McKillop, Shawntell L.

Brenda is a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) by the ABA approved National Elder Law Foundation and is one of only 325 attorneys in the entire United States who has qualified to be  a CELA.

To qualify as a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) the attorney must have practiced law for at least five years, and have spent an average of not less than 16 hours per week practicing elder law during the three years preceding their application, and must have handled at least 60 elder law matters during those three years with a specified distribution among specific legal areas as determined by the National Elder Law Foundation.  A CELA must have participated in at least 45 hours of continuing legal education in elder/disability law during the three years preceding their application and must continue that education going forward.    In addition, a CELA must submit the names of five references from attorneys familiar with the CELA's competence in elder/disability law.  The CELA must pass a full one day written certification examination, be licensed to practice law in at least one state, and be a member in good standing of the state bars where they are licensed. 

She has been a frequent lecturer on guardianships, special needs planning, guardianships, and elder law and estate and tax planning for the New Jersey Institute of Continuing Legal Education and the National Business Institute. In addition, she is a frequent lecturer to other professional and support groups, in person, on radio and on television.

She is Co-Author of Conservatorships and Guardianships chapter for ICLE Treatise, New Jersey & Disability Law Practice. Trustee of the Guardianship Association of New Jersey, Inc. She is the Author of the Medicaid and the Estate Planning sections of Disability Law and A Legal Primer.