Crisis Planning Strategies for Your Elder Law Clients 2022

Mr. Spurlin practices law in the areas of estate planning and administration and long-term care planning. Before establishing his firm in York County, Mr. Spurlin was a principal of the Elder Law Firm of Robert Clofine and an associate of Appel & Yost. Before that, he served as a judicial law clerk to the York County Orphans’ Court. He is a member of the Pennsylvania Association of Elder Law Attorneys, the Elder Law Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and the Estate Planning and Probate Section of the York County Bar Association. He serves as a board member to multiple sections of the York County Bar Association and a professional adviser to Leave a Legacy York County. He frequently presents seminars for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, most recently presenting the following courses: Elder Law Update (2019); Practical Medicaid Planning (2018); Fixing Broken Trusts (2018 and 2016); Medicaid Basics (2017); Guardianship Updates and Trends (2016); Protecting Assets While Qualifying for Medicaid (2016); Estate Planning for the Alzheimer’s Client (2015); and Guardianship Practice and Procedure (2015). Mr. Spurlin is a graduate of Arizona State University, where he received his bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, in political science, and master’s degree, summa cum laude, in international relations. He earned his J.D., cum laude, from Temple University Beasley School of Law, where he also received his LL.M. (Master of Laws) in taxation, with distinction. During this time, he earned a graduate certificate in estate planning and was the sole recipient of the Joseph Price Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement in Tax Law in 2010.

Ms. Sikov Gross is the managing partner in the Pittsburgh law firm of Sikov and Love, P.A. She is a certified elder law attorney (CELA) through the National Elder Law Foundation as authorized by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and was admitted as an ACTEC Fellow in 2012. In 1998, Ms. Sikov Gross became the founding chair of the Elder Law Committee of the Allegheny County Bar Association (ACBA). She is a past chair of the ACBA Probate and Trust Law Section Council. Ms. Sikov Gross is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). She is a past Vice President of the Pennsylvania Association of Elder Law Attorneys (PAELA) and has served on the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Elder Law Section Council. She writes for the Pittsburgh Legal Journal. Ms. Sikov Gross is a frequent speaker for PBI and others as well as for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes at Carnegie Mellon University and at the University of Pittsburgh. She has been listed as an elder law attorney in Best Lawyers in America and has been selected for inclusion in Pennsylvania Super Lawyers®.

Rebecca A. Hobbs is a Principal at O’Donnell, Weiss & Mattei, P.C., with offices in Pottstown and Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. She concentrates her practice in elder law, with a particular focus on special needs planning, Medicaid planning, guardianships, estate planning, estate and trust administration, federal estate tax planning, and veterans’ benefits. Ms. Hobbs is certified as an Elder Law Attorney (CELA) by the National Elder Law Foundation, an accreditation recognized by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. She is licensed to practice law in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey and is accredited by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs for the preparation, presentation, and prosecution of claims for veterans’ benefits. From 2017 through 2024, Ms. Hobbs was selected for inclusion as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyers “Rising Star” in the field of elder law, and in 2026, she was named a Pennsylvania Super Lawyers honoree in the same field. In 2025, she received the WealthCounsel Award for Scholarship and has been recognized as a Main Line Today Top Lawyer in Elder Law for two consecutive years (2025–2026). Ms. Hobbs is an active member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), the Pennsylvania Association of Elder Law Attorneys (PAELA), and the Special Needs Alliance (SNA). She serves as Co-Chair of the Elder Law Committee of the Montgomery Bar Association. A frequent lecturer, Ms. Hobbs presents on topics including legal ethics, estate planning, estate and trust administration, and elder law for organizations such as NAELA, ElderCounsel, the Pennsylvania Bar Institute (PBI), and other continuing legal education providers.