Assistance

Despite various methods and laws protecting the wishes and desires of older adults, some do not engage in legal planning activities or seek protection of their legal rights. Many view cost as a barrier to preparing estate planning documents and/or seeking legal assistance. There are, however, low-cost options for assisting older adults, including:

The Texas Legal Services Center (TLSC) provides legal assistance to older adults. TLSC also operates the toll-free Legal Hotline for Older Texans whereby licensed Texas attorneys provide legal advice directly over the phone.
Older adults may also receive legal assistance from private attorneys who operate on a pro-bono basis (i.e., free). TLSC, AAAs, the State Bar of Texas, the American Association of Retired Persons, and the Alzheimer's Association may have information about pro bono programs.
Older adults can receive assistance at will clinics offered from time to time by area agencies on aging and legal services programs. Attorneys at these clinics provide assistance with drafting legal documents, including durable powers of attorney and/or wills.
Older adults can receive legal assistance from trained benefits counseling volunteers and staff at the 28 area agencies on aging across Texas. Benefits counselors are trained to help older adults with basic legal problems, but are not under the direction of a lawyer. They offer two types of help: legal awareness (e.g., dissemination of relevant information) and assistance (e.g., one-on-one advice). Priority issues addressed by benefit counselors include: health insurance, consumer issues, medical entitlements, housing issues, surrogate decisions, individual rights, fraud, scams, and unfair sales practices. The 77th Texas Legislature passed landmark legislation (HB 1420) that provided for an exception to the "practice of law" definition by allowing benefits counselors to prepare advance medical directives.

Many older adults also are unaware of their legal rights, the need for legal planning, and available low-cost legal assistance. TLSC, AAAs, AARP, and other organizations have worked hard to inform older adults about available programs and services. Furthermore, the Attorney General educates Texas seniors about personal security, elder abuse, consumer fraud, and crime victims' compensation through conferences, publications, videos, and presentations to groups around Texas.

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Updated: October 21, 2009