Law Office of Donald D. Vanarelli Blog

Donald D. Vanarelli is a Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation, an ABA-certifying organization. He has been board-certified as an elder law attorney since 1998. Mr. Vanarelli represents older or disabled persons and their representatives in financing long-term medical care, nursing home issues, qualifying for Medicare, Medicaid, Veteran’s Administration benefits and other public benefits, special needs planning, estate planning, probate administration, and guardianship proceedings. Mr. Vanarelli and other attorneys with the fim have a broad range of experience in will contests, estate and trust litigation, probate lawsuits, contested guardianships and other litigated matters. Mr. Vanarelli also handles all family law matters, from the initial interview through appeal. When appropriate, he utilizes alternatives to litigation, such as elder mediation, divorce mediation and collaborative law services, to advance his clients interests and reduce the financial and emotional costs of litigating family matters in court.

Mr. Vanarelli represented the plaintiff in a seminal estate planning / guardianship case in NJ entitled In re Keri, 181 N.J. 50 (2004). In Keri, an adult child sought guardianship of his mother and her estate, and proposed to gift some of her assets to himself and his brother so that his mother could qualify for Medicaid while in a nursing home. Reversing lower court decisions, the state Supreme Court ruled, for the first time, that a parent’s assets could be transferred to the children as part of an estate plan to help the parent qualify for government nursing home benefits. This ruling was characterized by the Star-Ledger newspaper as having “broad implications for those with elderly relatives suffering from Alzheimer’s and other kinds of dementia…”. The Star-Ledger article can be found here - rules-eased-on-medicaid-for-seniors

Mr. Vanarelli has been approved as an Accredited Professional Mediator (APM), a designation awarded by the New Jersey Association of Professional Mediators. The APM designation is awarded to those mediators who have attained a high level of education and experience in mediation. Mr. Vanarelli is also approved under the New Jersey Court Rules as a mediator in family and divorce matters, and civil, equity and probate litigation. He is on the Administrative Office of the Courts’ roster of mediators for civil cases, and for the mediation of the economic aspects of family law cases. He was also selected to participate in the Union County Probate Early Settlement Panel, comprised of experienced estate practitioners who assist the court by mediating contested probate, estate and guardianship cases, as well as pending will contests. Mr. Vanarelli is a founder of The Elder Mediation Center of New Jersey (EMCNJ), a collaborative alliance comprised of independent mediators, attorneys, geriatric care managers and other eldercare professionals, who facilitate a variety of family conflicts common to elder mediation, including disputes among adult siblings about parents; housing arrangements; caregiving disputes; healthcare decision-making; estate planning matters; guardianship issues; family wealth issues and inheritance disputes. He also has been trained in and practices collaborative family law.

Mr. Vanarelli has been a practicing attorney since 1983, admitted to practice law in New Jersey and New York. Mr. Vanarelli has received an “AV” rating from the Martindale-Hubbell rating system, an independent service which has rated attorneys nationwide for more than a century. An“AV” rating is the highest available, meaning that the lawyer is recognized by his peers as having achieved very high to preeminent legal ability and very high ethical conduct relevant to the discharge of professional responsibilities. Mr. Vanarelli was selected as a New Jersey Super Lawyer in 2007 and 2008.

Mr. Vanarelli is a Founding Member of the Academy of Special Need Planners, a professional organization dedicated to resolving the complex legal issues involving individuals with physical and cognitive disabilities. He is also a Founding Member of the Council of Advanced Practioners (CAP) of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). CAP panelists must be members of NAELA for at least 10 years, Certified Elder Law Attorneys, and “AV” rated by Martindale-Hubbell. Mr. Vanarelli is also a Registered Guardian. Before becoming an attorney, Mr. Vanarelli worked for the Social Security Administration deciding claims for benefits under the Social Security, SSI, Medicare and Medicaid programs. In addition, Mr. Vanarelli was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kathmandu, Nepal.