentially counting for 14% of each school's overall score, lie so close together that they do little to distinguish one school from another. In practice, then, the Emp9 factor does not really affect 14% of these law schools' overall scores in the USN&WR rankings. (Much the same holds true of top schools outside of these 12, too.)

Second, the Over$/Stu z-scores range quite widely, with Yale having more than double the score of all but two schools, Harvard and Stanford, which themselves manage less than two-thirds Yale's Over$/Stu score. That wide spread gives the Over$/Stu score an especially powerful influence on Yale's overall score, making it almost as important as Yale's PeerRep score and much more important than any of the school's remaining 10 z-scores. In effect, Yale's extraordinary expenditures per student buy it a tenured slot at number one. (I observed a similar effect in last year's rankings.)

Other interesting patterns appear in "Weighted & Itemized Z-Scores, 2010 Model, Top-12 Schools." Note, for instance, that Virginia manages to remain in the top-12 despite an unusually low Over$/Stu score. The school's strong performance in other areas makes up the difference. Though it is not easy to discern from the graph, Virginia's reputation and GPA scores fall in the middle of these top-12 schools' scores. Northwestern offers something of a mirror image on that count, as it remains close to the bottom of the top-12 despite a disproportionately strong Over$/Stu score. The school's comparatively low PeerRep and BarRep scores (the lowest of those in the top-12) and GPA (nearly tied for the lowest) score pull it down; Northwestern's Over$/Stu score saves it.

[Since I find I'm running on a bit, I'll offer some other graphs and commentary in a later post or posts.]

[Crossposted at Agoraphilia, MoneyLaw.]

The Browns are political prisoners

Daniel J. Riley, Boscawen | for the Concord Monitor

One must inquire why the government just didn't just show the law that made Ed and Elaine Brown liable for the voluntary income tax to avoid the expense and danger of a standoff. I say "voluntary" because the IRS's own literature informs you the income tax is based on voluntary compliance. No bureaucrat will ever assess your income; you do it yourself, voluntarily, waiving your Fifth Amendment right when you sign that 1040.

The 1040 instruction booklet, the Paper Reduction Act Notice and Privacy Act Notice all tell you that you only have to pay taxes you are liable for. Well, 26 U.S.C. 4404, 5505, 4786 are the liability clauses for tobacco, alcohol and wagering taxes. Where is the liability clause for the income tax? That's what the Browns respectfully asked for over and over, only to be shown the barrel of a gun.

The Browns didn't want to voluntarily waive their rights, but instead stood on them. They were willing to pay every penny, as soon as they were shown the law that made them liable. The Browns paid all their other taxes.

The people have a right to ask questions and get answers. This is found in the First Amendment. A maxim of law is "no answers - no taxes." It's the people's way to peacefully control an out-of-control government.

The Browns were justified and are now political prisoners.

Do Your Firm’s Marketing Materials Stand Out from Your Competitors?

It always amazes me to see the same attorneys who spend sleepless nights developing unique, creative arguments for their clients turn around and agree to have a gavel as their logo, the scales of justice on their web site, or the firm brochure littered with photos of court house pillars.

The business card, the web site, the brochure . . . each represents valuable communications real estate. Gavels, pillars and the proverbial scales of justice may indicate you’re a law practice. But they do virtually nothing to suggest why someone should retain your firm.

It is a difficult task to accomplish, but creating any effective piece of marketing material requires creative executions that truly reflect the uniqueness of the firm. The strongest marketing communications are those that convey why the firm is different from its competitors.

Getting at that point of difference involves a great deal of internal soul-searching akin to putting the firm on the analyst’s couch. Law practices that are willing to take an objective look at themselves invariably find that there are distinct aspects about their organization that makes it what it is. Most often, it’s not just that they offer great service, are the largest, the most accessible, the cheapest, the best “value,” etc. These are cliché features and benefits we’ve all seen hundreds of times before. Rather, the firm’s uniqueness can be found in its culture, it’s approach to law, it’s approach to its clients, it’s special expertise, its perspective on issues based on extensive experience, or a vision of how the business of law should be practiced.

Once that uniqueness is uncovered (though when working in committees, don’t expect an “Aha!” moment), the challenge of turning that concept into an ad, onto a web site, etc. becomes surprisingly easier. More importantly, the executions that evolve also are more compelling, more engaging and more convincing as to why the firm is the “best” choice.

Transfer Fees

I have not read Why England Lose: and other Curious Football Phenomena Explained by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski but this excerpt of a review of the book in the August 13th issue of the Economist caught my eye:

"A third myth is that clubs cannot buy success. They can, so long as they spend on players’ wages rather than on transfers. Almost 90% of the variation in the positions of leading English teams is explained by wage bills. Transfer fees contribute little. New managers hoping to make their mark often waste money. Stars of recent World Cups or European championships are overrated. So are older players. So, curiously, are Brazilians and blonds."

I guess the best example of this in baseball is the Red Sox and Dice-K. But I wondered if there are transfer fees in law teaching and could the same phenomena be at work. I could only think of one transfer and and one that is like a transfer fee.

At my School, if you take a sabbatical you must come back for at least a year. If not, as I understand it, either the person leaving or, more likely the destination school must provide compensation. To me that is very similar to a transfer fee but certainly not of the magnitude of those you read about in soccer.

Another practice that has the same effect is the treatment of a trailing spouse. The trailing spouse matter usually involves privileged people who have come to believe that, unlike the lower classes, they should not be put to life's hard choices. At my University for a time (and maybe even now) there was a plan. If one department wanted to hire a person who had a trailing spouse, that department would pitch in 1/3 of the trailer's salary. The department hiring the trailer would pay 1/3 and the central administration would pay 1/3.

So, suppose a department found a good candidate and offered $100,000. The the trailing spouse matter is then raised and plan is put into action. The trailer's salary will be $90,ooo. Listing it as the trailer's salary is a nice way to let the trailer save face but in every reality, the new faculty member is being paid at least $130,000, not $100,000.

Is this a tranfer fee? Obviously it is not because ultimately it becomes, indirectly, part of the wage of the new hire. On the other hand, the first department had a budget to spend on the "player" of $100,000. If it had known that it really had a budget of $130,000 it could have shopped at a different and more productive level. Put differently, if the school had considered what it was actually paying for its new hire, it could have hired someone better. As with the transfer fee, for the total amount paid, a better decision could be made.

Are there other academic hiring transfer fees? Not sure.

ABA American Bar Association GP|Solo Elder Law Committee Newsletter • Summer 2009

Chairs:
Kenneth Vercammen (Edison, NJ)
Jay Foonberg (Beverly Hills, CA)

In this issue:

1. Wrapping Up the Personal Injury Settlement
2. When Do I Need a Self-Settled Special Needs Trust?
3. Elder Law, Estate Planning & Probate Seminar- New Ideas to Expand & Excel Your Practice
4. Voting- House of Delegates ABA
5. Pooled Trusts – Statutory Requirements

1. Wrapping Up the Personal Injury Settlement + Future Medical Insurance Issues
By Thomas D. Begley, Jr., Esquire

Once a personal injury settlement has been achieved or a judgment obtained, the plaintiff begins a new life. There are many considerations that should be addressed prior to or at the time of settlement. These include the following:

Medical Insurance

Does the client have the best medical insurance available? The fact that a client receives Medicare, for example, does not mean that coverage is adequate. According to government studies, Medicare pays only about 50% of a Medicare beneficiary’s actual medical bills. In cases involving a catastrophically injured plaintiff requiring considerable home health assistance, that percentage is sharply lower.

Medicare Supplements, Medicare Advantage Programs, Medicaid, private insurance from high risk pools, COBRA coverage, and continuing Worker’s Comp coverage should all be considered.

Medicaid Waiver Programs

Most medical insurance including Medicare and private insurance are designed to pay for acute care. They do not provide coverage for chronic care. There are many Medicaid Waiver Programs that are designed for chronic care including significant home and community-based services that may be required by personal injury victims.

Non-Medical Public Benefits

In many cases, injured plaintiffs are entitled to SSI, SSDI, Section 8 Housing, Group Homes and other public benefits, but have not considered them or applied for them.

Estate Taxes

Where there is a significant recovery, federal and state estate and inheritance taxes should be considered. Currently the exemption from federal estate tax is $3.5 million. It is likely that before the end of calendar year 2009 Congress will revisit the federal estate tax. Many states, such as New Jersey, have state estate taxes. Currently the exemption from New Jersey estate tax is $675,000, and that exemption is not likely to increase. Other states, such as Pennsylvania, do not have a state estate tax, but do have significant inheritance taxes. In Pennsylvania these taxes can be as high as 15%.

In many cases, even with severely injured persons, life insurance is available to pay all or part of the tax. The availability of this insurance should be explored and discussed with the client.

Estate Planning Documents

Many injured parties have no Will, Living Trust, Living Will, Power of Attorney or other estate planning documents. Some of those plaintiffs do have documents but are outdated, perhaps even because of the personal injury settlement. These documents should be reviewed and modified or replaced, if needed.

Estate Planning Documents – Parents

If the plaintiff is a minor child who is likely to be receiving public benefits, it is important that the parents’ estate planning documents not leave any assets to the child with disabilities, but rather to a third party special needs trust.

Structured Settlement

It is often advantageous to purchase a structured settlement for a portion of the settlement or award. A structured settlement offers a number of advantages to the injured party including creditor protection, tax benefits and often makes it more difficult for the injured party to squander the settlement.

There are also disadvantages to structured settlements. If a structured settlement is to be used, an analysis should be made as to how much should be structured and how much should be retained as a lump sum to pay for immediate cash needs, repayment of debt, emergency funds, and cash for investment in the appropriate equity portion of the injured party’s portfolio. COLAs and commutation riders should be considered.

Investment Advice

The client should be introduced to an investment advisor to assist in investing the settlement proceeds. In some instances, the investment manager can be a professional trustee, if a trust is appropriate.

Special Needs Trust

An analysis should be made as to whether a special needs trust is required. In many instances, such a trust is not necessary. If a special needs trust is required, will it need to be established by a court order? It is important to understand that, except in the case of a pooled trust, a special needs trust cannot be established by the disabled person. The long-term success of a special needs trust often depends on the skill and experience of the trustee. Care should be taken in the selection of an appropriate trustee.

Support Trust

Is a support trust appropriate for a minor or incapacitated beneficiary? The support trust usually results in better money management of the settlement. In the case of a minor, the support trust can be designed to retain the award past age 18. Absent a support trust, a minor can usually access the settlement funds at age 18 when most individuals do not have sufficient maturity to handle significant financial assets.

Medicare Set-Aside Arrangement

An analysis should be made as to whether or not a Medicare Set-Aside Arrangement (MSA) is required. If an MSA is required, a further analysis needs to be made as to whether the MSA can be self-administered, a custodial arrangement, a special needs trust or a pooled trust. Arrangements must be made for an MSA calculation and submission of the calculation to CMS for approval.

Mediation

An elder and disability lawyer is often useful as a participant in mediation. The lawyer is familiar with public benefits, which often are useful in bridging the gap between the plaintiff’s demand and the defendant’s offer.

Qualified Settlement Fund

In many cases, a Qualified Settlement Fund (QSF) is useful. The defendant can “pay and go.” The plaintiff has time to sort out issues such as allocation between the parties, resolution of Medicare, Medicaid, ERISA and other liens, purchase of structured settlements, and other issues that may take time. The defendant gets an immediate tax deduction upon funding the QSF.

Lien Reduction

An elder and disability lawyer can be of assistance in reducing Medicaid and Medicare liens.

Copyright 2009 by Begley & Bookbinder, P.C., an Elder & Disability Law Firm with offices in Moorestown, Stone Harbor and Lawrenceville, New Jersey and Oxford Valley, Pennsylvania and can be contacted at 800-533-7227. The firm services southern and central New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania.

Tom Begley Jr. is one of the speakers with Kenneth Vercammen at the NJ State Bar Association's Annual Nuts & Bolts of Elder Law & Estate Administration and co-author with Kenneth Vercammen, Martin Spigner and Kathleen Sheridan of the 500 plus page book on Elder Law.

Begley & Bookbinder, provides services in connection with protecting assets from nursing home costs, Medicaid applications, Estate Planning and Estate Administration, Special Needs Planning and Guardianships. If you have a legal problem in one of these areas of law, contact Begley & Bookbinder at 800-533-7227.

2. When Do I Need a Self-Settled Special Needs Trust?
By Thomas D. Begley, Jr., Esquire

In the settlement of litigation, the plaintiff is often receiving public benefits. The question then arises as to whether a special needs trust is required. There are certain types of public benefits that are means-tested. Others are not. Generally, means-tested public benefits require that the individual have assets of less than $2,000 and have certain limits on income. The following types of public benefits are means-tested and a special needs trust is generally required:

SSI
Medicaid
TBI – A Medicaid Waiver Program for persons suffering from traumatic brain injury
CRPD – A Medicaid Waiver Program providing home care
Section 8 Housing
Veterans Pension
Certain DDD Benefits
Psychiatric Institutionalization
Means-Tested Public Benefits

If the plaintiff is receiving any means-tested benefits or is likely to apply for them, then a self-settled special needs trust should be considered. Assets in the trust are not counted for public benefit eligibility purposes. Distributions from the trust can be made in such a way as not to count for income eligibility for public benefit purposes.

Age

To be eligible for a special needs trust, the plaintiff must be under age 65. If the plaintiff is over age 65, there are Medicaid planning strategies that can be employed, but a self-settled special needs trust will not be a viable option.

Disabled

To be eligible for a self-settled special needs trust, the person must be “disabled.” To be considered disabled, the person must generally have a disability determination by the Social Security Administration (SSA). It is possible, however, to receive a disability determination from a Medicaid physician. If a person has not yet received a disability determination from SSA, the trust can be established pending the disability determination. Good practice is to obtain an opinion letter from a law firm that specializes in Social Security Disability appeals.

Assets of Individual

No assets other than the assets of the disabled plaintiff may be placed in the trust.

Copyright 2009 by Begley & Bookbinder, P.C

3. Elder Law, Estate Planning & Probate- New Ideas to Expand & Excel your Practice

Sat. August 1, 2009 2:00pm – 3:30pm
ABA Annual Meeting Chicago

Speakers: Jay Foonberg, Esq. - Author of Best Sellers "How to
Start and Build a Law Practice" and "How to get and keep good clients', Beverly Hills, CA

Kenneth A. Vercammen, Esq. - co-author "Nuts & Bolts of Elder Law", Edison, NJ

Deborah Cole, Chicago Contributing Author, Your Life, Your Legacy: The Fundamentals of Effective Estate Planning, Publisher's ExpressPress

Elder Law program Primary Sponsors: General Practice Section
Co-sponsors: ABA Commission on Law & Aging, Health Law Section,
YLD, Senior Lawyers Division, Real Probate & Trust Section, Tax Law Section

Topics:
Forms you can use
Email newsletters
"Representing seniors- Doing well by doing good.-Do you know how?
Marketing with written fee agreements
-Ethics and marketing without violating the Rules of Professional Conduct

Elder Law may be the biggest practice area of your career. There are 50,000 baby boomers/ day turning 60 and soon to be on Social Security and will need legal advise. Elder Law is one of the biggest growth fields.

[Contact Kenneth Vercammen, Esq. for program information 732-572-0500]

Contact American Bar Association's CDS/Travel Planners at 800-915-9801 for ABA meeting registration

4. Voting – House of Delegates ABA

The Election will be held at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago. All ABA lawyer members who have registered at the Annual Meeting are entitled to vote for Delegates- at-Large. Voting will be at ABA Registration July 30- August 3: (voting across from registration area)

Hyatt Regency Chicago
Riverside Center, Purple Level, East Tower
8am-6pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday
8am-5pm Sunday, Monday, Tuesday

Six Delegates–at–Large are elected at each Annual Meeting to serve a three-year term in the House of Delegates. Any member of the Association is eligible to be a Delegates–at–Large, although of the six elected each year; no two may be accredited to the same state, territory or possession. Nominations for Delegates at Large are made by written petition. At this Annual Meeting, there will also be two Delegates–at–Large elected to fill vacancies. All ABA lawyer members who have registered at the Annual Meeting are entitled to vote for Delegates–at–Large.

Voting will take place in the registration area of the Hyatt Regency. The polls will be open during the same hours as registration, except on the last day the polls will close at 10:00 a.m.

Contact American Bar Association's CDS/Travel Planners at 800-915-9801 for ABA meeting registration.

5. Pooled Trusts – Statutory Requirements
By Thomas D. Begley, Jr., Esquire

A self-settled pooled trust is defined as a trust containing the assets of an individual who is disabled that meets the six conditions discussed in the following sections.

Non-Profit Association

The trust is established and managed by a non-profit association. A non-profit organization is an organization defined in § 501c of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) and also has tax-exempt status under § 501(a).

Separate Account

Separate accounts must be maintained for each beneficiary of the trust. For purposes of investment and management of funds, the trust may pool the funds in the individual accounts. The trust must be able to provide an individual accounting for the individual. Each individual sub account gets its own EIN number. Each self-settled sub account is taxed to the beneficiary as a grantor trust.

Solely for the Benefit Of

The trust account must be maintained for the sole benefit of the individual with disabilities. The trust account must be established for the sole benefit of the disabled individual. If the account provides a benefit to any other individual, this exception to the trust transfer rules does not apply.

Established By

The trust may be established by a parent, grandparent, or legal guardian of such individual, or by such individual, or by a court. The fact that the individual may establish the trust himself is different from a self-settled special needs trust under (d)(4)(A). If a third party establishes a trust account on behalf of the individual, the third party must have legal authority to act with regard to the assets of the individual. This requirement refers to the individual who physically took action to establish the trust, even though the trust was established with assets of the SSI claimant/recipient. Since the pooled trust has already been established, this provision applies to the sub account within the pooled trust.

A Pooled Trust can also be established by a Representative Payee. The POMS permit the transfer of disability benefits to establish a trust or to fund an existing trust. However, there is an exception for past due benefits, which meet dedicated account requirements. These past due benefits must be held in a savings account or checking account, or a money market account established in a financial institution. Representative Payee may pay a beneficiary’s disability payments to the trust, provided that:

Establishing the trust is in the beneficiary’s best interest.
The trust is established exclusively for the use and benefit of the beneficiary, to meet the beneficiary’s current and reasonably foreseeable needs. Trust expenditures for food, clothing, housing, medical care, recreation, and education are considered expenditures for the use and benefit of the beneficiary and in his or her best interest. A trust with provisions prohibiting trust funds to be used specifically to meet the beneficiary’s current needs for food, clothing, housing, and medical care would not be in compliance.
The trust is for the sole benefit of the disabled person during his or her lifetime.
A provision in a trust directing disability payments to the trust is prohibited as a violation of the assignment of benefits provisions of the Social Security Act.

Payback

To qualify for the pooled trust exception, the trust must contain specific language that provides that, to the extent that amounts remaining in the individual’s account upon death of the individual are not retained by the trust, the trust pays to the state from such remaining amounts in the account an amount equal to the total amount of medical assistance paid on behalf of the individual under the state Medicaid plan. There is no payback required by a third-party pooled trust.

To the extent that the self-settled trust does not retain funds in the account, the state must be listed as a first payee and have priority over payment of other debts and administrative expenses, except as listed below.

The following are allowable administrative expenses:

Death taxes due to federal and state governments
Reasonable fees for the administration of the trust estate
The following expenses are prohibited:

Payments of debts owed to third parties
Funeral expenses
Payment to residual beneficiaries
The restriction on payments from the trust applies upon the death of the beneficiary. Payment of fees and administrative expenses during the life of the beneficiary are allowable as permitted by the trust document and are not affected by the state Medicaid reimbursement requirement.

Copyright – Tom Begley Jr.

We Publish Your Forms & Articles

To help your practice, we feature in this newsletter edition a few forms and articles PLUS tips on marketing and improving service to clients. But your Editor and Chairs can't do it all. Please mail articles, suggestions or ideas you wish to share with others in our Committee. Let us know if you are finding any useful information or anything you can share with the other members. You will receive written credit as the source and thus you can advise your clients and friends you were published in an ABA publication. We will try to meet you needs.

Send Us Your Marketing Tips
We are increasing the frequency of our newsletter. Send us your short tips on your great or new successful marketing techniques. You can become a published ABA author. Enjoy your many ABA benefits.

Send Us Your Articles & Ideas
To help your practice, we feature in this newsletter edition a few articles and tips on marketing and improving service to clients. But your Editor and Chairs can't do it all. Please send articles, suggestions or ideas you wish to share with others.

General Practice, Solo and Small Firm Division:
Elder Law Committee and the ESTATE PLANNING, PROBATE & TRUST COMMITTEE

Who We Are

The Elder Law Committee of the ABA General Practice Division is directed towards general practitioners and more experienced elder law attorneys. The committee consistently sponsors programs at the Annual Meeting, the focus of which is shifting to advanced topics for the more experienced elder lawyer.

This committee also focuses on improving estate planning skills, substantive law knowledge and office procedures for the attorney who practices estate planning, probate and trust law. This committee also serves as a network resource in educating attorneys regarding Elder Law situations.

To help your practice, we feature in this newsletter edition a few articles and tips on marketing and improving service to clients. But your Editor and chairs can't do it all. Please send articles, suggestions or ideas you wish to share with others.

Let us know if you are finding any useful information or anything you can share with the other members. You will receive written credit as the source and thus you can advise your clients and friends you were published in an ABA publication. We will try to meet you needs.

We also seek articles on Elder Law, Probate, Wills, Medicaid and Marketing. Please send your marketing ideas and articles to us. You can become a published ABA author.

Jay Foonberg, Co-Chair, Author of Best Sellers "How to Start and Build a Law Practice" and "How To Get and Keep Good Clients", Beverly Hills, CA JayFoonberg@aol.com

We will also provide tips on how to promote your law office, your practice and Personal Marketing Skills in general. It does not deal with government funded "legal services" for indigent, welfare cases.

Kenneth Vercammen, Esq. Chair
KENNETH VERCAMMEN & ASSOCIATES, PC
ATTORNEY AT LAW
2053 Woodbridge Ave.
Edison, NJ 08817
(Phone) 732-572-0500
(Fax) 732-572-0030
Kenv@njlaws.com
Central Jersey Elder Law Law www.centraljerseyelderlaw.com
NJ Elder Blog http://elder-law.blogspot.com/

Elder Law, Estate Planning & Probate articles available from ABA Seminar
The ABA General Practice Division held its popular program Elder Law, Estate Planning & Probate- New ideas to expand & excel your practice at the American Bar Association Annual Meeting in Chicago on August 1, 2009.
Speakers: Jay Foonberg, Esq. - Author of Best Sellers "How to
Start and Build a Law Practice" and "How to get and keep good clients', Beverly Hills, CA

Kenneth A. Vercammen, Esq. - co-author "Nuts & Bolts of Elder Law", Edison, NJ

Deborah Cole, Chicago, Il

Articles and forms were provided on CD. Below is a list of articles provided. If you want a few of the forms, send an email to kenvnjlaws@verizon.net and indicate which articles/ forms you want and the number of the article or form [max 5]

List of Kenneth Vercammen, Esq. Forms, Documents and Articles on CD
Elder Law, Estate Planning & Probate- New ideas to expand & excel your practice
Sat. August 1, 2009 2:00pm -3:30pm
Hyatt Regency Hotel, Chicago ABA Annual Meeting

1 New Client schedule appointment
2 Confidential Will Questionnaire
3 Will bill
4 WILL DRAFT CO
5. Doctor Cert sign POA, will Dr
6 Thank you for Referral
7 POA DRAFT lt
8 Will Signing Instruction
9 Referral Out Another Atty fax
10 No rep
11 Recommend Will to Client
12 Post WILL
13 Client questionnaire end case.
14 POA Grantor Now
15 Wills article
16 POA Power of Attorney- article
17 LIVING WILLS
18 Gay and Lesbians- Advance Directives
19 Letter of Instruction
20 Remove Executor
21 Alzheimer, POA Guardianship
22 ANSWERS to Questions Probate
23 Estate Planning 10 Ideas
24 Executor Duties
25 Prenuptial Ag
26 Undue Influence article
27 Attorney- Client Confidentiality
28 Pick up Docs
29 Executor to Pay and Notify Creditor
30 NJlaws website & articles
31 Trusts
32 Caveat to Will
33 Central Jersey Elder articles
34 ABA Estate Plan Winter 2008
35 Estate Plan ABA Nov 2007
36 ABA ELDER News Aug 2007 GP
37ABA ELDER LAW COMMITTEE Newsletter July 2007 ABA General Practice
38 Estate Probate ABA news May. 2007
39 Elder Law ABA news February, 2007
40 INTESTACY
41 If no Will
42 Probate Release Refund Bond
43 Lincoln 17- no charge
44 Guardianship bill
45 RETAINER Probate ESTATE
46 WILL - sign front notary
47Confidentiality Lt to Client
48 Elective Share of Spouse
49 Joint Bank Accounts Upon Death
50 ABA ELDER News Spring2008
51 ABA Elder Law Newsletter • April 2008
52 ABA GP Solo ELDER LAW COMMITTEE Newsletter July , 2008
53 ABA ELDER News Fall 2008
54 ABA ELDER News Winter 2009
55 ABA ELDER News Spring 2009
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Reforms Suggested by Modeling the Law School Rankings

As I recently observed, the close fit between law schools' scores in U.S. News & World Report's rankings and the scores of those same schools in my model of the ranking "suggests that law schools did not try game the rankings by telling USN&WR one thing and the ABA . . . another." Since both Robert Morse, Director of Data Research for USN&WR, and the ABA Journal saw fit to comment on that observation, perhaps I should clarify a few points.

First, I have no way of knowing whether or not law schools misstated the facts, by accident or otherwise, to both the ABA and USN&WR. The fit between USN&WR's scores and my model's scores indicates only that law schools reported, or misreported, the same facts to each party.

Second, this sort of consistency test speaks only to those measures USN&WR uses in its rankings, that it does not publish with its rankings, and that the ABA collects from law schools: median LSAT, median GPA, overhead expenditures/student, financial aid/student, and library size. Measures that USN&WR uses and publishes—reputation among peers and at the Bar, employment nine months after graduation, employment at graduation, student/faculty ratio, acceptance rate, and Bar exam performance—go straight into my model, so I do not have occasion to test their consistency against ABA data. In some cases—the reputation scores and the employment at graduation measure, the ABA does not collect the data at all. This proves especially troubling with regard to the latter. We have little assurance that USN&WR double-checks what schools report under the heading of "Employment at Graduation," and no easy way to double-check that data ourselves.

Third, and consequently, USN&WR could improve the reliability of its rankings by implementing some simple reforms. I suggested three such reforms some time ago. USN&WR has largely implemented two of them by making its questionnaire more closely mirror the ABA's and by publishing corrections and explanations when it discovers errors in its rankings. (I claim no credit for that development, however; I assume that USN&WR acted of its own volition and in its own interest.)

Another of my suggested reforms remains as yet unrealized, however, so allow me to repeat it, here: USN&WR should publish all of the data that it uses in ranking law schools. It could easily make that data available on its website, if not in the print edition of its rankings. Doing so would both provide law students with useful information and allow others to help USN&WR double-check its figures.

To that, I now add this proposed reform: USN&WR should either convince the ABA to collect data on law school graduates' employment rates at graduation or discontinue using that data in its law school rankings. That data largely duplicates the more trustworthy (but still notoriously suspect) "Employment at Nine Months" data collected by the ABA and used by USN&WR in its rankings. And, unlike that data, law schools do not report "Employment at Graduation" numbers under the threat of ABA sanctions. We cannot trust the employment at graduation figures and USN&WR does not need them.

Among the reforms I suggested some two years ago I also included one directed at the ABA, calling on it to publish online, in an easily accessible format, all of the data that it collects from law schools and that USN&WR uses in its rankings. I fear that, in contrast to USN&WR, the ABA moved retrograde on that front. I leave that cause for another day, however; here I wanted to focus on what my model can tell us about USN&WR's rankings.

[Crossposted at Agoraphilia, MoneyLaw.]

"Till Death Do Us Pay" - More on the Need for Alimony Reform

Finally, a little slice of la vida real in our Massachusetts family court system: Till Death Do Us Pay - Boston Magazine.

I'm encouraged to see such critical words from a local media source, in this case Boston Magazine. You definitely will not get such truth from the Boston Globe. And what a shame that is, as the Boston Globe is still the best newspaper we have in this state. Yet, by its gross negligence and incompetence in its reporting in the area of family law, the Boston Globe continues to hold back family law progress, even though it, together with its parent The New York Times Company, had earlier been so instrumental in pushing forward progress in the gay rights and gay marriage arena.

This is definitely a must-read article for anyone interested in the crazy world of alimony law in Massachusetts. I've written about this here before. Our archaic alimony law in Massachusetts has created a number of family law problems that should have been solved long ago. I do hope that reasonable heads will eventually prevail here, and that there will be a complete, extensive overhaul of our absurd alimony law and accompanying practices.

This article, though not perfect, provides a penetrating look into a system in great need of common sense overhaul, in this state which claims to be progressive, but is actually only selectively so. And when I say that I mean a system much broader than merely that which sustains a ridiculously outdated alimony system, but the entire family law system which is backward and unfair in so many other respects.

It is way past time that our state treated fathers and exhusbands and their children, along with all the various family units of which they are a part, with the same level of dignity as gay and lesbian individuals and female-headed households. Until that happens, Massachusetts will continue to be the oddball state, where progressive policies in favor of gay and lesbian couples (policies about which I believe we should be very proud) stand in stark contrast to backwards, archaic, protectionist, sexist policies that promote traditional family structures and female dependency in heterosexual relationships over independence, equality and justice.

And when I say policies, I mean not only laws - both statutes and rulings by our appellate courts - but also practices and other rules, written and unwritten, which continue to be perpetuated by the family law establishment.

Please read the article.

For information about Massachusetts divorce and family law, see the divorce and family law page of my law firm website.