Franchelle C. Millender, Attorney at Law

Ms. Millender has been in private practice since 1977. She began her career in real estate law. She gradually shifted her focus to estate planning, where she soon discovered that older clients needed more than basic estate planning. These clients often required guidance navigating the legal, financial and emotional challenges of aging.

In 1991, she attended a conference sponsored by a young organization called the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. She found that there was a shared recognition of the need for a practice area focused on addressing the legal issues relating to aging. It was called elder law. She soon began the process of moving her practice to this area exclusively; utilizing her prior experience, her appreciation of the elder as a client, and her wish to make a positive difference in people’s lives. Ms. Millender was in the first group of elder law attorneys in the nation to sit for the certification examination to become a certified elder law attorney (CELA) through the National Elder Law Foundation and has maintained her status as a CELA continuously since 1995. Ms. Millender is the principal author and editor of A Practical Guide to Elder and Special Needs Law in South Carolina, Second Edition, published by the South Carolina Bar.

People who have a need for legal services to address issues related to long term care and access to necessary services and benefits are not always elders. The evolution of the practice continues with the inclusion of special needs and Ms. Millender’s practice has evolved to include special needs planning and protecting settlements in personal injury cases without jeopardizing needs-based benefits.

Ms. Millender’s goal is to provide legal services that enable clients, despite adverse circumstances, to obtain the assistance necessary to achieve and maintain the highest quality of life possible.