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If you want to prepare for a career in Estate Planning and Elder Law these are suggested courses to take, recommended career-path experiences to have, and bar examination factors to consider.

WHAT LAWYERS WHO PRACTICE IN THIS FIELD DO

Estate planning and elder law attorneys typically practice in law firms or nonprofit organizations. They help clients plan for future life events, educate them about options, and draft documents implementing their choices.

• Elder law attorneys focus on helping senior citizens with legal issues ranging from estate planning, conservatorships, and government benefits planning, to elder abuse, evictions, and power-of-attorney issues.

• Estate planning lawyers help clients establish trusts, wills, and lifetime transfer plans. Individual plans should also cover other concerns such as asset management, protection from creditors, planning for family members with special needs, disability planning, and/or long term care needs.

• Estate planning lawyers may also advise trustees or representatives regarding how to make distributions according to the terms of the will and trust documents.
• Estate planning and elder law attorneys must be very knowledgeable about the complex statutes, administrative regulations, and case law governing estate and gift tax, wills, trusts, property law, and probate court practice.

COURSES THAT CAN PREPARE YOU

The Chase curriculum requires foundational courses for all students and offers additional courses for specialized expertise.

Required

• Property I & II
• Family Law
• Wills & Trusts

Advanced

• Elder Law
• Estate Planning
• Federal Income Tax
• Advanced Income Tax Concepts
• Poverty Law

Skills for Lawyers

• Accounting for Lawyers
• Interviewing, Counseling and Negotiating

FACULTY MEMBERS WHO TEACH ESTATE PLANNING AND ELDER LAW-RELATED COURSES

Professors

• Amy Halbrook
• Jack Harrison
• Jennifer Kreder
• Ljubomir Nacev

Adjunct Faculty Members

• Col Owens

CAREER PATH EXPERIENCES THAT CAN SET YOU APART

Here are some of the ways in which to develop necessary practice skills.

• Work as a law clerk or extern at a law firm handling elder law, estate planning, tax, government benefits, or disability issues.
• Complete internships or externships with district or probate court judges, or with nonprofits such as ProSeniors, which focus on elder law issues.
• Complete skills courses to develop necessary advanced drafting and client counseling skills.
• Take advantage of networking opportunities to meet lawyers practicing in the area of elder law and estate planning.
• Shadow elder law and estate planning attorneys to learn more about this area of practice.

BAR EXAMINATION FACTOR

Most American jurisdictions test Wills and Trusts in the essay component of their bar examinations, but these topics are not tested in the multiple choice component of the bar.

HOW TO GET THE MOST FROM myGPS

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