NAELA 2006 Advanced Institute

The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) hosted its 2006 Advanced Elder Law Institute (title: "Re-Visioning") November 2-5 at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City. Established in 1987, NAELA is a non-profit organization consisting of 5000 members in the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom. NAELA assists lawyers, bar associations and others who work with older clients, persons with disabilities and their families.  NAELA's mission "is to establish NAELA members as the premier providers of legal advocacy, guidance and services to enhance the lives of seniors and people with disabilities."

NAELA's "Re-Visioning" conference focused on the many changes impacting elder law practice such as the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and the expansion of elder law practice to include disability issues.

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) created substantial changes to Medicaid long-term care eligibility rules.  NAELA devoted multiple conference presentations to the DRA - including its impact on annuities and annuity transfers. NAELA had previously organized a DRA Task Force and published a DRA White Paper - and then added a White Paper addendum following the CMS DRA guidelines which were issued on July 27, 2006. Several states have subsequently developed their own DRA-related regulations. NAELA's analysis and recommendations represent "must reading" for all settlement planners and structured settlement professionals. 

As elder law continues to expand into disability and special needs issues, elder law attorneys should be expected to play an increasingly important role in:

• Personal injury settlement planning - for injured claimants and their families; and

• Structured settlements - with government benefit programs increasingly permitting and/or mandating "blended products" (annuities payable into trusts or custodial accounts).

Although NAELA's 2006 Advanced Institute did not directly address settlement planning or structured settlements, several of the NAELA presentation topics were applicable especially:

• The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA);

• How the DRA impacts annuities;

• How the DRA impacts special needs trusts;

• Ethics Post-DRA;

• The Future of Elder Law;

• Expanding Your Practice to Include Disability Issues.

Additional observations about the NAELA conference:

Organization - NAELA demonstrated excellent organizational skills in coordinating multiple speakers, exhibitors, topics, and presentation formats for 375 attendees during the three day Advanced Institute. The presentation formats included general sessions; breakout sessions; facilitated group discussions; plus a DRA Planning and Implementation "Town Hall" - all of which were exceptional. For general sessions, including the DRA Town Hall, two rows of seats were reserved for and filled with laptop users. The presenters uniformly encouraged questions and comments from an elite audience that featured law professors, industry commentators and leading practioners. The presentation handouts (a choice of hardcopy or CD ROM) contain detailed, current, and valuable practice resources.

Expertise and values - As demonstrated and discussed in Salt Lake City, NAELA members represent an impressive range of knowledge: Medicare and Medicaid planning; guardianship and mental capacity issues; long term care planning; estate planning; drafting trusts, including but not limited to, special needs trusts; advising trustees; serving as trustees; as well as advising clients about their rights and options for assisted living facilities, nursing homes, and continuing care communities. NAELA members understand annuities and advise clients about annuities. As knowledge workers, NAELA members also exhibit positive collaboration values and skill sets - such as intellectual curiosity, attentiveness, and a culture of knowledge sharing. NAELA appears to be a strong community of practice with an important mission and an exciting future.

Structured settlements and settlement planning - Despite a substantial knowledge overlap among elder law, disability law, structured settlements, and personal injury settlement planning, relationships between NAELA and related trade associations (specifically NSSTA and SSP) remain unfocused and disconnected. For example, although the NAELA exhibitors included trustees, trust administrators, annuity intermediaries, publishers, and educational providers, neither NSSTA nor SSP nor any of their voting members attended, exhibited or spoke at the NAELA Advanced Institute. For another example, neither NSSTA nor SSP has offered any educational programs in 2006 about the DRA - despite the impact of DRA on their members' products and business practices.

Congratulations to NAELA for an outstanding 2006 Advanced Institute.