Elder Abuse

How a Houston Estate Planning Law Firm Can Step in When Financial Elder Abuse Becomes a Reality for You or a Loved One

Published on: February 15, 2023 | By David W. Miller

In the past, we have written in-depth on our blog about how to spot financial abuse among elderly people you love. The second question many clients ask, which is perhaps an even more important question, is what to do in the face of possible financial elder abuse. There is no “one size fits all” solution, but there are crucial steps you can take to make sure the older people in your life are well protected.

How We Can Help in the Face of Financial Elder Abuse

At McCulloch & Miller, PLLC, one of our specialties is long-term care planning. We meet with our clients, learn about their lives, and help them figure out how to choose and pay for their long-term care options. We take pride in making sure all the options that our clients are thinking through are safe and trustworthy so that our clients can decrease the odds they will experience financial abuse from a nursing home, residential facility, or caretaking team. If you think you or a loved one has already experienced financial abuse at a residential facility, we can help you think through how to switch facilities so that you feel safer and at peace with where you live. We can also talk you through the necessary steps for bringing an action against anyone that has taken advantage of you or a loved one so that you can get compensated for the harm you have suffered.

Spotting Elder Financial Abuse: How to Catch it Early and Prevent it from Becoming a Major Issue for Your Loved Ones

Published on: February 15, 2023 | By Thomas W. McCulloch

Elder financial abuse, by definition, is when an individual takes money or other assets away from an older person without permission. Unfortunately, when older people begin to exhibit signs of memory loss or decreased mental functioning, this kind of abuse is more likely to occur. Thus, as your loved ones get older, it is prudent that you look after their finances and make sure no one untrustworthy has access to (or the possibility of exploiting) their financial information.

Examples of Elder Abuse

The specifics of elder abuse can vary from case to case, and there is no one thing in particular that indicates an older person is being taken advantage of. One thing to look out for, however, is an elder person’s caretaker taking possession of their credit cards. It is easy for these cards to go unmonitored and thus for a caretaker to use the money for expenses not related to their job.

Another possible indication of financial elder abuse can be with someone takes control of an elder’s power of attorney. If, for example, a lawyer, manager, or advisor abuses her or his position, this can be a form of exploitation. It is important to keep a close eye on who has power of attorney over the older people in your life to make sure this position is not taken lightly.

Broker Steals from Client with Dementia

Published on: January 11, 2023 | By David W. Miller

Unfortunately, elder abuse is all too common. But the abuse is not only physical or psychological but also financial: seemingly legitimate brokers can manipulate and steal from aging communities, especially those with limited competence or memory issues. In 2019, $25 million was lost from individuals over 60 due to investment fraud. One recent instance exposes many of the problems with elder financial abuse.

In one instance, a former stockbroker for the firm LPL Financial was charged with multiple counts of exploiting and stealing from an elderly person. The losses totaled nearly $1.3 million from the client, who suffered from dementia and memory loss. The broker advised the client to move funds from her trust to her bank account to fund investments in one of the broker’s businesses, allegedly to make investments in real estate investment trusts. This happened over the course of approximately eight years. Instead of making the investments, the broker moved the funds from the investment fund’s bank accounts to his personal accounts, where he used the money to pay off personal debts and other expenses.

The broker exploited his personal relationship with his client and her late husband. After her husband passed, he “positioned himself as a friend and confidant” to the client, according to the SEC, and began to assert control and influence over the client’s affairs.

Protecting Yourself or Your Loved One from Elder Abuse

Published on: August 21, 2022 | By David W. Miller

health savings accounts in estate planning

Medical emergencies, especially among aging individuals, can result in long-term rehabilitation and financial distress. Planning ahead for these emergencies is crucial, not only to preserve your assets and your independence but also to protect yourself from unscrupulous practices.

According to a recent article, a woman has filed a lawsuit alleging extensive financial fraud and abuse against a long-term elder care and rehabilitation facility. The woman, who lived alone and independently, entered the facility to recover from numerous medical issues after hospitalization. She alleges employees of the care facility repeatedly suggested that she get rid of her assets and live the remainder of her days in the nursing home facility, which she declined and insisted she did not wish to do.

After this refusal, she was placed on a cocktail of medications that put her under a fog, leading to hallucinations and confusion. It was then that she was coerced into signing a durable power of attorney agreement handing over control of all of her financial decisions to an officer of the care facility, whom the woman had never actually met. This officer kept her from seeing her family and eventually sold all of her assets, including her car, and listed her home on the market.

Scams are Being Perpetrated on Veterans, Active Military and Their Families

Published on: January 20, 2020 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

“In 2018, 9.4% of all reports to BBB’s ScamTracker came from military personnel, veterans or their spouses, BBB of Metropolitan New York said.”

The scam victims who were military personnel, veterans or their spouses reported higher median losses than non-military consumers, the BBB said.

nj.com says in its recent article entitled “Veterans warned to beware of scams that target military families” that a common scam is “pension poaching,” which targets elderly and disabled veterans and their families.

Stan Lee and Peter Max’s Elder Abuse Cases

Published on: July 15, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

There are definitely advantages to all the perks of fame and fortune that come with being a celebrity. However, aging celebrities are just as vulnerable as regular people, when it comes to elder financial abuse. The major difference is that their stories are reported in the news.

Recent news stories about both the late legendary Marvel comic book creator Stan Lee and ‘60s psychedelic artist Peter Max are sad reminders that elder abuse can happen to anyone, no matter how famous or talented they are. There are a few striking similarities in what happened to Peter Max and Stan Lee, as reported by Next Avenue in the article “Stan Lee and Peter Max: What to Learn From Their Elder Abuse Cases.”

Both of these highly creative and successful men were taken advantage of by people who they trusted and who they were close to. In Stan Lee’s case, Keya Morgan, his former business partner and caretaker, was arrested for elder abuse, false imprisonment and grand theft of an elder dependent adult. The family says Lee was isolated from the family and then moved out of his home. There is now a restraining order against Morgan.

Elder Abuse Numbers Continue to Increase

Published on: June 25, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

The number of seniors being exploited or abused quadrupled from 2013-2017. Tracked now by a number of financial institutions that submit data to FinCEN, a federal government watchdog agency, elder abuse has become a national epidemic.

More than 180,000 Suspicious Activity Reports submitted by banks to the federal government were analyzed by the Consumer Financial Projection Bureau (CFPC). For professionals working in estate planning and probate law, the numbers are not surprising. They routinely hear tales of exploitation by scammers, family members and caregivers from families who are seeing elderly loved ones being taken advantage of, says ABC 15 Phoenix’s recent online report, “Protecting seniors from financial predators.”

Families reach out to these attorneys who specialize in senior issues because they're concerned that a grandparent or parent is being scammed.

Legitimate Power of Attorney Use Leaves Widow Impoverished

Published on: April 23, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

This is a cautionary tale about what can happen, when the wrong person is given power of attorney. The problem here is that a man changed his power of attorney without any review or oversight from any family members, including his own wife.

Why Dorothy Jorgenson’s husband changed his power of attorney just days before his death, is something that only he and the relative he named will ever know. However, the relative acted fast and took more than $70,000 from the couple’s joint bank account, says WPRI.com in the article, “Son questions power of attorney after mother's bank account is drained.”

"When I went to pick up a prescription for my mother, there was insufficient funds to pick up a prescription," Dorothy's son, Gene Weston, said. "I can’t believe that someone would do that to an elderly woman."

Iowa Senator Sponsors Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act

Published on: March 27, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

“Iowa Senator Charles Grassley is among those in Congress calling for a crackdown on elder abuse crimes in the country.”

The witnesses of loved ones affected by elder abuse incidents testified at a recent Senate Finance Committee hearing in Washington.

Those witnesses included Pat Blank, longtime Iowa Public Radio host, and past winner of the Iowa Broadcast News Association's Jack Shelley Award. Blank's mother, Virginia Olthoff, died in an Iowa nursing home in February 2018, because of alleged neglect.

Financial Elder Abuse in the Spotlight in Virginia

Published on: March 8, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Virginia is taking steps to protect seniors and other vulnerable individuals against financial exploitation, by giving financial institutions more resources to prevent this growing crime.

With bipartisan support, the state House and Senate of Virginia have passed versions of State Bill 1490, which encourages financial institutions to have more leeway in making decisions to protect the elderly, when it suspects exploitation is occurring. However, for now, the State and the Senate have yet to reconcile the two bills to make it into the state’s laws.

“This bill addresses the issue of financial exploitation of older Virginians, which has been on the rise in recent years,” said the sponsor, Senator Mark Obenshain, R-Rockingham.