Legal Question in Elder Law in Illinois

can elder abuse case be opened after death

My grandmother's suffered from

demetia and an unrelated person

who had POA admitted her to a

nursing home and sold her home and

possessions. She told estate sale

company that there was no living

family. About a year later Grandma

died and caregiver produced a will

with her as sole benefactor. In

addition to ww2 artifacts belonging to

my deceased grandfather there were

antiques and a house worth at least

200 thousand dollars but in Probate

this person is now claiming there is

no money. Is there any one to

contact that will investigate this

abuse that occurred before and after

death. Should it be local police or

specialized agency?


Asked on 3/02/09, 12:41 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jeffrey R. Gottlieb Law Offices of Jeffrey R. Gottlieb, LLC

Re: can elder abuse case be opened after death

Is there a probate estate opened? If yes, then your grandmother's heirs (her children if she had surviving children) can file in the probate estate to contest the Will and also force this non-relative to account for her actions taken as POA. If no estate is opened, then they should force one open to bring these issues before the court. The authorities may or may not take an interest, but they are probably going to tell you that you should start with a civil case to determine what happened. In any case, probate court is where the heirs would try to get what they may have coming from the estate.

Read more
Answered on 3/02/09, 12:47 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Elder Law questions and answers in Illinois