I started out as a child. (No, wait, that was a comedy joke.) I started out with a child—a with two children, actually. My elder law and special needs career began in 1979 with the birth of my twin daughters, Melanie and Melissa. I had begun law practice with my father in January 1978, in a general civil practice that included domestic relations, estate planning, collection law and creditors’ rights, and civil litigation.
Within a year after my girls were born, Ruthie and I learned that Melanie had cerebral palsy. In the mid-80s after the loss of private health insurance coverage for Melanie, we began to ask if there were benefits available to help with her care–and were repeatedly told “No.” But, we persisted and soon learned that benefits were indeed available under our state’s Disabled Child Living at Home Medicaid program (the Katie Beckett waiver).
I began to learn all I could about available public benefits, particularly for children with disabilities. So, I suppose I have practiced Special Needs law and the estate planning associated with such planning (with emphasis in those areas) for about thirty-five (35) years.
What excites me about this field are the expressions of surprise and appreciation from parents and adults with disabilities when I can clarify confusing rules and programs and when they see a better path forward as a result of our planning with them.
