How to Protect Against the Financial Abuse of Senior Adults
As people get older, they often need to rely on others for various kinds of help and are more likely to suffer from Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. Consequently, as people age, they are more vulnerable to being financially taken advantage of, sometimes even by people they trust. A recent study by AARP estimates that financial exploitation costs adults aged 60 and older $28.3 billion annually.[1] Fortunately, there are some proactive steps that can be taken to prevent financial abuse before it occurs. In addition, older people and the family members and friends acting on their behalf have protective and remedial actions available if they discover that financial abuse has occurred.
What Are Common Forms of Financial Abuse of Elders?
There are several types of financial exploitation of elders to keep an eye out for:
● Forcing or deceiving an older person into signing legal documents such as a will, trust, power of attorney, or financial documents
● Using or taking money or other assets without the elder’s permission or through deceptive means
● Preventing a senior from accessing or obtaining information about their own property, money, or accounts
● Providing unnecessary caregiving services to the older person
This list is not exhaustive, but it provides some broad categories to be aware of and take steps to prevent.
Protect Yourself Against Financial Exploitation by Planning Ahead
An elder law attorney can help you develop a comprehensive estate plan that protects your assets and provides for your future needs by establishing trusts, powers of attorney, and other legal tools to safeguard finances and ensure your wishes are honored. When you meet with your attorney, it is important to be willing to consult with them privately, even if someone else transports you to the meeting. Meeting privately will let the attorney feel confident that another person is not unduly influencing your decision-making about your estate plan.
It is crucial to be very careful in selecting the individuals who will act on your behalf: the people you choose to act as trustee or agent under a power of attorney or the person you nominate as guardian. Although many assume they should select a family member to fill these roles, family members are not always the best choice. For example, an adult child dealing with financial difficulties who has been given the authority to pay the elder’s bills may be tempted to use the elder’s checking account to pay their own bills. As elder law attorneys, we can help you carefully think through family dynamics and each potential fiduciary’s personal and financial situations. In addition, we can help you evaluate whether an independent fiduciary would be a better choice or if additional safeguards could be helpful, such as frequent accountings or the appointment of a trust protector who could remove and replace a trustee.
What Can You Do if Financial Abuse Has Occurred?
There are steps you can take if you believe you or an older loved one has already been a victim of financial abuse.
Contact your local Adult Protective Services (APS) agency[2] or law enforcement to file a report. The sooner you report suspected financial abuse, the sooner an investigation can occur, followed by actions to protect the victim and prevent further abuse. Working with APS, law enforcement, and an elder law attorney, you can assess the scope of the financial abuse and identify the affected assets and the extent of economic losses.
Next, if the victim is a loved one, establish a support network for them. Surround the older individual with supportive family members, friends, and professionals who can provide the emotional support and guidance they need throughout recovery. This network of professionals may include attorneys, financial advisors, therapists, and social workers.
Contact an elder law attorney. If the perpetrator of the abuse was considered a trusted family member or was a professional caretaker, an elder law attorney can help you take steps to have them immediately removed from contact with the victim and from any accounts or other access that would allow them to continue the financial abuse. The attorney can help facilitate the appointment of an interim individual to provide financial oversight and protections until a new formal financial appointee is named.
An elder law attorney can help establish legal guardianship or conservatorship, which appoints a trusted individual or institution to manage the older adult’s finances and make decisions on their behalf. This action may be appropriate if an agent appointed by an older person abuses their authority in a way that causes financial harm. It may also be necessary if family members have removed property from the older person’s home without permission. Under those circumstances, family members or friends can go before a judge to request, on the elder’s behalf, the appointment of a guardian of the estate (sometimes called a conservator), who must report to the court about financial transactions and obtain the court’s approval of certain decisions.
In addition, an elder law attorney can assist with recovering assets that have been misappropriated or stolen. They may work with financial institutions, file lawsuits against the abuser, or explore other legal remedies to recover the stolen funds or assets. In some cases, resolving disputes regarding financial abuse through mediation or settlement negotiations may be possible. Although it is difficult to recover funds from some perpetrators of financial abuse, most financial crimes against the elderly are committed by a person well known to them. Mediation, settlements, and even civil or criminal litigation may be appropriate avenues to pursue. Working with APS and law enforcement, your elder law attorney can provide the necessary documents and ensure that a formal complaint is correctly and promptly filed.
In cases where the abuser continues to have access to the older individual or their assets, an elder law attorney can help obtain protective orders or injunctions to prevent further harm. These legal measures can prohibit the abuser from contacting or approaching the older person and safeguard their financial resources.
We Can Help
Our elder law attorneys can not only help you create a plan designed to help prevent financial exploitation, but they can also provide legal expertise and support to address financial abuse that has already occurred. Their knowledge and desire to protect the rights of older adults significantly increase the chances of positive resolution and restitution. If you want to plan proactively to protect yourself or if you suspect that you or a senior adult you love is experiencing financial abuse, contact our elder law attorneys for help.
[1] Jilenne Gunther, The Scope of Elder Financial Exploitation: What It Costs Victims, AARP Pub. Pol’y Inst. (June 15, 2023), https://doi.org/10.26419/ppi.00194.001.
[2] Find a local Adult Protective Services agency at Administration for Community Living, Eldercare Locator, https://eldercare.acl.gov/Public/Index.aspx, or by calling 1-800-677-1116.
