7/17/14

Members of the State Bar of Michigan Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee, in partnership with members of the SBM Elder Law and Disability Rights Section and SBM Probate and Estate Planning Section, will visit senior centers in 51 Michigan counties to present a one-hour seminar to inform and empower senior citizens about estate planning decisions. Committee and section members will begin presenting the seminar on Wednesday, Aug. 6, and will make a few additional presentations on other dates ranging from early August through October. Local senior centers have set the times and dates of each presentation of the seminar, with some senior centers hosting the seminar multiple times.

"A Living Trust Education Initiative: Who Should You Trust? Avoiding Estate Planning Mistakes," will provide senior citizens, including veterans applying for benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, with essential estate planning information and caution them about deceptive sales practices that could potentially jeopardize their economic stability. It will include a short presentation by licensed Michigan attorneys and a dynamic question and answer period to allow program participants to obtain accurate information about estate planning matters.

Seminar participants will receive a folder containing estate planning information and other materials to help them avoid estate planning mistakes and becoming victimized by persons selling annuities for their own economic gain. Seniors should not miss this opportunity to become informed.

SBM Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee Chair Barbara Baker Omerod, SBM Elder Law and Disability Rights Section Chair Rosemary H. Buhl, and SBM Probate and Estate Planning Section Chair Thomas F. Sweeney enthusiastically embrace this community outreach program and encourage the members of their professional groups to participate in it as a meaningful way to protect the public from harm by empowering senior citizens to make informed decisions.

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