 Lee
M. Holmes - Lee is a graduate of the University
of Oklahoma School of Law and has practiced law in
Oklahoma City since 1963. His practice primarily
involves Elder Law matters, including helping people
qualify or stay qualified for Medicaid benefits, and
financial planning for the disabled or for disabled
beneficiaries. In 1988, Lee was one of the founders
of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA)
and in 1989 was elected to the Board of Directors.
There are now over 4,000 NAELA members. Lee was
elected as a Fellow of NAELA in 1995 by his fellow
members. Lee was one of the first 55 attorneys in
the United States to be Certified as an Elder Law
Attorney (CELA) by the National Elder Law
Foundation, the only national certification program
accredited by the American Bar Association for
qualification as a specialist in Elder Law. Lee is
the only NAELA member to attend every NAELA regular
educational meeting (Symposiums, Institutes,
UnPrograms and Joint Conferences of Law and Aging).
Among Lee’s accomplishments are:
More than 20 articles have been published by Lee.
In the last 16 years, Lee has traveled over 100,000
miles to attend over 40 national seminars and
meetings (over 500 sessions) many outside of
Oklahoma that focused on Medicaid and other Elder
Law issues and disability issues.
Lee’s successful Oklahoma cases and matters include:
The first spousal impoverishment case under the 1988
federal law, which protects assets and income for
the at home spouse of a nursing home resident;
The first Oklahoma Fair Hearing to increase the
Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA) above the
statutory minimum portion;
The first Oklahoma Court case to increase the
Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance (MMMNA)
for the Community Spouse;
The first Special Needs Trust under 42 U.S.C.A.
1396p (d)(4)(A) to preserve assets for a disabled
person under the age of 65 years;
The first Sole Benefit Trust under 42 U.S.C.A. 396p
(c)(2)(B)(iv) to permit transfer of assets to a
family member without causing Medicaid gifting
penalty;
The first Medicaid Income Trust under 42 U.S.C.A.
1396p (d)(4)(B) to qualify a Medicaid applicant
whose income was over the Oklahoma Income Cap;
The first Fair Hearing Appeal under 42 U.S.C.A.1396p
(d) to exempt the beneficiary’s Social Security and
Disability payment from nursing home expenses.
Lee is a member of the Special Needs Alliance, LLC,
which is a national organization of attorneys
focusing on the legal and practical aspects of
Special Needs Trusts for individuals with
disabilities. In order to keep the attorneys
informed on the constantly changing laws,
regulations, cases, and interpretations relating to
Special Needs Trusts, Medicaid, SSI (Supplemental
Security Income) and SSDI (Social Security
Disability Income), the organization holds two
national educational meetings each year, as well as
conference calls throughout the year and regular
e-mail communication. Attorney membership is by
invitation only. Lee Holmes is the only attorney
member admitted from the State of Oklahoma.
Since 1967, Lee has been a member of an Attorney-CPA
Tax Discussion Group that meets weekly. He is a
member of the Oklahoma City Attorneys Tax Group, the
Oklahoma City Estate Planning Council and several
other professional organizations. Lee was Chairman
(1998/1999) of the Estate Planning, Probate, and
Trust Section of the Oklahoma Bar Association.
Lee has been active in civic affairs, serving as
Oklahoma District Club President of the Exchange
Club and has been honored as Exchangite of the year
in his club and by the Oklahoma District. In 1988,
1989 and 1990, Lee served as President of the
Exchange Club Child Abuse Prevention Center of
Oklahoma, Inc. During his Presidency, the Center
hired its first employees and implemented a
successful child abuse prevention program which
works directly with families at risk of abusing
children.
Lee is a frequent lecturer at national and state
educational programs for lawyers. |
 Mark
L. Holmes - Mark received his Bachelor of
Business Administration degree with a major in
accounting from the University of Oklahoma in 1985.
In 1986, Mark became a Certified Public Accountant.
From 1987 to 1989, he practiced public accounting in
the audit and tax departments with the firm KPMG
Peat Marwick in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1993, he
received his Juris Doctorate, with Honors, from the
University of Oklahoma and he joined the firm of Lee
Holmes and Associates in that year. In recent years,
Mark has had the honor of being appointed in
contested District Court matters to represent,
intervene and assist in both probate and
guardianship legal disputes. Mark is a member of the
Legal Ethics Commission of the Oklahoma Bar
Association. He also serves as a professor of Estate
Planning at Oklahoma City University's Meinders
School of Business.
Mark's law practice focuses on estate planning,
estate and trust administration and issues of
incapacity with seniors and persons with
disabilities. More specifically, his practice
involves Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Probate
and Trust Administration, Medicaid Planning,
Incapacity Planning, Guardianships and Avoiding
Guardianships, Special and Supplemental Needs
Trusts, Nursing Home Decisions and IRA and
Beneficiary Designation Planning.
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 Tracy
Speck-Neisent -Tracy is a member of the firm of
Holmes, Holmes & Neisent, P.L.L.C. in Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma. She received her Bachelor of Science
degree with a major in accounting from Oklahoma
State University in 1990. She received her Juris
Doctorate from the University of Oklahoma in 1993
graduating with Honors in the top ten percent of her
class and Order of the Coif.
In 1999, Mrs. Neisent was certified as an Elder Law
Attorney (CELA) by the National Elder Law
Foundation. The National Elder Law Foundation is the
only organization approved by the American Bar
Association to certify attorneys in elder law.
Tracy has been co-counsel with Lee Holmes since 1993
and has been an integral part of the legal
representation in the successful Medicaid cases and
matters listed above.
Her practice is focused in the areas of Elder Law,
Medicaid planning, Medicaid appeals, planning for
preservation of government benefits when an
inheritance or personal injury settlement is
received, special needs trusts, estate and tax
planning, trusts, wills, guardianships, probate,
estate administration and litigation involving these
areas of law.
Mrs. Neisent is a member of the Oklahoma Bar
Association, the American Bar Association, the
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the
Oklahoma City Lawyers' Tax Group. She is also active
in her community and has served as the President of
the Downtown Oklahoma City Exchange Club
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1st Row L to R -
Danielle, Tracy,
Brittany & Renee
2nd Row L to R - Mark, Chynna, Darla,
Christy & Lee |
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