By Maria Cook
Carmel attorney Carol Applegate of Applegate Elder Law recently announced that she is joining forces with Lisa Dillman of Dillman Law Group to form Applegate and Dillman Elder Law. The new practice will retain Dillman and Applegate’s business locations at 2344 S. Tibbs Ave. in Indianapolis and 140 N. Range Line Rd. in Carmel.
Applegate said partnering with Dillman will allow each attorney to better serve clients throughout the greater Indianapolis area and beyond.
“We’ll have an expanded professional team that will be able to serve every need of the elderly, more attorneys and more staff members that can focus in on certain areas such as Medicaid Planning and V.A. benefits,” Applegate said. “We get clients from Kokomo, the Lafayette area, so we’re trying to strategically plan where these offices are. With elderly people, it’s hard for them to go a long way to see an attorney.”
Applegate said that another Applegate and Dillman Elder Law location will open in Zionsville, possibly in November, with additional expansion possible in the future. She said people tend to seek the help of an elder care lawyer during times of family crisis, and that expanding will allow the practice to help more people.
“One of the most common issues that we see is that someone is caring for a spouse or a parent and their condition worsens, and they need to find the right facility and be able to have the finances to pay for their care,” Applegate said. “We’re seeing a decrease in the number of caregivers in this area. The cost of care is getting higher and higher, but when we mostly see our clients is when there’s been a crisis and they need to do something right away.”
