The latest publication of Elder Law in a Nutshell was, in my opinion, an easy read and a thorough and comprehensive explanation that should appeal to both the lay person and someone in the legal profession.

Reports of guardians stealing from their wards' bank accounts and other wise abusing guardianship powers are surfacing with disturbing regularity. 'This problem is going to get bigger and bigger,' says E. Bentley Lipscomb, AARP's Florida state director and a former state secretary of elder affairs. - GUARDIANS DRAWING INCREASED SCRUTINY, AARP Bulletin. Read also "The Retirement Nightmare" by Diane Armstrong. Get the real truth about the fraud and abuse of the elderly and not so elderly by corrupt probate system and guardians. To avoid a guardianship in the State of Florida, and other states, should be of paramount importance. Find out how to protect yourself and your loved ones with alternatives: health care surrogate, durable power of attorney, mediation and more. Consider that if you leave your parents to fend for themselves, and ignore the deterioration associated with aging, a guardian can gain a guardianship over them and their assets, without informing you. That guardianship will nullify the most meticulous of plans.