ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Financial Exploitation of Seniors
Law Enforcement Nabs Abusers Preying on the Elderly
Financial exploitation of the elderly comes in different shapes and sizes. Last week, local law enforcement apprehended two suspects alleged to have extorted more than $180,000 from members of San Francisco’s Chinese community in the final two months of 2018. Some of the victims were seniors, including one elderly victim from whom the suspects took $6000 after promising to buy medicine for her sick son. The perpetrators also stole a gold necklace the older lady was wearing.
The San Francisco and California financial elder abuse attorneys at Evans Law Firm, Inc. represent victims of financial elder abuse whether at the hands of strangers, caregivers, trustees, conservators, financial advisors, or insurance agents selling inappropriate products like annuities or life insurance for a commission. If you or a loved one has been the victim of financial elder abuse in San Francisco or elsewhere in California, call our financial elder abuse lawyers today at (415)441-8669. If you’ve been wronged, notify law enforcement but also reach out to counsel. Our financial elder abuse lawyers will pursue all remedies available to seniors in California including restitution (getting your money back), rescission (undoing an invalid contract), extra damages, and recovery of attorneys’ fees and costs incurred in bringing a financial elder abuse action.
Preventing Financial Elder Abuse
If you have a senior loved one, stay involved in his or her life and visit regularly, reviewing bank accounts, checkbooks, statements, and important papers. Accompany them on trips to the bank or any business meeting. Ward off strangers who take a sudden interest in their “well-being” or financial matters. Do a background check on anyone you hire to assist your loved one. If your loved one has an in-home caregiver or other new acquaintance who seems overly interested in the elderly person’s life, be on guard. Look for signs of financial exploitation:
- Unexpected changes in account balances or banking practices
- New bank accounts
- Allowing a new friend or trusted acquaintance to make decisions on the elderly person’s behalf
- Unauthorized or unexplained withdrawals
- Disappearance of cash or valuable possessions
- Unanticipated transfers of assets to others
- Unpaid bills
- Sudden changes to a will, trust, or other important financial documents
- Someone screening the elder’s phone calls or going through their mail
Contact Us
If you or someone you love is the victim of financial elder abuse by a caregiver, trustee, insurance agent, broker, financial advisor or other party, call Ingrid M. Evans and the other San Francisco and California financial elder abuse attorneys at Evans Law Firm, Inc. at (415) 441-8669, or by email at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>. Our attorneys have experience with securities, annuity, and other investment fraud, financial elder abuse cases and complex qui tam or whistleblower cases including offshore tax avoidance cases, complex financial contract cases and cases against large insurance companies. We can help guide your case through a jury trial or toward an equitable settlement. We also handle cases involving physical elder abuse, nursing home abuse, whole life insurance and universal life insurance, and indexed, variable, and fixed annuities.
