Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak Welcomes Attorney Alexandra Garver & Attorney Skylah Cunningham
Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak, an elder law firm with seven locations across northeastern and central Pennsylvania, is pleased to announce the addition of Attorney Alexandra Garver and Attorney Skylah Cunningham to the firm as associate attorneys. Alexandra will be working out of the Altoona and State College offices, and Skylah will be working out of the Williamsport office. Both are recent law school graduates that passed the bar exam last fall.
Alexandra is a central Pennsylvania native, having been born and raised in Martinsburg, Pa., and is a graduate of Central Martinsburg. She attended both undergrad and law school at Penn State and received a bachelors in telecommunications in 2021. As an undergraduate she participated in mock trial, telecommunications club and THON.
During law school, Alexandra got experience at multiple law firms as an intern and legal assistant, including the Law Offices of Jayne Garver in Harrisburg and De Boef Lucchesi & Associates in State College. She prepared and drafted legal documents, conducted research, connected and maintained relationships with clients, and provided organizational support, among other duties. She joined SGY as a law clerk in August 2024 following completion of the bar exam. She will be working on the estate & long-term care planning team in State College and Altoona.
Attorney Partners Jenna Franks and Landon Hodges Earn CELA Certification
Attorney Jenna Franks, Esq., and Attorney Landon Hodges, Esq., both partners at the elder law firm of Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak, recently both earned their Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA®) designation 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 fewer than 600 attorneys have this certification in the entire country, including just 68 in Pennsylvania as of September 2024. Jenna and Landon join fellow Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak partner attorneys Julie Steinbacher, Esq. and Amos Goodall, Esq. as CELAs, giving the law firm four of 68 in Pennsylvania, which is the second-most of any law firm in the state, and most of any firm in SGY’s geographic footprint, which spans northeastern, north central and central Pennsylvania.
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.
Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak Announces Addition of Law Office of J. Howard Langdon in Muncy; New Real Estate Legal Services
Steinbacher, Goodall & Yurchak, an elder and special needs law firm with locations in Altoona, State College, Wilkes-Barre, Williamsport, Wyalusing and Wysox, Pa., is pleased to announce that the Law Office of J. Howard Langdon in Muncy, Pa., has joined SGY, effective May 20, 2024. The now former office of Attorney Langdon, located at 3 South Main St. in Muncy, will become SGY’s seventh office location.
As part of the transaction, Attorney Langdon, who has been practicing law in Lycoming County since 1975, will become Of Counsel with SGY as he embarks toward his eventual retirement. Additionally, SGY will be branching out its practice area of law to include all aspects of real estate transactions, including both buyer and seller representation for both commercial and residential properties. Attorney Langdon, who has practiced real estate law for several decades, will assist SGY in setting up this new practice area.
“My staff and I have had the opportunity to work with Howard Langdon for several years on various cases and in all my dealings, I was impressed with his integrity and quality legal representation,” said Attorney Julie Steinbacher, CELA, founding shareholder of SGY. “He has served his community in Eastern Lycoming County and beyond extremely well during his long and distinguished career and we look forward to providing that same level of service that his clients have come to expect over the years. We are also grateful to Attorney Langdon for agreeing to stay on as Of Counsel to further assist us with the Muncy office.”
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