2022 Basics of Elder and Special Needs Law

8:25 Welcome and Introductions

8:30 Ethical Issues Arising in Representation^*

Hannah Vaughan, Corporation of Guardianship, Greensboro

9:30 Break

9:40 Introduction to Medicaid Eligibility and Planning Techniques

Brian T. Lawler, The Van Winkle Law Firm, Asheville

The elder and special needs law practitioner often confronts issues related to long-term care planning and Medicaid eligibility. This session is intended to provide you with a general overview of Medicaid eligibility and expose you to some of the basic asset protection techniques often used in both advanced planning and crisis settings.

10:40 Break

10:50 Rethinking Guardianship — Present and Future

Nicki Applefield Engel, Collins Family Law Group, Charlotte
Kathleen R. Rodberg, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville

This panel discussion focuses on current guardianship statutes and changes to the law being discussed by the state legislature.

11:50 Lunch Break

12:50 Special Needs Planning: ABLE, SSI, Housing and Other Publicly Available Benefits

Bailey Liipfert, Liipfert Law Group, Winston-Salem

Explore the tools we have at our disposal when seeking to help clients outside of nursing facilities, assisted living, including government benefits and other options including supplemental security SSI and SA in home, North Carolina's wavier programs, Title III programs, Medicare Advantage and programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly.

1:50 Break

2:00 Resources and FAQs You Have Been Afraid to Ask

Kara Gansman, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Wilmington
Jennifer Roden, Craige & Fox, Wilmington

Elder law and special needs law are nuanced and ever-changing fields. Successfully developing solutions for your clients requires not just an understanding of the law, but also of where to find answers. From the mundane to the complex, no question is too trivial for this panel of experienced attorneys.

3:00 Break

3:10 Putting It All Together: Case Studies in Elder Law and Special Needs Planning

John R. Potter, Potter Law Firm, Charlotte

Elder law cases often do not stay in nice, neat boxes. After a day of exploring aspects of elder law from ethics to Medicaid planning and guardianships to trusts, this final session looks at case studies showing how these pieces fit together, how they can awkwardly overlap, and how they sometimes just plain complicate each other.

4:10 Adjourn

* Indicates portion providing Ethics/Professional Responsibility credit

Thank you

Thank you for joining us for 2022 Basics of Elder and Special Needs Law.

Description

The 2022 Basics of Elder and Special Needs Law program offers a foundational knowledge base for building an elder and special needs law practice.

Contributors

Marjorie J. Brown

Marjorie J. Brown is the founding member and partner of Elder Law & Estate Planning Solutions of the Piedmont in Concord. She advises clients on effective asset protection strategies and estate planning to provide the maximum benefit to all concerned. While utilizing asset protection strategies, she also aids clients in qualifying themselves or their loved ones for Medicaid. She also advises clients managing a multitude of concerns surrounding family members with dementia and Alzheimer's.

Marjorie is certified as a Specialist in Elder Law by the North Carolina State Bar Board of Specialization and is also Certified as an Elder Law Attorney (CELA) by the National Elder Law Foundation. Throughout her years of practice, she has developed an extensive knowledge of Medicaid and various requirements as it pertains to her clients being able to qualify or maintain their Medicaid status.

Marjorie has served on the School of Government Elder Abuse Advisory Committee and is on several Boards and Committees throughout Cabarrus County, including the Cabarrus County Chamber of Commerce, Coltrane LIFE Adult Day Care Center and the Cabarrus County Task Force for the Prevention of Elder Abuse.

Marjorie is a graduate from North Carolina State University and University of North Carolina School of Law.

Click here for more information about Marjorie.
Nicki Applefield Engel

Nicki Applefield Engel is with Collins Family Law Group in Charlotte. She joined the Collins Elder Law Group in September of 2021. Since 2010, Nicki has been a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Inc. (NAELA), and she is the immediate past President of the North Carolina Chapter of NAELA. In 2019, Nicki was certified by the North Carolina State Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in elder law. She is the current Vice Chair of the Elder Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association.

Although she has practiced elder law in North Carolina for over 10 years, she has worked with older adults for much longer. Prior to law school, Nicki was a public benefits paralegal with Legal Aid of North Carolina in Asheville. Her experience representing older adults and individuals with disabilities in public benefits cases sparked her passion for using the law to help people. As an attorney focused on elder law from the start, Nicki has worked as a solo practitioner and in a larger firm handling estate and special needs planning, probate and trust administration, guardianship, Medicaid and Veterans benefits, and financial exploitation matters.

Nicki earned her J.D. from the West Virginia University College of Law and her B.S. in political science from Appalachian State University. Nicki is licensed to practice law in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Click here for more information about Nicki.
Kara Gansman

Kara Gansman is a partner at Cranfill Sumner LLP in Wilmington. She devotes her entire practice to elder law and estate planning. Kara counsels individuals and families on tactics for estate planning, asset protection, and long-term care planning. Kara drafts Wills, Powers of Attorney, and Trusts, including Pet Trusts, Revocable and Irrevocable Living Trusts, and Special Needs Trusts. Kara also advises clients on eligibility for public benefits like Veterans' Aid & Attendance and prepares applications for Medicaid and Special Assistance. In the courtroom, Kara represents clients in trust and estate administration matters, Will caveats, guardianship/incompetency proceedings, and fiduciary litigation. Kara also represents clients in administrative hearings for denials of public benefits such as Medicaid.

Prior to joining CSH Law, Kara served as a staff attorney on an appellate court in Houston, TX. There, she managed all aspects of complex civil and criminal appellate matters and drafted over 200 judicial opinions for court justices in over six years.

Kara serves on the North Carolina Bar Association Elder Law & Special Needs Section Council. She is also a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), North Carolina Chapter and the New Hanover County Estate Planning Council.

Kara frequently presents on elder law issues to community organizations, churches, and neighborhood associations across Southeastern North Carolina. She is a prolific writer on legal issues affecting seniors. Kara volunteers for and actively supports local and state organizations that benefit seniors' lives.

Kara earned her B.A. from University of North Carolina Wilmington, a B.A. in English from University of North Dakota and her J.D., with distinction, from University of North Dakota School of Law.

Click here for more information about Kara.
A. Frank Johns

A. Frank Johns is Principal Partner at Booth Harrington & Johns of NC in Greensboro. He was the first North Carolina attorney to earn an LLM, Masters in Law in Elder Law from Stetson University College of Law, and currently also serves on its faculty as an adjunct professor of law.

Frank is a leader of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, having served on its Board (1992-2002), as President (1999-2000), Charter Chair of the Carolinas Chapter (1993), Charter Chair of the reorganized North Carolina Chapter (2011), Publications Chair (2010-2012), Editor in Chief of the NAELA Journal (2008-2010) and Steering Committee Chair (2006-2007) and current member of NAELA-CAP (Council of Advanced Practitioners). He organized and chaired the North Carolina Bar Association Elder Law Committee (1993), and organized and was the charter chair of the North Carolina Bar Association Elder Law Section Council (1995-1997). Johns also served as a charter member of the North Carolina State Bar Elder Law specialization committee.

Frank currently serves as President of Senior Resources of Guilford. Along with countless published articles and manuscripts, Johns co-authored Counseling Older Adults (2005), and was a contributing research expert in Why Wills Won't Work (2007).

Click here for more information about Frank.
Brian T. Lawler

Brian T. Lawler is a Principal with The Van Winkle Law Firm in Asheville. He practices almost entirely in the area of Elder and Special Needs Law, and is a member of the Elder and Special Needs Law Section Council, a member of NAELA, and frequently collaborates on several local and regional aging policy coalitions.

Prior to embarking on his legal career, Brian worked in social services for nearly a decade serving children, adults, and families throughout Western North Carolina. This experience uniquely positions him to understand the wholistic needs of clients facing capacity limitations. In addition, Brian's background lends well to successfully managing relationships within the public sector to ensure clients have access to the myriad of community resources available to them.

Brian earned his Bachelor's degree in Religious Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D. from Campbell University. He is licensed to practice in North Carolina and South Carolina.

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B. Bailey Liipfert III

B. Bailey Liipfert III is firm principal of Liipfert Law Group PLLC in Winston-Salem. He is of counsel to the firm of Walker Lambe PLLC in Durham. His practice focuses on elder law, disability planning, estate planning and fiduciary administration of special needs trusts. He is a Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation and by the North Carolina State Bar Board of Legal Specialization.

Bailey is an active member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) and a frequent speaker at national programs. He is the immediate past president of the North Carolina Chapter of NAELA, and is a former chairman of the North Carolina Elder Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association. He frequently is appointed trustee of trusts for persons with severe disabilities in all parts of North Carolina.

Bailey earned his B.A. in Russian Language and Soviet Area Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D., cum laude, at the Norman A. Wiggens Law School at Campbell University, then in Buies Creek.

Bailey is active in his local community and currently serves as vice chairman of Beyond Academics, Inc., a post-secondary school education program for people with developmental disabilities, and was formerly the board chairman of The Adaptables Inc., a Center for Independent Living. He is the Immediate past chairmen of the North Carolina Eye Bank, now known as Miracles in Sight, a non-profit that help restore sight to people with damaged corneas in North Carolina, the nation and around the world.

Click here for more information about Bailey.
John R. Potter

John R. Potter is an estate planning and elder law attorney in The Potter Law Firm with offices in the Ballantyne area of Charlotte and in Huntersville. His practice focuses on estate planning law, including planning with Trusts and Wills, and elder law, including special needs trusts, Medicaid planning, and Veterans Aid & Attendance benefits planning.

John is designated as a Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation and as a Board Certified Specialist in Elder Law by the North Carolina State Bar. He is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the Estate Planning and Elder Law Sections of the North Carolina Bar Association, where he serves on the Elder Law Section Council and the Estate Planning Section's Legislative Committee. John also currently serves as Chair of the Estate Planning and Probate Section of the Mecklenburg County Bar.

Prior to moving to North Carolina in 2012 and opening The Potter Law Firm, John practiced litigation, including trust and estate litigation at the law firm of Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP in Cincinnati, OH. His experience with the tragedy of estate and trust litigation led him to estate planning to help families put proper planning in place to minimize family disputes. John practiced estate planning and elder law in the northern Kentucky office of his family's law firm beginning in 2008.

John received his B.A. in Economics from Davidson College and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. He is admitted to practice law in North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky and Ohio, and he is accredited by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Click here for more information about John.
Kathleen R. Rodberg

Kathleen R. Rodberg is a member of McGuire Wood & Bissette PA in Asheville. Kathleen is a board-certified specialist in elder law through the North Carolina Bar and a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) through the National Elder Law Foundation. Her principal areas of practice are trusts, estates, and elder law. Kathleen uses her specialized knowledge to develop creative and successful solutions for her clients.

Kathleen is the immediate past chair of the North Carolina Bar Association's Elder & Special Needs Law Section and serves on the elder law specialty committee for the North Carolina State Bar.

Kathleen received her B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law.

Click here for more information about Kathleen.
Jennifer M. Roden

Jennifer M. Roden is a partner at Craige & Fox PLLC in Wilmington. Her principal areas of practice are elder law, estate planning and fiduciary litigation.

Jennifer assists the New Hanover County Public Guardian, Lawrence S. Craige, in his capacity as Guardian of the Estate for wards in New Hanover County. She also manages guardianship cases for private clients in New Hanover and surrounding counties.

Jennifer is Secretary and Membership Chair of the Elder & Special Needs Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association as well as a Secretary and council member of the NC chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). She is a past president of the New Hanover County Estate Planning Council. She was a 2012–2013 Borchard Foundation Center on Law and Aging Fellow.

Jennifer is a Board Certified Specialist in Elder Law by the North Carolina State Board of Legal Specialization and a Certified Elder Law Attorney by ABA-accredited National Elder Law Foundation.

Jennifer earned her B.A. in Political Science the University of Alabama and her J.D. from the University of Alabama School of Law.

After graduating from law school, Jennifer was awarded a fellowship from the Borchard Foundation Center on Law and Aging. As a Borchard Fellow, Jennifer worked as a staff attorney for the Elder Law Clinic of the University of Alabama School of Law representing older clients in legal matters such as resident's rights, estate planning and Medicaid Long Term Care planning.

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Hannah B. Vaughan

Hannah B. Vaughan is an elder and special needs law attorney in Greensboro. She currently serves as Legal Consultant for Corporation of Guardianship, a non-profit provider of fiduciary and care management services. Her area of focus is facilitating the Umbrella Pooled Trust Relaunch Project as well as providing guidance and support for corporate compliance issues, risk management, and legal consultation for client matters.

Hannah began her legal career at Booth Harrington and Johns before directing elder law clinics at both Syracuse University College of Law and Elon University School of Law. She currently teaches elder law to paralegals at Guilford Technical Community College.

Hannah is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), the Elder and Special Needs Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA), and the Academy of Special Needs Planners (ASNP). She co-founded the Guilford County Elder Justice Committee.

She earned her B.S., cum laude, from Vanderbilt University and her J.D. from the University of Alabama where she was Editor-in-Chief of the Law and Psychology Law Review. She is a member of the State Bars of North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama and certified by the Department of Veterans' Affairs to represent claimants regarding their VA benefits. She is also certified by the National Elder Law Foundation as a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA).

Click here for more information about Hannah.

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Thank you

Description

Contributors

Marjorie J. Brown

Nicki Applefield Engel

Kara Gansman

A. Frank Johns

Brian T. Lawler

B. Bailey Liipfert III

John R. Potter

Kathleen R. Rodberg

Jennifer M. Roden

Hannah B. Vaughan

Exhibitor