The Senior Citizens’ Law Office, Inc. (SCLO) was founded in Albuquerque in 1983 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation by Patricia McE. Stelzner and Ellen Leitzer.
Ellen Leitzer left the organization in 2005 to pursue healthcare policy work in Washington D.C. before returning to New Mexico where she opened a private practice that focused on elder law.
On June 1, 2013, Ellen returned to SCLO as Executive Director.
Patricia McE. Stelzner retired in August of 2010. Ms. Stelzner volunteers for SCLO as a Spanish-speaking attorney and assists with presentations and workshops.
Leitzer and Stelzner were instrumental in passing legislature and authoring statutes in areas of guardianships, probate, and advance directives for New Mexico.
As a result of Stelzner and Leitzer’s dedication to providing free legal service to New Mexico’s aging population, SCLO has maintained an impeccable reputation as a leader in health care law and protective proceedings for over 31 years.
In the years since its founding, SCLO has expanded to serve Sandoval, Valencia and Torrance counties, and now reaches an estimated 4500 seniors per year.
