Coulson Elder Law is now Dent-Coulson Elder Law
Learn More

Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney | Dent Coulson Elder Law

Get Help Right Away

Call Today: 618-632-7000 or 217-330-5500

or Send us an email

  • Home
  • Our Services
    • Alzheimer’s Planning
    • Asset Preservation Planning
    • Estate Planning
    • Medicaid Eligibility
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust and Estate Administration
    • VA Benefits Planning
  • News & Videos
    • Video Series
      • Coronavirus Preparedness
      • Asset Preservation Planning
      • Common Estate Planning Mistakes
      • Dealing With Alzheimer’s
      • Financial Exploitation of Elders
      • Handling Difficult Conversations with Seniors
      • Married Couples and Medicaid
      • Medicaid Application Process
      • Medicaid Look-Back Rule and Transfer Penalties
      • Nursing Home Admission and Care
      • Veterans Pension Benefits
      • What You Can and Can’t Keep with Medicaid
    • Weekly Newsletter
    • The Elder Law Minute
  • Alzheimer’s Guide
  • Presentations
    • Health Care Power of Attorney
    • Free Workshops
  • Hear From Our Clients
    • Testimonials
    • Share Your Experience
  • About
    • About Us
    • Meet Our Staff
    • Partners & Resources
    • About Our Fees
    • COVID-19 Policies
    • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
    • Email Us
    • Find Our Offices
    • Refer a Friend

About Us

Estate Planning Attorney  Dent-Coulson Partnership Announcement

Elder Law & Estate Planning Attorney

Meet Kaye and Wes:

Rodgers and Hammerstein … Simon and Garfunkel … Sonny and Cher … sometimes the best collaborations are formed by individuals who have built a reputation and found success on their own, but realized that, together, they could accomplish even more. It was that thought process that led to the formation of Dent Coulson Elder Law. DCEL is a combination of Wes Coulson’s practice through Coulson Elder Law in O’Fallon and Kaye Dent’s practice through Dent Law Offices in Effingham.

The new firm will keep those two existing offices, with an enhanced ability to reach and serve clients in both areas (including in Missouri) and at various points north and south of the “I-70 corridor” through south-central Illinois. In doing so, they will take advantage of new technologies that make it possible to seamlessly and efficiently operate “as one” from two physical locations.

The fit between the practices is a very natural one. Both Wes and Kaye have long focused their professional practices on the closely interrelated areas of elder law (particularly planning directed toward protecting clients’ life savings from the potentially devastating cost of long-term care), estate planning, special needs planning, estate and trust administration, probate and guardianship. If anything comes up on a client matter that may be new to one of them, it’s very likely that the other of them has experience with it. That’s also true of the firm’s three paralegals, Karen Webster, Heidi Hagen and Jo Jayasimha, each of whom has her own areas of concentration.

Education: 

Kaye earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois. She then earned her law degree from Hofstra University in 1996. Wes earned his undergraduate degree from Northwestern University. He then earned his law degree from the University of Michigan in 1978. Each started out primarily in other areas of legal practice, and over time gravitated more and more toward elder law and the related fields mentioned above. That has been the primary focus of Wes’s practice for over 20 years, and of Kaye’s for over 10. Together, Kaye and Wes have over 68 years of combined legal experience.

As Estate Planning Attorneys, Wes and Kaye are proud members of the Illinois chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. (www.naela.org) Wes is also a member of the Missouri chapter, as well as being a “CELA” – a Certified Elder Law Attorney, a designation conferred by the National Elder Law Foundation, (www.nelf.org) the only organization approved by the American Bar Association to confer such designation. He was the first attorney in Illinois south of Peoria to earn that designation, and he has held it for over 17 years.

Wes also holds the designation of Accredited Estate Planner (AEP) from the National Association of Estate Planners and Councils. (www.naepc.org) (Note: neither the supreme court nor the bar of Illinois or Missouri reviews or approves certifying organizations or specialist designations.) Kaye is a member of Elder Counsel and Wealth counsel. She serves on the board of directors of Illinois NAELA; as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Illinois; on the board of the Southeastern Illinois Community Advisory Board for Effingham County; and as chair of the Fifth Circuit Pro Bono Committee of the Public Interest Law Initiative. She has also served as president of the Effingham Noon Rotary Club.

Community Involvement:

The firm’s attorneys have given numerous continuing legal education presentations, and have also given presentations to many community organizations and at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities as part of their ongoing community outreach.

Veterans Benefits O'Fallon ILFor Immediate Help

If you or a loved one needs immediate help with a planning matter or legal issue, please contact us, and we will get back to you promptly.

Office Hours
Monday - Friday: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Call Us
618-632-7000
217-330-5500
314-567-9292

Connect with Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Join us for a FREE Workshop

 

Free WorkshopsIf you have reached age 65, there's about a 45% chance that you will eventually need long-term care.

Join us for one of our highly informative and FREE workshops and find out how you can protect your family's hard-earned life savings.

Visit Free Workshops for more information.

Newsletter

Subscribe to our free weekly Newsletter and receive the latest news, updates and videos straight to your inbox!

Recent Posts

  • What an Illinois Medicaid Applicant Can and Cannot Keep: Motor Vehicles
  • What an Illinois Medicaid Applicant Can and Cannot Keep: Personal Residence
  • What an Illinois Medicaid Applicant Can and Cannot Keep: Household Goods & Personal Effects
  • What an Illinois Medicaid Applicant Can and Cannot Keep: Life Estates
  • What an Illinois Medicaid Applicant Can and Cannot Keep: Money & Other Assets Held in Trusts

More News & Videos

  • Alzheimer's Planning (85)
  • Asset Preservation Planning (150)
  • Coronavirus Preparedness Series (9)
  • Coulson Elder Law (11)
  • Elder Law Minute Video (385)
  • Estate Planning (132)
  • Health Care Planning/Medicare (79)
  • Medicaid Eligibility (141)
  • News & Videos (429)
  • Special Needs Planning (48)
  • Trust Administration (14)
  • Veterans Benefits (51)

774 Sunset Blvd Suite 200
O'Fallon, IL 62269
IL: (618) 632-7000
MO: (314) 567-9292

415 W. Virginia Ave.
Effingham, IL 62401
(217) 330-5500

Fax: (618) 632-7333
Send us an email

Front office building of Coulson Elder Law

Front office building of Coulson Elder Law

  • Directions to our office locations

774 Sunset Blvd Suite 200
O'Fallon, IL 62269
IL: (618) 632-7000
MO: (314) 567-9292

415 W. Virginia Ave.
Effingham, IL 62401
(217) 330-5500

Fax: (618) 632-7333
Send us an email

  • About Us
  • News and Videos
  • Weekly Newsletter
  • Brochures
  • Presentations
  • Hear From Our Clients
  • Partners & Resources
  • Legal Disclaimer

Copyright © 2023 · Wesley J. Coulson | Dent Coulson Elder Law, LLC