Stan Lee’s Former Manager Arrested on Elder Abuse Charges

Elder Care, Elder Law, Estate Planning / Elder Abuse, Elder Care, Financial Abuse, St. Petersburg Estate Planning Attorney

District Attorney of Los Angeles County Jackie Lacey has leveled elder abuse charges against Stan Lee’s former business manager, Keya Morgan.

Lee, the creator of Spiderman, the Black Panther, and other comic book heroes.

MSN’s recent article, “Stan Lee’s Ex-Manager Hit With Elder Abuse Charges; Arrest Warrant Issued” reports that Morgan is facing one felony count of false imprisonment of an elder adult, three felony counts of theft, embezzlement, and forgery or fraud against an elder adult, as well as the initial elder abuse misdemeanor count.

Morgan took control of Lee’s business affairs and personal life in February 2018. Lee, the creator of Spiderman, the Black Panther, and other comic book heroes, had assets of more than $50 million in the last years of his life. Lee passed away on November 12, 2018. Morgan is said to have isolated his client from family and friends. Morgan also embezzled or misappropriated $5 million of assets, according to documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in 2018.

The five counts of elder abuse filed on May 10 could put Morgan in prison for 10 years, if he’s found guilty.

The public first learned of the troublesome relationship between Morgan and Lee last summer, when the then 95-year old Marvel comic book legend sought a restraining order against his ex-aide over elder abuse. The request was made just three days after Lee put out a June 10, 2018 video on social media insisting that he and Morgan were working “together and are conquering the world side-by-side.”

Because of the video and the elder abuse filing, Lee’s financial advisor was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department on suspicion of filing a false police report, allegedly concerning a supposed break-in incident at Lee’s residence.

A three-year restraining order against Morgan was granted by a county judge last August. He was found guilty of the false police report misdemeanor charge in April 2019 and was ordered to stay away from Lee’s family and residence among other conditions.

After years of making cameos in all the Marvel blockbuster movies, Lee’s last appearance was in the record smashing Avengers: Endgame, which was released last month.

Reference: MSN (May 15, 2019) “Stan Lee’s Ex-Manager Hit With Elder Abuse Charges; Arrest Warrant Issued”

How are Financial Advisors Trying to Prevent Financial Exploitation?

Elder Law, Estate Planning / Elder Abuse, Financial Abuse, Fraud, Scams, Senior Safe Act, St. Petersburg Estate Planning

The next time you see your financial adviser, you may be asked to provide a trusted point of contact, such as a relative or friend to call, if the adviser has a reasonable belief that you might be a victim of financial exploitation.

Kiplinger’s recent article, “New Rules Battle Financial Scams, Elder Abuse” says that your adviser could place a temporary hold on a suspicious disbursement request from you, so your money is protected until the concern is investigated. Once money has left an account, it’s hard to get it back.

Changes include several new laws that protect seniors and their money. For older adults, financial exploitation is a growing problem. One in five older Americans are the victim of financial exploitation each year, resulting in the loss of $3 billion annually.

Mild cognitive impairment can result in older adults not seeing red flags for fraud, says Michael Pieciak, president of the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which represents state securities regulators. The ability to judge risk may be diminished. He noted that social isolation plays a part, with vulnerable seniors home during the day and apt to answer the phone when a fraudster calls.

Federal and state lawmakers, along with the financial services industry, have initiated new rules to help safeguard seniors and their assets. The idea is that financial institutions and professionals are on the front lines of spotting elder financial abuse. The changes are designed to protect seniors and to shield financial professionals from liability for reporting possible exploitation.

Congress passed the Senior Safe Act in 2018. This law protects financial services professionals from being sued over privacy and other violations for reporting suspected elder financial abuse to law enforcement, provided they’ve been trained. If a bank teller notices that a senior seems confused about withdrawing money or making puzzling transactions, the teller could tell a superior, who could contact authorities, if necessary.

Nineteen states have enacted some version of a NASAA model act that provides registered investment advisers and broker-dealers with guidance on telling a trusted point of contact and putting a temporary hold on a client’s account to investigate financial fraud.

Reference: Kiplinger (April 3, 2019) “New Rules Battle Financial Scams, Elder Abuse”

The Latest on Florida’s Attempt to Create an Online Notary Law

Elder Care, Estate Planning, Power of Attorney / Elder Abuse, Financial Abuse, Notary, Power of Attorney, St. Petersburg

The Florida legislature is giving consideration to HB 409, which would make signing estate planning documents, like a will or power of attorney, more convenient. Some have expressed concerns that greater convenience could lead to more fraud, especially for the elderly.

Florida’s proposed law had pros and cons.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports in the story “Florida may allow legal papers to be notarized online” that the legislation was proposed by Representative Daniel Perez, R-Miami. The bill moved Tuesday through the House transportation and tourism appropriations subcommittee and will be considered next in the Judiciary Committee—the last step before a House vote. However, a Senate version hasn’t made as much progress.

Representative Perez remarked that he’d recently traveled to Colombia and realized as he boarded his flight, that he’d failed to assign power of attorney to his in-laws. The requirement that he appear in person before a Florida-commissioned notary made it impossible to fix his oversight, he said.

The notary bill has made it past attempts by two Democrats that would’ve limited its scope. Representative Barbara Watson, D-Miami Gardens, compared the risks of fraud under the system to college students who buy fake IDs to illegally drink alcohol. She proposed requiring notary witnesses to be in the same place physically, as whoever is signing legal documents.

“When we have no one tangibly looking at this information, not having it in their hands for close inspection to verify its validity, we’re in trouble,” Watson said.

Representative Ben Diamond, D-St. Petersburg, said allowing wills and powers of attorney to be created online was dangerous for Florida’s elderly. He said lawmakers need to balance between better business and protecting older residents.

“I have a concern about someone going into a nursing home with an iPad and walking room to room and getting people to click buttons and then they get a couple of powers of attorney,” Diamond said.

Perez responded that it was possible for criminals to take advantage of elderly people, even with the current notary requirements.

Attorneys are split. Lawyers from the Florida Bar’s Real Property Probate and Trust Law section said the proposal puts the elderly at greater risk of fraud, but those in the Elder Law section said the online services will make it easier for Florida’s older population to plan estates.

Reference: San Francisco Chronicle (March 27, 2019) “Florida may allow legal papers to be notarized online”

Choose Power of Attorney Agents Wisely

Elder Care, Elder Law, Estate Planning, Power of Attorney / Elder Abuse, Financial Abuse, Power of Attorney, St. Petersburg

For nearly four years, John Jerome O’Hara took charge of his mother’s care at a Kentucky nursing home. She suffered from Alzheimer’s disease.

O’Hara gained power of attorney over her affairs in June 2014. He was expected to manage thousands of dollars in income a month. In addition, O’Hara was supposed to use that income for his mom’s living expenses at Wesley Manor in Louisville.

However, reports The Washington Post in the article “He had power of attorney over his Alzheimer’s-afflicted mother—and stole $332,000, grand jury says,” for nearly four years, O’Hara robbed his mother instead. The charges contained 18 counts—ten of bank fraud, four of wire fraud and four of “access device fraud.”

The charges carry a maximum of several lifetimes in prison, the indictment said.

Each bank fraud count carries a maximum of 30 years in prison. In addition, there’s the potential for hefty fines and restitution.

O’Hara took the funds, in part, by writing checks to himself, according to the indictment.

He also wrote checks out to cash or signed “POA” for power of attorney. He withdrew money from her bank accounts to use for his expenses, prosecutors allege.

O’Hara’s alleged theft left a trail of financial distress, which was clear to investigators. Most significantly, he failed to pay his mother’s living expenses, the indictment said. This forced other family members to pay more than $100,000 to keep her cared for at the nursing home.

In addition, O’Hara left other obligations unpaid. He missed mortgage payments at his mother’s home in Lexington, the indictment said, and the home was foreclosed in March, as a result.

Reference: The Washington Post (December 9, 2018) “He had power of attorney over his Alzheimer’s-afflicted mother—and stole $332,000, grand jury says”

Spiderman Creator Stan Lee’s Estate Needs Untangling

Asset Protection, Estate Planning, Executor, Probate, Trusts, Wills / Attorney-in-Fact, Beneficiary Designations, Capacity, Elder Abuse, Elder Care, Estate Planning Lawyer, Executor, Financial Abuse, Power of Attorney, St. Petersburg, Trustee, Trusts, Wills

It’s going to take more than a super hero to unravel the mess that Stan Lee left behind.

The passing of Stan Lee, famed Marvel Comics publisher and chairman, was sad for his legions of fans. For his 68-year-old daughter J.C., there’s grief and a challenging estate to be settled. His last years were hard, with ill health, the passing of his wife of nearly 70 years and accusations of sexual harassment from nurses and home aides.

In addition, Lee reportedly said that $1.4 million dollars was missing from his bank accounts and that a large chunk of the money had been used to purchase a condo.

MarketWatch’srecent article, “Stan Lee’s tangled web of estate planning and how to avoid it in your own life,”reports that Lee had also hired and fired several business managers and attorneys in this time.

“I learned later on in life, you need advisors, if you’re making any money at all,” he told the Daily Beastin a 2018 interview. He also remarked that he’d done much of his own money management at the start of his career.

“But then, a little money started coming in, and I realized I needed help. And I needed people I could trust. And I had made some big mistakes. And my first bunch of people were people that I shouldn’t have trusted.”

It’s not known at this point, if Lee had a will or any trusts in place. If he did not, then he’s joining other late celebrities like performers Aretha Franklin and Prince who failed to draft these documents. As a result, their heirs and potential beneficiaries have had to go to court to straighten things out.

Keeping track of an estate plan can become harder as a person ages, because he or she could suffer cognitive decline, or a professional or family member may think he or she is suffering from this. Stan Lee was the subject of this type of inquiry: in February, he signed a document declaring that his daughter spent too much money, yelled at him, and befriended three men who wanted to take advantage of him, the Hollywood Reporterreported. However, a few days later, Lee took it back.

Seniors can become get less confident in what they’re doing, and they are more susceptible to the influence of others who may not have the best of intentions. However, you can easily create an estate plan with which you’re comfortable, with the help of an experienced estate panning attorney.

A big rat’s nest that will need to be addressed by Lee’s daughter will be dealing with the many business documents that may be floating around from his current and past business managers and attorneys. To avoid this, work with an estate planning attorney and ask some specific questions, such as:

How do we organize and simplify my assets?
Will we need a trust, and how will they be managed?
How will you coordinate with my executor and/or attorney-in-fact while I’m well, and after I’m sick or gone?
How do you determine cognitive decline in an individual? What would you do, if you believed my ability to answer questions and manage my funds was diminished? What would you do once you’ve made this decision?
How often will we review my beneficiary designations and estate planning documents?
How should we coordinate a team of financial and legal professionals to make sure all are working towards the same goals?
How much or how little information about my estate should be discussed with family members?

Reference: MarketWatch(November 17, 2018) “Stan Lee’s tangled web of estate planning and how to avoid it in your own life”

Stan Lee’s Former Manager Arrested on Elder Abuse Charges

How are Financial Advisors Trying to Prevent Financial Exploitation?

The Latest on Florida’s Attempt to Create an Online Notary Law

Choose Power of Attorney Agents Wisely

Spiderman Creator Stan Lee’s Estate Needs Untangling

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