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Miller Elder Law Firm shares a press release from Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys (AFELA) that helps fight the exploitation of seniors and vulnerable adults. Shannon Miller is the immediate past President of AFELA, and assisted in the drafting of the new Exploitation law that became effective October 1, 2014. Shannon Miller will be the keynote speaker at the event described below.

Press Release:
Elder Law Advocates Awarded Scholarships to Fight Exploitation of Seniors and Vulnerable Adults

April 1, 2015

(Tallahassee) – Florida’s elderly and adults with disabilities will be the beneficiaries of an educational opportunity recently created for their advocates.

The Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys (AFELA) is taking a step toward cutting down on the abuse of our most vulnerable citizens by granting two scholarships to legal services attorneys, allowing them to attend “The Complexity of Elder Exploitation: Addressing the Challenge”. The event is sponsored by the Florida Attorney General’s Office and The Florida Bar Elder Law Section’s Committee on Elder Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation.

It will be held May 4-6th, 2015 in Altamonte Springs. May is also Elder Law Month in Florida, recognizing efforts like this to educate professionals, public servants and the public about the challenges our elderly citizens face.

This also comes after Florida’s legislature passed a law in 2014 strengthening the law against elder exploitation, a law in which AFELA and the Elder Law Section played a pivotal role.

“The law now gives us the ability to take real action to cut down on abuse and neglect,” says AFELA President Emma Hemness, an elder law attorney in Brandon. “The scholarships are a natural progression in which we feel an obligation to contribute.”

This seminar will provide information on how to recognize, investigate, and develop a plan to fight exploitation, including utilizing community resources.

The two attorneys benefiting from the scholarship are from Community Legal Services in Mid-Florida and Florida Rural Legal Services. This is significant because Florida’s legal services funds are tight, making it difficult for these elder law advocates to attend these valuable educational conferences.

“This scholarship was critical for my attendance due to decreased funding,” says Lizzie Johnson, Esq, one of the recipients.

AFELA is a non-profit association for attorneys licensed to practice law in Florida and whose practice is dedicated to elder law and special needs law.

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