CELA study plan

Map the Elder Law domain outline into a personal checklist of every testable subtopic, marking each as known, shaky, or unknown

Explain the core planning instruments (wills, revocable and irrevocable trusts, powers of attorney, beneficiary designations) and state one advantage and one limitation of each

Distinguish the roles and duties of agent, executor, trustee, and guardian, and identify the standard of conduct applied to each

Draft a one-page comparison table of the instruments by cost, probate exposure, flexibility, and control retained

Analyze how capacity is assessed for executing wills, contracts, deeds, and advance directives, and list the evidentiary factors a court weighs

Outline the grounds and remedies for will contests and fiduciary abuse, including undue influence and fraud

Apply guardianship and conservatorship procedures from petition through appointment, accounting, and termination

Compare less restrictive alternatives to guardianship and justify when each is preferred

Break down Medicare Parts A, B, C, and D by eligibility, covered services, cost-sharing, and enrollment windows

Contrast Medicare with Medicaid long-term care coverage, including spousal impoverishment protections and the five-year look-back

Explain the penalty rules for late enrollment and the interaction between Medicare and employer or retiree coverage

Identify the appeal pathways for denials of Medicare and Medicaid benefits

Summarize Social Security retirement, disability, and survivor benefit rules, including eligibility, reduction formulas, and the earnings test

Explain Supplemental Security Income eligibility, income and resource counting, and the interaction with Social Security

Identify elder abuse and neglect reporting duties, protective services options, and civil remedies

Review the elder law material from weeks 1 through 3 and close every checklist item still marked shaky or unknown

Map the Special Needs Law domain outline into a personal checklist and mark each subtopic known, shaky, or unknown

Distinguish first-party, third-party, and pooled special needs trusts by funding source, remainder beneficiaries, and Medicaid payback exposure

Explain the sole benefit rule, trustee discretion standards, and the distribution limits that preserve means-tested eligibility

Draft model trust language for a discretionary distribution clause and a supplemental needs clause

Analyze how trusts and ABLE accounts are treated in Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid eligibility determinations, including countable resources and income

Explain the ABLE account rules on eligibility, contribution limits, and permitted distributions

Outline special needs planning for a beneficiary receiving home and community-based services, including pooled trust options

Compare guardianship, supported decision-making, and powers of attorney for a person with a disability

Integrate elder law and special needs planning by drafting a plan for an older parent supporting an adult child with a disability

Identify ethical duties around diminished capacity, conflicts of interest, confidentiality, and joint representation of family members

Explain how public benefits interact when both an elder and a person with a disability are in the same household

Review the special needs material from weeks 5 and 6 and close every checklist item still marked shaky or unknown

Complete two timed mixed-domain practice exams under exam conditions and score each by domain

Rewrite every missed rule into a one-line flashcard and review the full deck twice

Revisit the highest-error subtopics from each domain checklist and confirm closure

Build a final one-page rule sheet covering the ten most frequently missed concepts across both domains