Members of the Council of Advanced Practitioners offer professional expertise to meet the needs of an older, maturing clientele and people with disabilities or special needs and their families.

A member of the Council of Advanced Practi­tioners (CAP) of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) is an attorney who has been nominated and selected by his or her peers — the most experi­enced Elder and Special Needs Lawyers in the nation — to be a part of CAP as a result of his or her contributions to client welfare and commitment to the ethical, high-quality practice of Elder and Special Needs Law.

To become a member of CAP, the attorney must be a current NAELA member and have been a NAELA member for a minimum of 10 consecutive years prior to nomination. In addition, a candidate must either:

• Hold an AV rating under the Martindale-Hub­bell Peer Review Ratings. An “AV” rating indicates that the lawyer has achieved the highest ranking for ethical standards and professional ability, and,
• Be a NAELA Fellow or a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA), which is the only approved designation for certification by the American Bar Association, through the National Elder Law Foundation.

Or

• Be a full-time Elder Law professor or a Legal Services attorney.

Or

• Be a sitting judge.

Preeminent in the Field of Elder and Special Needs Law…

More importantly, a member of CAP also must be preeminent in the field of Elder and Special Needs Law. CAP members have a reputation as experienced, outstanding, and exceptionally skilled Elder and Special Needs Law attorneys, and have made substantial contributions to Elder and Special Needs Law by demonstrating leadership on issues affecting the elderly and people with disabilities in the state and local bar associations, state chapters of NAELA, and other professional activities and affiliations.

Prior to membership, most CAP members must first become certified by the Board of Cer­tification of the National Elder Law Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1993 that offers the only Elder Law program for certifica­tion accredited by the American Bar Associa­tion.

After meeting the above criteria, a candidate for CAP must be nominated and selected for membership by a vote of the members of CAP.

Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq. is a founding member of the Council of Advanced Practitioners of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.

A brochure providing further information about the Council of Advanced Practi­tioners of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys is attached.