Albany Law School

A panel of experts on elder abuse gathered at the law school to discuss issues ranging from physical and mental abuse to financial exploitation of senior citizens. The event took place on Monday, March 5, at 5:00 p.m. in Room 425.

Topics examined at this event included:  

• Signs and clues of the various forms of elder abuse, and how to recognize them
• Common scenarios in which elder abuse can begin
• Legal and practical methods of preventing elder abuse from occurring
• Problems of elder abuse in nursing homes, assisted-living facilities, and hospitals
• Roles that family members can take on in protecting loved ones against elder abuse
• Strategies for picking reliable people to safeguard a senior citizen’s health care decisions and financial assets
• Legal remedies that can be pursued when elder abuse does occur

Members of the panel included:

• Elizabeth Loewy '84, Head of the Elder Abuse Unit at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and prosecutor the headline-making Brooke Astor case
• Alan Lawitz, Director of the New York State Bureau of Adult Services
• James Hacker '84, Managing Partner of the law firm of Hacker Murphy, LLC
• Annette Esposito, Elder Abuse Case Manager of Equinox Community Services

Susan Somers '84, Secretary-General and General Counsel of the International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, will serve as the panel moderator. A question-and-answer session with the panelists will take place immediately after the discussion, followed by a reception in the law school’s East Foyer.

The program is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Benjamin Pomerance or Anne Jelliff. The entire program was organized by Albany Law School’s student chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.