Episode 004 – Air Date June 24, 2021
Title: Fraudulent Guardianship Dangers – How to avoid falling victim and how to help those who have!
In this episode of Emily Tells All, Emily shines the light on the dangers of fraudulent senior guardianship. We talk to an expert about how to avoid falling victim and how to keep your loved ones safe. Plus, tips on how seniors can navigate the court system.
Community Activist/Leader – Opposing Fraudulent Guardianships, Douglas Keegan
Miami Probate, Attorney – Luis Barreto
Orange County Sheriff’s Office Florida Elder Crime Prevention, Laura Lang
The Helpful and Hurtful Sides of Guardianship
Thanks to the popular Netflix film “I Care a Lot” and real-life cases of conservatorship gone wrong, we’ve been introduced to the concept of guardianship. In essence, guardianship is a legal process that involves granting another person the power to make decisions for you. However, this process can surely be abused.
In this episode of Emily Tells All, I sat down with Luis Barreto, Douglas Keegan, and Laura Lang to discuss the helpful and hurtful sides of guardianship, as well as how to avoid falling victim. Barreto is a Miami attorney specializing in estate planning, Keegan was a victim of fraudulent guardianship, and Lang is part of Orange County Sheriff’s Office Florida Elder Crime Prevention.
Legal Counsel from Luis
Luis Barreto has been practicing law in Miami for the last 29 years. He started off in the realm of conflict public defending, working on cases that dealt with mental health and incapacitation.
While he says guardianship was created for the right reasons, sometimes it is abused.
“But like anything in life, there are always situations where abuses happen, and guardianship has those cases where sometimes people are trampled over, their rights are taken away, improperly or imprudently.”
Luis advises that guardianship should be the last resort. There are many alternatives that might leave both parties in a better situation.
He recommends assigning a durable power of attorney, which involves you personally selecting who will act on your behalf if a need arises. He also states that having a video of yourself stating your will helps to make sure the others can see your mental state when the video was made. Luis further recommends designating a healthcare surrogate- selecting someone to make health decisions for you.
Having a living will is also important as it states what will happen if you become terminally ill.
All of these safeguards require seeking an attorney to draw up documents. It’s part of preparing for old age before it happens.
A Word of Advice from Douglas
“Phony guardianship is a huge problem in this country right now,” opens Douglas Keegan. He was a victim of fraudulent guardianship for seven years and recalled how it started, how he fought for his rights, and how he ultimately regained those rights.
It was a long battle against doctors, attorneys, and family members seeking to keep his wealth for themselves. And the same story happens to countless other individuals who are targeted for their wealth as well.
When discussing how to stop and fight fraudulent guardianship, Douglas states, “the best thing is really to support legislative changes and to support the government fixing it.”
A Note on Seeking Elder Care from Laura
We closed our conversation on fraudulent conservatorships by hearing from Laura Lang, a Senior Advocate with the Orange County Sheriff’s office. She deals with various types of elder issues, ranging from safety presentations to handling neglect and abuse cases.
She emphasizes that- above all else- her department is here to protect the senior population and provide them with all the resources they may need. Whether it be checking in with them at their residence or connecting them with services like Meals on Wheels.
Laura gives a final piece of advice to those who suspect an elder is being abused.
“If they feel that a senior may be in an abusive situation, which could be mental, physical, sexual exploitation, material, financial, neglect, or self-neglect, they need to call the abuse hotline. Even if they assume that could happen. And that’s 1-800-96-ABUSE.”
If you are a senior living in Orange County and need help or resources, head to OCSO or call 1-407-836-HELP.
