Best Lawyers in America for Elder Law
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State
Stephen J. Silverberg is nationally recognized as a leader in the areas of estate planning, estate administration, asset preservation planning and Elder Law. He is a past president of the prestigious National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), and a founding member and past president of the New York State chapter of NAELA. Silverberg was awarded the credential of NAELA Fellow, the highest honor bestowed by NAELA to "attorneys... whose careers concentrate on elder law, and who have distin...
Bill Harbison works primarily in the areas of corporate law and trusts and estates. He also handles litigation in those same practice categories. A cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School, Bill received his bachelor’s degree with highest honors in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
Robert J. Lightfoot is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Elder Law and Health Care Law. Robert J., who practices law in Madison, Wisconsin, has been recognized since 2010. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Robert J. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Peter Walsh is an attorney with twenty years of experience in estate and asset protection planning and inheritance litigation. Peter assists clients with preserving family wealth through estate and asset protection planning. For example, he utilizes various estate planning techniques to minimize taxes and administrative expenses upon the death or incapacity of a family member. Such planning may include a revocable trust to avoid the cost of court involvement upon the death or incapacity of th...
Molly Dear Abshire has been licensed to practice law in the State of Texas since 1993 and is certified as an Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation. She received a J.D. from South Texas College of Law and her B.A. in English from Texas A&M University in 1989. Ms. Abshire has authored professional papers and Houston Chronicle articles, which typically focus on topics such as estate planning, Medicaid planning, elder law and special needs trusts. She is a former President o...
Phillip B. Visnansky is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation, Elder Law and Litigation - Trusts and Estates. Phillip B., who practices law in Phoenix, Arizona, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Phillip B. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Phillip W. McCrury is the chair of the firm’s Estate, Trust, Probate, and Asset Protection section. He assists individuals, families, and family offices with all varieties of estate planning, generational wealth transfer strategies, trusts, life insurance strategies, and asset protection planning. In addition, he is involved in probate matters throughout Texas, including contested probate matters. Mr. McCrury is an active member of a number of bar sections involving estate and probate m...
Amy C. O'Hara is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Elder Law and Trusts and Estates. Amy C., who practices law in Rye Brook, New York, has been recognized since 2021. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Amy C. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Robert C. Gerhard, III is an elder law specialist with the Montgomery County estate planning and elder law offices of Gerhard & Gerhard, P.C. located in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. Attorney Gerhard specializes in elder law matters, helping his clients to protect assets from long-term care costs by qualifying them for Medicaid long-term care benefits. Mr. Gerhard is author of the law treatise Pennsylvania Medicaid Long-Term Care 2024 (currently in its 20th Edition) and the Pennsylvania Medic...
Jerome Elwell is a litigator with extensive experience in complex civil and commercial litigation, including plaintiff’s personal injury and trust and estate litigation. The Best Lawyers ® and Super Lawyers honoree devotes a significant portion of his practice to probate and estate litigation, including contested guardianship and conservatorship matters, will and trust contests, disputed estate administrations and elder abuse violations. He received his B.S. in general business and ...
Kim Boyer is an attorney with Boyer Law Group in Las Vegas, Nevada, focusing her practice on Elder Law and related estate planning matters. She is certified as an Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation and assists individuals and families with probate, trust administration, guardianships, trusts, powers of attorney, and long-term care planning. Ms. Boyer earned her A.B. degree in Mathematics, summa cum laude, from San Diego State University, and her Juris Doctor, magna cum la...
Jamie G. Houston, III, was admitted to the Mississippi Bar in 1976. He has been admitted to practice in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the United States District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi, and the United States Tax Court. His experience includes practice in corporate and business law, tax and estate planning and administration. Jamie is a Certified Public Accountant (Retired).
John L. Laster is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Elder Law and Trusts and Estates. John L., who practices law in Fairfax, Virginia, has been recognized since 2007. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which John L. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Rebecca J. Sargent is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Elder Law and Trusts and Estates. Rebecca J., who practices law in Ellsworth, Maine, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Rebecca J. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.