Attorney Brittany Smith Earns CELA Certification
Attorney Brittany O.L. Smith, Esq., recently earned her Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA®) certification from the National Elder Law Foundation. The CELA® certification is frequently referred to as the "gold standard" for elder law and special needs practitioners, and only just over 500 attorneys have this certification in the entire country, including just 67 in Pennsylvania. Brittany joins fellow Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak attorneys Julie Steinbacher and Amos Goodall as CELAs, giving the law firm three of 67 in the entire state, and three of just six total that practice in the greater Williamsport and State College areas combined.
Preparation for the CELA designation is rigorous and a multi-stepped process. Applicants for the certification must have practiced law for at least five years, half of which must be in the special needs/elder law field for at least the last three of those years. They also must demonstrate substantial involvement in special needs and elder law practice by showing a minimum number of individual cases spread across a number of different categories making up the "elder law" definition. They also must complete a day-long written exam, of which passing rates are usually below 50%. Finally, applicants must undergo a review by peers and colleagues, focused on the applicant's reputation for ethical and competent representation in elder law and special needs planning matters.
Brittany is licensed to practice law in both Pennsylvania and Virginia. She has been with Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak since 2015, and heads up the firm's long-term care planning and estate administration departments. Working in conjunction with long-term care planner and Certified Medicaid Planner Tammy Zilske, Brittany also handles Medicaid planning, guardianships, veterans benefits, special needs planning and tax planning clients.
Planning Strategies Associated with Leaving an Inheritance the Subject of Podcast Episode 21
Do you want to ensure that you can leave an inheritance to your spouse, children, other relatives, or your favorite charity? If the answer is yes, then you need to make sure that the assets you intend to pass down are protected from the cost of long-term care, which is nearly $11K per month in Pennsylvania in 2020. In episode 21 on the Second Half of Life podcast, Attorney Jenna Franks and Long-Term Care Planner Kristin Daugherty discuss the planning strategies associated with leaving an inheritance, and the steps you need to take to ensure your estate is protected.
This episode is a recording of a virtual seminar originally held on August 5, 2020, and this and other episodes of the Second Half of Life podcast can be accessed on the Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak website, as well as on several podcast directories. The podcast is also available on most podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn + Alexa, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Podcast Addict, Google Podcasts, Podchaser, Deezer, Listen Notes, Bullhorn, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Castro and Castbox.
What Makes Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak a Dementia-Friendly Firm?
By Kristin Daugherty
Long-Term Care Planner, Certified Medicaid Planner™, Certified Dementia Practitioner and recognized as a NCCDP Certified Alzheimer’s Disease & Dementia Care Trainer.
Think about a time when you felt so passionate about something that you couldn’t wait to learn more about it and jump right into implementing it. Was it eating healthy or exercising more? Taking your education to the next level? Or maybe it was learning to fly an airplane. We all have different skill sets and different things that we are passionate about and I want to share with you my most recent passion: creating a dementia-friendly firm.
I was fortunate enough to recently be acknowledged as a Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP) through the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners (NCCDP). While going through the intensive training, I realized that there is so much more that we can be offering our communities. I took it a step further and in January of this past year I traveled to Tempe, Arizona, to be recognized as a NCCDP Certified Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Trainer, along with other leading elder law firms throughout the Country. What an awesome experience!
Not only was the training so enlightening in ways to help front line workers dealing with persons with dementia, a lightbulb was switched on in my brain to figure out what we can be doing within our firm to help our staff and clients be better able to handle persons with dementia and their families.
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