IT DOES HAPPEN IN ARIZONA
"How can this happen in America," Johnson asked. "This is a giant hole in our system. This isn't liberty and justice… I think that if these people are exploiting others, taking advantage of them, stealing their money, stealing their souls — if they can get away with it, they'll continue to." (WXYZ Detroit, 4-3-2023)
This was a comment made by a family member whose relative suffered at the hands of a professional guardian. Michigan has professional guardians, similar to Arizona's licensed fiduciaries. Like Arizona and many other states, Michigan is trying desperately to institute reforms that will prevent such professionals from using their court-appointed positions to steal the money and souls of people subjected to their corrupt system.
Thanks to the investigative efforts of a few news organizations and non-profits, people are slowly becoming aware of this giant hole in our system. It is indeed hard to believe that people can lose their rights and their money so easily – as one U.S. senator said, ". . . rights being taken away by a single stroke of a pen." (U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, R-Indiana).
Family members can also use the court system to abuse and exploit relatives, and those abuses are slowly being addressed as well. But the idea is that unrelated professionals often sweep in and, with the stamp of approval by the courts, take over vulnerable adults' lives and their assets. These so-called professionals restrict the freedom of those they are supposed to protect, often placing them in locked facilities and isolating them from those closest to them. These so-called professionals take control of the assets people have worked so hard for - they sell their homes, move their investment accounts, and spend their money, all with very little real oversight.
As a probate attorney, I have seen this right here in Arizona. I have seen the state agencies charged with protecting vulnerable adults work hand-in-hand with the so-called professional to facilitate the theft of money and soul. Here in Arizona, state agencies, attorneys, and licensed fiduciaries wield great power and often resort to threats, intimidation, and outright bullying to take control of people and assets and to shut up anyone complaining.
In my practice, I have seen this occur with many whom I call elder-orphans (older people with no children or few close relatives). Because of that, they are particularly vulnerable to an abusive system.
Some of our legislators are working hard to protect these vulnerable adults. Many states, including Arizona, are trying to reform this system. There are bills in the legislature to make it more difficult to strip someone of all their rights – it should take more than "a single stroke of a pen." I have seen meaningful efforts in California, Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Arizona.
Not surprisingly, most opposition to Arizona reform comes from licensed fiduciaries and attorneys. Individual judges have also expressed displeasure at some of the reforms, but judges must be careful about taking such positions, so we probably will not hear much from them.
I also have encountered apathy from many others. Because it is so hard to believe this can happen, most people think it is not happening. The strongest supporters of reform have been those who have witnessed first-hand or personally experienced these abuses. These are often wives who have had their husbands stolen from them, relatives who have had contact cut off, and friends who have been bullied to stay away and not ask questions.
Many think the system is working fine and that those in positions of authority will do the right thing. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
