Probate Guardianship Abuse | Stopping Elder Financial Exploitation

Probate Guardianship Abuse | Stopping Elder Financial Exploitation

• July 3, 2019 - Elder Financial Abuse,

Imagine you have an elderly loved one – maybe a parent or grandparent. How would you feel if someone took them from their home against their will, isolated them from you and looted their estate? What would you do? Believe it or not, this is big business – and the adult probate guardianship industry operates under color of law.

Guardianship abuse poses a real threat to the well-being of seniors and their families. Lives are irreparably damaged and fortunes disappear, all because of the greed of skilled manipulators who use legal mechanisms to commit what amounts to elder financial abuse. The duty to protect is turned on its head when predators claim the right to plunder the innocent.

There are ways to fight back, both through litigation action and advocacy. Americans Against Abusive Probate Guardianship (AAAPG), led by my friend and colleague Dr. Sam Sugar, is on the front line of this battle to keep our seniors safe from exploitation. Along with Rick Black of the Center for Estate Administration Reform and Teresa Kennedy of Elder Dignity, Sam is leading the charge for additional safeguards to stop probate guardianship abuse. Their comprehensive video, The Deception of Protection, is a call to arms against wrongdoing in a deeply flawed industry, and I highly recommend it as a quick way to get informed.

When you see how predatory guardians can get away with egregious abuses of legal authority against the weak and the vulnerable, you’ll know the time for excuses is over. Now is the time to act.