An elder law attorney is hired for a specific paper job, and the paper decides who the lawyer works for. Before you pay a retainer, read what the agreement says about the client, the fee, the task list, and the duties on each side. The points below are what to check and ask. The legal advice itself comes from the lawyer, not from this page.

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Check the license before the first call

Look the attorney up in the Missouri Bar's lawyer directory and confirm the license is active and that no discipline appears there. If the firm says it focuses on elder law or Medicaid planning, ask which work it does most often and whether the attorney holds any certification in that area. Then check the certifying body directly instead of taking the firm's word for it. A Missouri license does not cover work in another state, so confirm the attorney is licensed where your parent lives.

Name the client in the agreement

Often an adult child calls the office, pays the bill, and signs the forms, while the parent is the person the paperwork is about. Ask in writing who the client is: the parent, the child, or both. If the answer is both, ask what happens if your interests and your parent's interests split, for example over who is named to make decisions or over how a payment was made. Ask the firm to run and disclose its conflict check, including whether it has represented a nursing facility, a home care agency, or an insurer you may later need to deal with.

Compare the fee method on the same terms

Lawyers bill by the hour, by a flat fee for a defined task, or against a retainer that is drawn down as work is done. Get the method in the agreement, along with the rate or flat amount, what the retainer covers, and whether unused money comes back. Ask what counts as a billable task. Phone calls, copying, postage, and filing fees often appear on separate lines, and you need to know whether they sit inside the quoted number. Ask for a written estimate of hours or tasks, labeled as an estimate. Ask who will do most of the work, the attorney or a paralegal, and whether that person's rate is different.

Also ask whose account the fee will come from. A payment from your parent's funds can become a question on a benefits application, so ask the lawyer how it should be recorded before the money moves. Do not assume the answer from the payment method on a form.

Read the task list as the price

The engagement letter should list the tasks in the job: reviewing a benefits application, drafting or reviewing a power of attorney, meeting with your parent, responding to a request for more papers from the state, or appealing a denial. Anything not on that list is outside the price until both sides sign a change. Ask who files each form with which agency and who keeps the copies. Ask what happens if the state sends a verification request with a deadline, and who calendars it. The Missouri Department of Social Services publishes the Medicaid application rules, and the federal rules are explained on Medicaid.gov. The lawyer should tell you which dates and rules apply to your case.

Write down the duties on both sides

A good agreement says how often you get updates, how quickly calls and emails are answered, who you contact when the attorney is out, and which documents you must supply and by when. It should also say how either side can end the engagement, what file records you receive when it ends, and how the file is kept. The papers you need later are often the ones you already signed, so ask for a copy of each filing as it goes out.

Know what you can handle without a lawyer

Not every question needs an attorney. Medicare coverage questions can go to Missouri SHIP, which gives free counseling, and Medicaid rules are published by the Missouri Department of Social Services and on Medicaid.gov. Work through those first, so you arrive at the lawyer's office with a short list of questions only a lawyer can answer. Our Local Help With Paying for Care page lists free and low-cost local options.

Where this page stops

This page can tell you what to read in an agreement and what to ask. It cannot tell you whether a transfer, a home, or an account should be handled a certain way, or which benefit applies to your parent. Those questions belong to the attorney, who is licensed to answer them. If the agreement is unclear to you, take it to a second attorney or use the Missouri Bar's referral service before you sign. If you are new to this desk, read Start Here: The Order to Read first.

The Engagement Letter Sets the Job: Compare an Elder Law Attorney on Client, Fee, and Task List Before You Sign