Call Us Today: 484-874-2987

KRISTEN MATTHEWS LAW

Estate Planning and Elder Law Firm located
in Downingtown, PA

Helping families navigate the complex issues life brings with age.

Call Us Today: 484-874-2987

Kristen Matthews Law

Estate Planning and Elder Law Firm located in Downingtown, PA

Helping families navigate the complex issues life brings with age.

Legal Services

Elder Law

We provide counsel for the unique requirements of older clients and their loved ones. We serve as advocates for the rights of seniors, and assist in navigating the federal, state, and local laws, rules, and regulations.

Estate Planning

We assist individuals and families in the preparation of tasks that serve to their assets in the event of their incapacitation or death.

Estates and Trusts

We assist in planning the legal structures for transferring assets to your heirs and beneficiaries. Estates make a one-time transfer of your assets after death. Trusts allow you to create an ongoing transfer of assets both before and after death.

Guardianships

We advise you regarding the specific type of legal and welfare decisions you may make as a legal guardian. We provide guidance with all legal paperwork, as well as ensure you understand your legal rights and obligations.

Tax Planning

We help clients arrange their affairs prospectively in order to achieve the client’s business, economic, and financial goals, while minimizing taxes.

Trust & Estate Litigation

We handle all types of trust and estate litigation, including will contests, breaches of fiduciary duty, removal of trustees, reformation of instruments, elder abuse, and other contests based on allegations of lack of capacity and undue influence.

Experience Matters

Recent Representations

Advised executor in probate and administration of mother’s Will.

Assisted husband in efficiently obtaining Medicaid benefits for his wife, preserving family assets above the statutory maximum.

Planned and implemented a strategy to assist a surviving spouse in obtaining Pension benefits to cover the cost of her medical care.

Counseled parents of a special needs child in establishing a Supplemental Needs Trust for their child’s benefit, preserving eligibility for government needs-based entitlement programs.

Established trusts for international clients to ease administration of their estates.

Prepared Powers of Attorney for elderly parents, allowing children to assist them with medical and financial decisions.

Assisted young couple in drafting their wills and setting up a trust and guardians for their minor children.

Kristen is one of approximately 75 certified Elder Law attorneys in Pennsylvania and one of only 3 with primary offices in Chester County. Her law career has been exclusively devoted to helping clients with estate planning and elder law issues. She works closely with individuals and their families on all aspects of estate and trust planning and administration, by implementing necessary legal documents, such as a Will, Living Will, and General Durable and Healthcare Powers of Attorney.

Kristen counsels families through the emotional and often daunting process of qualifying for government benefits such as Medicaid and Social Security. Through strategic planning, Kristen helps individuals and families facing the high costs of long-term care to safeguard their lifetime savings. Kristen also assists families with disabled loved ones through establishing and administering special needs trusts, as well as obtaining permission from the Pennsylvania Orphans Court to appoint a guardian.

CLIENT

Testimonials

"Kristen is very knowledgeable about estate planning and it was a pleasure to work with her. She is most responsive to answering all questions and making sure that all parties involved fully understand the importance of the legal documents that are signed. She has provided estate planning to three generations in our family. We found her fees to be very reasonable, especially when compared to the large Philadelphia firms who do not provide the same personalized services that Kristen provides to her clients. I would highly recommend Kristen for estate planning."

"We had a fantastic experience working with Kristen in developing an estate plan for our family. We found Kristen to be extremely knowledgeable. She had an excellent way of making complex legal concepts easy for us to understand. Kristen was always quick to respond to our question and answered them in a friendly, clear, and concise manner. She was professional and personable – we felt at home dealing with her."

"Kristen is a great attorney. She genuinely cares for her clients and always has their best interests in mind."

"Kristen Matthews was recommended to me by a colleague and I couldn't be more grateful for the introduction. The title company told the buyer there will be at least one month delay which would have cost the seller thousands of dollars. Thanks to Kristen, her knowledge, experience, quick thinking, communication, and attention to detail my seller was able to settle on time. She is the best!!"