Utilizing Qualified Income Trusts in a Medicaid Crisis Case (Including 1hr of Ethics)

Jim Wolverton | Krause Brokerage Services, LLC

Jim is responsible for creating, curating, and promoting high-quality content related to the estate planning and elder law industry as the Director of Legal Education at Krause Financial. He also plays a primary role in designing and maintaining a robust education and content calendar for Attorney Access and works directly with attorneys to promote and illustrate the benefits of Attorney Access to their practice.

Jim earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from Utah State University and his Juris Doctor from the University of Oregon.

Prior to joining the Krause team, Jim ran his own law firm and was the Director of Education at ElderCounsel, providing him with vital experience educating attorneys and helping them easily implement elder law tools into their practice. Jim is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) as well as the Colorado, Utah, and Florida Bar Associations.

Jim enjoys working with attorneys to find solutions for their clients, and he appreciates being able to utilize diverse solutions that require critical thinking and creativity. Since the dynamic of the elder law industry is constantly changing and the need for more elder law attorneys continues to grow, Jim is driven to use his knowledge and passion to educate attorneys. He values teamwork and honesty and is constantly seeking opportunities to learn.

Tracy L. Kepler | CNA

Tracy L. Kepler is the Risk Control Consulting Director for CNA’s Lawyers Insurance Program. In this role, she designs and develops content and distribution of risk control initiatives relevant to the practice of law. She collaborates with the underwriting and claims teams to develop and execute strategies for the profitable growth of the program. Tracy lectures frequently at CNA-sponsored events and at state and local bar associations and national seminars hosted by industry-leading organizations. She also writes articles focusing on law firm risk control and professional responsibility issues.

Prior to joining CNA, Tracy served as the Director of the American Bar Association’s Center for Professional Responsibility (CPR), providing national leadership in developing and interpreting standards and scholarly resources in legal and judicial ethics, professional regulation, professionalism, client protection, professional liability and attorney well-being. Ms. Kepler has nearly 20 years of experience in attorney regulation as she served as an Associate Solicitor in the Office of General Counsel for the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), where she concentrated her practice in the investigation, prosecution and appeal of patent/trademark practitioner disciplinary matters before the Agency, U.S. District Courts and Federal Circuit, provided policy advice on ethics and discipline related matters to senior management, and drafted and revised Agency regulations. She also served as Senior Litigation Counsel for the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC), where she investigated and prosecuted cases of attorney misconduct.

Ms. Kepler has served in various volunteer capacities, including as President, on the Board of the National Organization of Bar Counsel (NOBC), a non-profit organization of legal professionals whose members enforce ethics rules that regulate the professional conduct of lawyers who practice law in the United States and abroad. Ms. Kepler is currently an Adjunct Professor at American University’s Washington College of Law, Georgetown University Law Center and Loyola School of Law (Chicago) teaching Legal Ethics. Committed to the promotion and encouragement of professional responsibility and attorney wellbeing throughout her career, Ms. Kepler has served on the ABA’s Commission on Lawyers Assistance Programs, is a Board member of the Institute for WellBeing in Law (formerly the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being) and is an author of its Well-Being Report. She is also a Board Member of the Mindfulness in Law Society and the Vice Chair of the ABA IPL Section’s Attorney Well Being Committee. She is a graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and received her law degree from New England School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts.

Session I – Utilizing Qualified Income Trusts in a Medicaid Crisis Case | 11:00am – 12:00pm

• Understanding the ins and outs of qualified income trusts (QITs) and their significance in Medicaid planning
• Navigating the complexities of establishing and managing QITs for your clients
• When to create and fund a QIT as an integral part of a crisis Medicaid plan

Break | 12:00pm – 12:10pm

Session II – The Ethics of Errors | 12:10pm – 1:10pm

• Understand the foundation of the duty to disclose, e.g., fiduciary duties, loyalty, confidentiality and MRPC 1.4 and 1.7(a)(a)
• Learn what triggers the duty to report an error, to whom & whether the representation can continue
• Identify how to keep communications with in-house ethics counsel privileged
• Discover best practices for having a conversation with your client about the error
• Gain knowledge on the consequences of nondisclosure of the error
• Address the conflict of interest and prepare an effective waiver