Claire E. Lewis has more than thirty-five years of experience in the field of elder law. A founding member and first Chair of the Indiana State Bar Association’s Elder Law Section, she currently serves as Chair of its Public Policy Committee. An active member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), Lewis was a founding member and first President of the Indiana chapter of NAELA and was re-elected as President of the organization for 2016. She recently completed her term on the Executive Committee of the Estate Planning Section of the Indianapolis Bar Association. Lewis completed six years of service on the Board of Directors of CICOA Aging and In-Home Solutions (formerly the Central Indiana Council on Aging), serving as Secretary of the Board during her last two year term. She also completed a term of six years on the Board of Directors of the Alzheimer’s Association of Indiana for which she chaired its Mission and Outreach Committee.
Lewis was called upon by the State of Indiana to provide the initial review of the exams to be given to attorneys seeking the CELA (Certified Elder Law Attorney) certification. As a member of the Advisory Panel on Attorney Specialization for the Indiana Commission for Continuing Legal Education, she was involved in the initial approval of the elder law certification in the state of Indiana.
As former Director of the Senior Law Project of the Legal Services Organization of Indiana, Lewis headed the Indiana sub-state Ombudsman Program for Central Indiana, promoting quality of care and nursing home residents’ rights for Indiana’s most vulnerable citizens.
Editor of the Indiana State Bar Association’s popular book, the Laws of Aging (formerly the Legal Reference for Older Hoosiers), Lewis has authored or co-authored numerous papers and booklets on elder law issues including Medicaid in Indiana, Advance Directives, Medicaid for the Aging and Disabled in Indiana, Guardianship and Alternatives, The Legal Rights of Indiana Nursing Home Residents, and Housing Alternatives for the Older Person.
Lewis is a regular faculty member and program chair for the Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum (ICLEF). For the past couple of decades, she has chaired ICLEF’S Elder Law Institute, Advanced Medicaid Forum, and Advanced Elder Law Forum. Lewis is also a regular faculty member for educational seminars presented by the Indianapolis Bar Association (IBA). She has chaired seminars for the IBA covering such topics as Medicaid Estate Recovery, the effect of the Deficit Reduction Act on Medicaid eligibility issues, and Special Needs Trusts. She has been a guest professor at the McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis, focusing primarily on topics that relate to elder law. Lewis has served in an advisory capacity to Medicaid workers throughout the state and trained caseworkers, attorneys, and elder care professionals on Medicaid rules and regulations and other issues impacting older adults. She also volunteers for the IBA’s Hospice Program, assisting those with terminal illnesses on estate planning and planning for incapacity.
Contact info:
(317) 484-8115