A ruling by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in 2017 resulted in a big win for seniors everywhere when it comes to Medicaid estate planning and preventing assets from counting against Medicaid eligibility. The court reversed two cases — Nadeau v. Director of the Office of Medicaid, and Daley v. Secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services — which pertained to eligibility for long-term assistance under the Massachusetts Medicaid program (MassHealth).

"Per stirpes," "by representation," and "per capita at each generation" are all descriptors that tell the reader how to allocate a gift among a person's descendants. They are not shorthand for contingent beneficiary provisions. (While this discussion applies to all three, I will use per stirpes for the rest of this blog.)