Read This About Elder Abuse Attorneys

Attorneys that specialize in aiding victims of

Physical abuse includes any direct harm to the victim.

Psychological abuse includes humiliation and terrorizing the victim through shouting or ignoring that causes the victim to be fearful.

Sexual abuse includes any unwanted sexual activities forced upon the victim.

Negligence includes ignoring the basic needs of the victim and the intentional restriction of access to those needs.

Financial abuse includes exploiting the monies and properties of the victim through coercion or theft.

Rights abuse includes ignoring the constitutional rights of the victim. (State laws have been passed to help prevent this type of abuse to the elderly.)

Abandonment includes stranding the victim in a place where harm to their personal welfare may befall them.

Another form of abuse that is on the rise is institutional abuse. This abuse comes from organizations, i.e. Elder abuse, perhaps surprisingly, is often caused by those close to the victim. Whether it is a family member or friend, the majority of victims know their abuser and have a relationship with them. This relationship is known as a "relationship of trust". Some people may deceive and coerce the elderly into trusting them in order to receive monies or be added to the victims will. Statistically, women are the primary victims of elder abuse.

Elder abuse attorneys are able to prosecute and penalize the perpetrators of the abuse. This may come through monies paid to the victim or jail time imposed on the perpetrator. One tool that an elder abuse attorney has in his or her arsenal is the Federal Older Americans Act of 1965. This act makes provisions for the care and support of the elderly in the United States. Under Title VII of this act, funds and guidelines are appropriated for the protection of the elderly and their rights.

Title VII outlines programs to be established, state requirements to be set, and defines the rights the elderly have and what constitutes the violation of those rights. Another tool that an elder abuse attorney can use to aid the victims of elder abuse is Adult Protective Services law (APS). Many states have APS laws to ensure that senior citizens are protected from harm through elder abuse and from those that would manipulate any vulnerabilities that the victim may have.

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