Personal injury clients receiving SSI benefits (SSDI benefits aren’t affected at all by a settlement) need to be aware how the settlement money will affect those benefits before receiving any settlement money. The social security administration (SSA) has strict limits on how many “resources” an SSI beneficiary can have and how much monthly income she can earn and still be eligible to collect benefits. Most personal injury settlements will cause an SSI recipient’s benefits to be suspended for exceeding these limits unless the settlement money is directly paid into a special needs trust, which will greatly limit the way the beneficiary can spend those funds. Plaintiffs should know SSA’s eligibility requirements for SSI benefits, as well as how a trust will restrict their ability to spend the settlement money, before deciding how they want to receive their settlement. It’s not simply a matter of “everyone should use a trust”.
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