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Released to Press: Scott Solkoff elected an ACTEC Fellow
Miami, Florida, August 1, 2006 — Solkoff Legal, P.A. founding partner Scott Solkoff has been elected into the prestigious American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), a professional association consisting of approximately 2,700 lawyers from throughout the United States.
Attorneys may not join ACTEC or apply on their own. Fellows of the College are nominated by other Fellows in their geographic area and are elected by the membership at large. Scott was selected on the basis of his professional reputation and ability in the fields of trusts and estates and Elder Law, as well as having made substantial contributions to these fields through lecturing, writing, teaching and bar activities.
“This is one of my greatest honors and privileges,” said Scott Solkoff, “to be selected as a Fellow of ACTEC, what is without a doubt the most exclusive and prestigious organization in the field.”
Scott’s selection as a Fellow of ACTEC crowns years of accomplishments on the local and national stage of Elder Law. He is among the youngest lawyers ever elected to ACTEC, an honor not lost on him or his peers. Scott is also among only a few Florida lawyers who hold a Florida Bar board certification in Elder Law and an ACTEC fellowship.
Scott founded Solkoff Legal, P.A., a boutique Elder and Disability law practice now with four attorneys and offices in Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties. Scott practices in Elder and Disability law with an emphasis on planning for long-term care, incapacity planning and end-of-life decision-making. He and his practice group have drafted hundreds of wills, trusts, specialized deeds, advance health care directives and other documents which help the elderly and disabled. “My practice is focused on increasing and maintaining quality of life, a prospect many elderly and disabled people otherwise find very daunting,” says Scott.
Scott is well respected and admired within and outside of the Estate Planning, Probate and Elder Law community. Lawyers from across the country call Scott and ask questions on a regular basis and he always takes their calls. Says Scott, “Educating other lawyers and others in the elder care community is very rewarding to me and a lesson and responsibility I learned from my father.” Scott’s father, Jerome Ira Solkoff, is one of the founders of the Elder Law field and is the author of the leading authority in Florida.
Scott has made meaningful and significant contributions in the area of estate planning, probate and elder law. For instance, he has received praise within the legal profession regarding his work with personal care contracts for the elderly. It is Scott’s court case which set the legal precedent allowing seniors to transfer assets to children without losing Medicaid eligibility. In 1997, Scott created, with the Honorable Thomas Pennick, a statewide coalition of judges, leading attorneys, legislators, educators and guardians to resolve guardianship education challeneges in Florida. His work ultimately led to a statutory statewide education program. In 1998, Scott was awarded the Charlotte Brayer Public Service Award for substantial assistance to the elderly and disabled. Another example of Scott’s activism is his filing a court case which led to the highly publicized national class action lawsuit on behalf of elderly victims of abuses in the sweepstakes and magazine sales industry.
Scott has also dedicated thousands of hours of his time to professional and charitable organizations which assist the elderly and disabled. He has served as Chair of The Florida Bar Elder Law Section, President of the Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys and as a member of the Board of Directors of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the Florida State Guardianship Association. He is currently on the Board of Directors of the Alpert Jewish Family and Children’s Services and has just recently accepted a nomination to serve as a Director of the Florida Council on Aging.
“Scott is among the most well regarded Elder Law Attorneys in the country and his colleagues were not at all surprised to see him inducted as an ACTEC Fellow,” says Dan Terner, a partner with Solkoff Legal, P.A., “South Florida’s elderly and disabled are the better for his presence here.”
About ACTEC: The purposes of The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel are to maintain an association, international in scope, of lawyers skilled and experienced in the preparation of wills and trusts; estate planning; probate procedure and administration of trusts and estates of decedents, minors and incompetents; to improve and reform probate, trust and tax laws, procedures, and professional responsibility, to bring together qualified lawyers whose character and ability will contribute to the achievement of the purposes of the College; and to cooperate with bar associations and other organizations with similar purposes.
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- Jacob Solkoff featured on Sun-Sentinel Front Page ( )
- Scott Solkoff to appear on local NBC affiliate ( )
- Scott Solkoff to be quoted in the Wall Street Journal ( )
