Elder financial abuse occurs when an individual uses an older adult’s money, resources, or property for personal gain. Perpetrators of this type of financial abuse can include family members, neighbors, health providers, and strangers. The financial exploitation of elderly individuals can affect them and their families long into the future.
Seek legal help if you believe one or both of your parents may be the victim of elder financial abuse. A broker misconduct lawyer could help you determine if you have grounds for legal action against anyone who may have financially exploited an elderly person in your family. If so, your attorney can guide you through the legal process.
What Is Elder Financial Abuse in the United States?
A person is financially abusive if they misuse or illegally take another’s money, resources, or personal property. The former’s actions are to the detriment of the latter’s. As such, they can be punished for their actions.
If you have concerns or questions about elder fraud, an investment fraud lawyer can assist. They can teach you about the warning signs of financial exploitation of an elderly person.
If people have financially abused your parents, your attorney can explain what you can do to hold these individuals accountable for their actions.
Proving the financial exploitation of an elderly person can be difficult. Your lawyer can gather a wealth of evidence to support your case. If you have an abundance of proof at your disposal, you are well-equipped to achieve your desired case results.
We Have Recovered Over
$350 Million for Our Clients Nationwide.
What Are the Warning Signs of Elder Financial Exploitation?
Gather as much evidence as you can before reporting elder financial abuse, as your body of proof can help you make a compelling argument against a perpetrator. There are many signs that a parent could be the victim of financial elder abuse. These include:
The Appearance of a New Caregiver or Friend
People can appear from seemingly out of nowhere who claim they want to care for your parents. They may offer care and support or offer to manage their credit cards and other aspects of their finances.
Yet, these people may be more interested in gaining access to your parent’s assets than doing whatever is necessary to assist them.
Concerns About Missing Financial Documents or Unknown Bank or Credit Card Account Activity
Older adults may notice financial documents suddenly disappear or bank or credit card account transactions are completed without their consent. Take such activities seriously if your parents report them to you. Someone could be infiltrating your parent’s assets and committing acts that put their finances at risk.
New Bank or Credit Card Accounts Set Up
An older adult may be inclined to provide financial aid to family members, friends, or others they trust. Thus, they may offer to help them set up bank or credit card accounts. Once these accounts are established, your parent could be subject to unexplained withdrawals and other fraudulent activities.
Changing Power of Attorney
If an older adult believes it is best to provide someone with legal authority to handle their financial affairs, they may provide them with power of attorney.
However, people can use this authorization for the financial exploitation of elderly adults. An investment fraud attorney can teach you about what power of attorney is and how someone could use it for financial abuse.
Consult with a lawyer if you notice signs of financial elder abuse. An attorney can offer tips, recommendations, and insights to help your parents protect their assets from fraud and theft through trusts and other methods.
They can also explain the steps required to report the financial exploitation of a parent to Adult Protective Services (APS) and law enforcement.
Who Is at Risk of Elder Financial Exploitation?
Unfortunately, some people want to take your parent’s money, property, and other assets away from them. These individuals may be prone to target certain groups of elderly adults and attempt to assert undue influence over them. Groups of older adults that may face a high risk of elder financial abuse include:
Isolated Adults
Your parents may spend most of their time on their own and enjoy the freedom that comes with having full control over their money and property.
There are times when older adults are offered an investment opportunity and have little to no access to resources to vet it thoroughly. Rather than miss this opportunity, they could invest, and a perpetrator could harm them financially.
Adults Who Are Dealing With Alzheimer’s Disease or Dementia
Alzheimer’s disease and dementia can impact the cognition of adults. Your parents could be dealing with either of these and be unaware of it. Therefore, your parents could make a rash financial decision that endangers their bank accounts, money, and property.
Adults Who Are Grieving the Loss of a Loved One
Losing a loved one is devastating and can have emotional and psychological implications. Your parents could be coping with grief following a family member’s death when someone claims they want to care for and support them during this challenging time. The individual who now appears to be their “new friend” could commit financial exploitation.
There are many ways seniors can avoid financial scams. Regardless, if you are not careful, your parents could face financial exploitation. The abuse your parents suffer could come from a myriad of sources.
Our lawyers are nationwide leaders in investment fraud cases.
Who Is Responsible for the Financial Exploitation of Older Adults?
It is easy to believe that adults are acting in your parent’s best interests when they are allowed to make financial decisions on their behalf. Ultimately, you may find some adults may be more focused on their financial wellness than your parent’s. Examples of parties that could financially exploit your parents include:
Family Members and Friends
Your parents may have close relationships with family and friends. Sadly, a sibling, child, or another family member could financially exploit your parents without them realizing what is happening. In the same way, a friend could gain access to your parent’s assets and do whatever they choose with them.
Nursing Home Staff
The staff at a nursing home is dedicated to providing medical care and helping residents in any way they can. Alternatively, if your parents live in a long-term care facility, you could find money missing from their room or other signs of suspicious activity. In these instances, nursing home personnel could be financially abusing your parents.
Telemarketers
Despite your best efforts, you may not be able to fully protect your parents from cold calling, social media, and email investment fraud schemes.
Telemarketers may do everything in their power to reach your parents and claim they can offer an investment opportunity unlike any other. If they are successful, your parents could inadvertently fall victim to an investment scam.
Financial Advisor
A financial advisor could make big promises to your parents, prompting an investment. The financial decisions your parents make based on the resources and insights provided by their advisor may seem sound at first. In the long run, the advisor could be running a scam that compromises your parent’s financial security.
Learn how to tell if your parents are at risk of elder investment fraud and teach your parents about elder financial abuse from these and other parties.
If you are worried that your parents’ financial resources are in danger, let them know. Also, meet with a lawyer, and they can discuss your legal options and what can be done to combat this type of abuse.
We Are The firm other lawyers
call for support.
Ask for Legal Help if Your Parent Is the Victim of Investor Misconduct
An elderly person can be viewed as a vulnerable adult, and they could be the target of undue influence from parties who want money from them. Meanwhile, you care about your parents and are concerned about possible financial exploitation. In this case, partner with a lawyer, and they could identify investment fraud and other signs of financial elder abuse.
Meyer Wilson has more than 75 years of combined legal experience on our team. We are national leaders in investment fraud cases and can help you pursue damages from anyone who may be financially abusing one or both of your parents if the losses total at least $100,000. Schedule a case consultation with us.
Recovering Losses Caused by Investment Misconduct.
