Legal Services the Elderly Population

Legal Services

The elderly population is one of the most vulnerable segments of the population in any society. This segment of the population also has special needs, including legal services. The purpose of this discussion is to examine legal service designed for the specific purposes of assisting the elderly.

Legal assistance for the elderly

According to the book Community Resources for Older Adults, there are many reasons why the elderly may require legal services. These reasons include changes in health conditions, family situations and work. As a result of these conditions many elderly people need legal assistance in handling their affairs.

The federal government recognizes that the elderly population in America often requires legal assistance and as such Title III of the Older American's Act specifies that each state is required to provide the elderly with legal assistance. These legal services are free of charge for the elderly. These programs are specifically for individuals over the age of sixty. In most cases there is no income limits associated with these nation wide programs but they are geared towards elderly with lower incomes. According to an article entitled "Legal help for senior citizens,"

Title III providers generally receive inadequate funding to assist all older persons in need of help. They therefore develop ways to determine which clients to accept. The Act's regulations prohibit use of a "means test" to limit receipt of services, yet mandate that preference be given to serving those in the greatest social or economic need. To resolve this dilemma, legal providers usually establish a case acceptance policy that serves those areas of law that most affect persons in greatest economic or social need (such as public benefits, housing, and healthcare) ("Legal help for senior citizens")."

The legal services offered through this program often differ from state to state but in general the types of services provided included assistance with other governmental programs such as Medicare, social security and Medicaid ("Legal help for senior citizens"). In addition the services can assist the elderly with issues associated with age discrimination, elder abuse, fraud, nursing homes and conservatorships ("Legal help for senior citizens"). All of these issues are often unique to the elderly population and as such the state legal aid programs are geared toward assisting older Americans in dealing with these issues.

In addition to the aforementioned legal program, there are also pro bono programs that the elderly can access ("Legal help for senior citizens"). These programs are designed for the elderly that have higher incomes but do not have enough income to pay for legal problems that may arise. The federal government recognizes that there is often a gap between the need that exist and the people who can qualify for the existing programs. For this reason pro bono services are available.

Many senior citizens also qualify for legal aid. Legal aid is a program for all Americans who live below the poverty line, including senior citizens. Legal Aid is funded by the Legal Services organization, a department of the federal government ("What is LSC?"). This aspect of the federal government was created in 1974 to assist low income individuals with civil litigation issues. According to the official website of the organization most clients are women and the elderly ("What is LSC?"). In many cases legal aid assist people with family issues including guardianship issues. Legal aid is readily available through this program an 138 local programs, and provides services in every Congressional district and county in the country ("What is LSC?").

In addition to federal programs there are also programs throughout the country founded by lawyers to assist the elderly with different types of legal issues including mediation. These programs also fill the gap between those who can qualify for existing programs and the availability of the programs.

One such program is Legal Services of South Central Michigan. This service provides legal assistance and advice to the elderly and low income individuals ("Legal Services of South Central Michigan"). This group offers legal assistance to senior citizens regardless of income. It is a private non-profit organization that is composed of lawyers, law students, community, and paralegals ("Legal Services of South Central Michigan"). Although this particular service is located in Michigan, there are similar programs throughout the country. This is particularly true in places such as Florida which has a large elderly population.