OAA Reauthorization
Elder Rights & Elder Justice
Rebecca C. Morgan
Stetson University College of Law
Gulfport, Florida
Legal Services
• Title III funds variety of services
• Legal services more different than similar to
what else is funded
• % of dollars to legal services
▫ Small % comparatively
▫ Variation between states
Legal Services
• Economy
▫ More need than ever
• Recognize that not just one client-one matter
▫ Could be a matter affecting large #s of clients
• When economy is bad, everything becomes an
“impact” case
• Legal services critical to independence, financial
security, etc.
Legal Services
• Look at organization
▫ Consider more regional or state level organization
• Advantages-broader picture of what is going on
and needs
• Some national organizations such as NAELA and
ABA Commission on Law & Aging talking
▫ Consider use of state bars, IOLTA or Pro Bono –
accustomed to dealing with legal services on
statewide level
Legal Services
• Quality Measures & Data collection
• Unique nature of legal problems necessitate
developers should be lawyers
• How to better integrate various services &
programs
• Local, state & national levels
▫ More effective to provide expertise, spot “trends”,
etc.
Legal Services
• To extent possible-national level coordinationlegal services developers, ombudsman, pension
counseling, etc.
• Have seen trend in academic settings of
medical/legal partnerships
• Consider, to extent possible, partnerships
between developers and other agencies,
including law enforcement
Elder Justice
• Comprehensive elder justice system—integrated,
multidisciplinary, collaborative system –
preventing, detecting & addressing elder abuse,
neglect and financial exploitation
▫ Widespread access
▫ Multi-disciplinary, multi-agency
▫ Data collection
Elder Justice
• Importance of continued/expanded work on
elder abuse
• Consumer and financial frauds
▫ Proliferation of scams & frauds targeting elders
▫ How to respond
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Inter-agency cooperation
Impact on elder rights
Lack of funding-budget cuts
Importance of provisions of EJA
N4A survey 2007-prevalent legal issues
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Protective Services, Guardianships, POAs
Frauds & Scams
Estate & End of Life Planning
Medicare & Medicaid
Housing
Long Term Care
Elder abuse, neglect, exploitation
Elder Justice
• Think about how define the various types under
elder abuse
▫ Variations among states in definitions and
responses
▫ Funding for training
▫ Data collection – agencies
▫ How make it important?
 PSAs?
Elder Justice
• Impact when victim of financial frauds or scams
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POA abuses
Autonomy
Independence
Income security
Next Steps
• Uniformity in the “language”
• Data collection by law enforcement
• Specialized units in law enforcement,
prosecutors, etc.
• It’s a priority
• Inter-agency collaboration at national level
▫ Scam is a scam is a scam—but the bad guys are
targeting elders
▫ Who should lead-AoA
Thanks to Assistant Secretary