SUNCOAST ESTATE PLANNING COUNCIL

“When the Golden Years Are Tarnished by Elder Financial Exploitation”

Presented by: 

Rebecca C. Morgan

 Professor of Law at Stetson University College of Law.

Elder financial exploitation is one of the fastest-growing—and most underreported—forms of abuse affecting older adults. Estate planners are uniquely positioned on the front lines, often seeing warning signs long before harm becomes irreversible. This presentation equips professionals working with senior adults to recognize red flags, understand common exploitation schemes, and take ethically and legally sound steps to protect clients’ autonomy, assets, and dignity.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

1. Identify common forms of elder financial exploitation, including undue influence, caregiver abuse, and “new best friend” scenarios that appear suddenly—and expensively.
2. Recognize behavioral, financial, and legal red flags that may indicate exploitation, even when the client insists “everything is fine.”
3. Distinguish capacity issues from coercion, and understand how undue influence can exist even when legal capacity technically remains intact.
4. Apply practical screening and documentation strategies during client interactions to protect both the client and the professional (because “I had a bad feeling” doesn’t hold up in court).
5. Respond appropriately and ethically when exploitation is suspected, including knowing when—and how—to escalate concerns without blowing up the client relationship.

Getting to know your speaker:

Rebecca C. Morgan is a Professor of Law at Stetson University College of Law. Professor Morgan teaches a variety of elder law courses in the JD program. She is the successor co-author of Matthew Bender's Tax, Estate and Financial Planning for the Elderly, and its companion forms book (Lexis) The Fundamentals of Special Needs Trusts (Lexis), Ethics in an Elder Law Practice (ABA), Planning for Disability (Bloomberg BNA Portfolio). She is co-author of Elder Law in Context (Aspen), Bankruptcy in Context, and Mastering Interviewing and Counseling and Third-Party and Self-Created Trusts: A Modern Look (ABA). Professor Morgan has authored a number of articles on a variety of elder law issues and has spoken a number of times on subjects of elder law. She is the co-editor of the Elder Law Prof Blog, (with Katherine Pearson (Penn State).

Professor Morgan is a past president of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, past president of the board of directors of the National Senior Citizens Law Center, past chair of the American Association of Law Schools Section on Aging and the Law and of the Florida Bar Elder Law Section, and on the faculty of the National Judicial College. She served as the reporter for the Uniform Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Act. She served on the Florida Attorney General's Task Force on Elder Abuse and the Florida Legislative Guardianship Study Commission. She is a member of the American Law Institute (ALI), academic advisory board for the Borchard Center for Law and Aging, an academic fellow of the American College of Trusts & Estates Counsel (ACTEC), a NAELA fellow, and a member of NAELA's Council of Advanced Practitioners (chair 2012-2014). After a term on the Board of the ABA Commission on Law and Aging, she is a special advisor to the ABA Commission on Law and Aging. She is a member of the board of directors for the Center for Medicare Advocacy and for the American Society on Aging.

Professor Morgan was the recipient of the 2003 Faculty Award on Professionalism from the Florida Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism. She received the NAELA Unaward in November 2004 from President Stu Zimring for her accomplishments in the field of elder law. Professor Morgan, along with Professor Roberta Flowers, received the 2005 Project Award on Professionalism from the Florida Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism for their video series on ethics in an elder law practice. She received the 2006 Rosalie Wolf Memorial Elder Abuse Prevention Award from the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse. She received the Homer & Dolly Hand Award for Faculty Scholarship in May of 2008, and the NAELA President's Award from NAELA President Mark Shalloway in May of 2008. She received the Theresa Award from the Theresa Alexandra Foundation in 2008. Professor Morgan was the 2009 recipient of the Treat award from the National College of Probate Judges. In 2018 Professor Morgan received the Ben C. Willard alumni award for humanitarian achievements from Stetson University College of Law.  Professor Morgan was inducted into the College of Law Hall of Fame in 2018. In 2021, the Florida Bar Elder Law Section awarded Professor Morgan with a lifetime achievement award.

Thank you to our sponosor!