July 12, 2016
Brighton Elder Law Attorney…Gone Bad
Brighton, Michigan. Where quality is a way of life…right? Unfortunately, as someone looking for an estate planning or elder law attorney in Brighton, it can be difficult to identify a quality elder law attorney from an elder law attorney who doesn’t quite meet the Brighton “quality” standard.
This was driven home the other week, when a friend referred one of his friends to The Elder Care Firm. We scheduled a free phone consultation and he had a sad story to tell.
His sisters had hired another elder law attorney in Brighton and had been charged over $13,000 to do Medicaid planning for their parent. Unfortunately, not much was done, the case dragged on, and the family didn’t get the results they had paid so much money for.
While this story was about a Brighton elder law attorney, it could be about any elder law attorney in Livingston County, Howell, Novi, Milford, South Lyon or surrounding communities. Any attorney can say they do elder law, but how can you tell a “quality” elder law attorney from a run-of-the-mill general practitioner.
Not All Elder Law Attorneys are Created Equal.
Elder law attorneys can put together slick marketing and reports on elder law. We have some nice reports. But just because an attorney has a report on a subject, doesn’t mean they are an expert or that they even wrote the report in the first place. Maybe that attorney is great at marketing, that doesn’t mean they are a great elder law attorney.
Is Your Attorney a Certified Elder Law Attorney?
There is really only one “gold standard” in estate planning and elder law. That is the Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) designation. The National Elder Law Foundation is the only national certifying program for elder law and special needs planning in the nation and is approved by the American Bar Association.
The National Elder Law Foundation first certified elder law attorneys in 1994, and now over 20+ years later there are over 400 CELAs across the nation. There is only 17 in the State of Michigan and only one in Livingston County, including Brighton, Howell, Hartland and the surrounding areas.
Why Work with a Michigan Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA)?
It’s important to work with a Certified Elder Law Attorney because when you’re working with a Michigan Certified Elder Law Attorney you know you’re working with the cream of the crop when it comes to elder law. Think of CELAs as the top 1% of estate planning and elder law attorneys.
You have the confidence of working with an elder law attorney who has completed a riggorous full day examination and demonstrated that their law practice is actually focused on estate planning and elder law. Once certified, your Certified Elder Law Attorney must continue to practice primarily elder law and complete continuing education specifically targeted to advanced practitioners.
Is Your Livingston County Elder Law Attorney at Thought Leader Among his Peers?
Most of the thought leaders across the nation in estate planning and elder law are Certified Elder Law Attorneys. In my own practice, as a CELA, attorneys across the nation pay to learn from me and co-counsel with my firm.
You Deserve the Best Elder Law Attorney
It’s hard to judge quality, so let the National Elder Foundation certification process do it for you. You deserve the best, you deserve to work with a Certified Elder Law Attorney. To learn more about the National Elder Law Foundation or the Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) designation, click here nelf.org.