Elder Law Prof Blog

Last surviving WWI vet in US wants rededication of war memorial

The last surviving US veteran of World War I has urged members of Congress to rededicate a Washington monument to the memory of his fellow combatants.  Frank Buckles, 108, said the US capital needed a symbol to honour all those who fought in the Great War.  A  bill, named after Mr Buckles, proposes to rededicate an existing memorial on the National Mall in honour of all Americans who fought in WWI.  More than 100,000 Americans lost their lives during the campaign.  Mr Buckles, who travelled to Capitol Hill from his home in West Virginia, told a panel of senators it was "an excellent idea".  The official title of the bill is the Frank Buckles World War I Memorial Act.  It aims to rededicate the District of Columbia War Memorial which currently only commemorates the citizens of the District of Columbia who served in WWI.

Source/more:  BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8394477.stm

Message from Assistant Secretary for Aging Kathy Greenlee for Veterans Day 20

Veterans Day is also a day when we honor those veterans who live among us --  in our homes, communities and in congregate settings such as assisted living and nursing homes.  The contributions of these courageous men and women who are our grandparents, parents, spouses, children, other family members, neighbors and friends continue to inspire us each day as United States citizens. 

I urge everyone to take time out on Wednesday, November 11, to thank a veteran for their service America. To read the President's proclamation, please visit: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/presidential-proclamation-veterans-day    

 

 

AoA newsletter available via website

Here's the TOC for the AoA's  monthly e-Newsletter.  Check it out at http://www.aoa.gov/AoARoot/Press_Room/Enews/index.aspx

 Table of Contents

 AoA News

   Messages on National Observances from Assistant Secretary for Aging Kathy Greenlee

   New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department Secretary Cindy Padilla to Join AoA

   ASA Greenlee Visits Local DC Senior Centers 

   November Speaking Engagements by ASA Greenlee Other HHS News

   HHS to Provide More Than $2.6 Billion to States to Help Low-Income Households with Energy Costs

   FDA and WebMD Expand Consumer Health Information Partnership

   New FDA Website Provides the Facts on Hearing Aids

   H1N1 Flu Fraud Widget

   New Tips to Prevent Medical Identity Theft and Medicare Fraud

   Enhanced Online Tools Make Comparing Medicare’s 2010 Prescription Drug and Health Plan Options Easier

   CMS Establishes New Requirements for DMEPOS Suppliers

   National State-by-State Medicaid Statistical Information System (MSIS) Tables on the CMS website

   NIA Extends Research on Health, Economics of Older Americans

   Consumer-Friendly Resources in Spanish Provided by AHRQ

   HHS Report on Health Insurance Reform and Breast Cancer Federal Funding Opportunities

   AoA to Fund LGBT National Resource Center

   CDC to Fund Communities Putting Prevention to Work

   CDC to Fund Healthier Communities

More Aging News

   Employment Opportunity with the Vermont Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living

   Brookdale Foundation to Fund 30 New Seed Grants for Its Relatives as Parents Program

   American Cancer Society Marks the 34th Great American Smokeout®

   November Is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month

   Falls Prevention among Older Adults

   Interactive DRI for Healthcare Professionals

   Nutrition.gov on Twitter

   NCOA to Offer Webinar Series on How to Connect Older Volunteers with Organizations in Need of Help

   Groups Conduct Survey to Assess Long-Term Care of Older Adults Who Are LGBT

   Planning for Your Elder Years

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Conferences    

Recent SSRN Papers about Grandparent Visitation

Supporting the Covenant: Family and Community Table of Contents and Introduction

Margaret F. Brinig
Notre Dame Law School



SUPPORTING THE COVENANT: FAMILY AND COMMUNITY, University of Chicago Press, 2010
Notre Dame Legal Studies Paper No. 09-26

Abstract:     
This book will discuss the interplay of norms and families from a number of perspectives. It will tie theoretical and empirical observations to subjects of current law reform as varied as cohabitation, custody, grandparent visitation, payment for household work and domestic violence. Relevant norms and what is called social capital affect family members’ relationships with each other, that is, within the family community. They also govern the way outside communities interact with families, and social capital built within the family influences commercial and public relationships that do not directly involve families at all. Law reform, even from the best of intentions, often misfires because norms and the impact of social capital are not considered.

Keywords: family, law and economics, law and society, social norms, social capital, empirical studies, marriage, adoption, domestic violence

Accepted Paper Series

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1400913

Upcoming elder mediation training announcement

ELDER MEDIATION TRAINING

 June 16, 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and

June 17, 18 and 19, 2009 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day

Sponsored by

GOOD SHEPHERD MEDIATION PROGRAM, PHILADELPHIA, PA

To be held at

Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law

Shusterman Hall Conference Center
1719 North Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19122

This intensive 3-1/2 day training will orient experienced mediators to the kinds of issues associated with aging and the special practice issues that arise when working with older persons, their families and care givers. The training format will combine lecture, video analysis, role-play practice and discussion.

More info:  www.phillymediators.org

Not elder law: secrets of world's oldest underwater city to be revealed

The oldest submerged town in the world is about to give up its secrets — with the help of equipment that could revolutionize underwater archaeology.  The ancient town of Pavlopetri lies in three to four metres of water just off the coast of southern Laconia in Greece. The ruins date from at least 2800 BC through to intact buildings, courtyards, streets, chamber tombs and some thirty-seven cist graves which are thought to belong to the Mycenaean period (c.1680-1180 BC). This Bronze Age phase of Greece provides the historical setting for much Ancient Greek literature and myth, including Homer’s Age of Heroes.  Underwater archaeologist Dr Jon Henderson, from The University of Nottingham, will be the first archaeologist to have official access to the site in 40 years. Despite its potential international importance no work has been carried out at the site since it was first mapped in 1968 and Dr Henderson has had to get special permission from the Greek government to examine the submerged town.

Source and more:  Science Daily, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090512093635.htm

The ABA wants your book proposal!!!

Larry "The  Dude" Frolik (Pitt) writes:

   The ABA Senior Lawyers Division is eager to publish your book. If you have an idea for a book or a concept that might become a book, consider submitting your idea to the ABA Senior Lawyers Division for possible publication. I have published two books through the ABA Senior Lawyers Division and was very pleased with the process and the books that were published.
    ABA Book Publishing is a first rate enterprise with excellent editorial support that helped me to publish my books in a professional and timely manner. I was even asked to help select the book cover. The post-publication promotion of the books has been very good. The ABA uses book publications as a means of creating revenue for the Sections and Divisions and so is very aggressive in promoting its books.
    As an author you benefit from those sales because every book sale yields a royalty for you. You, as author, and the ABA are essentially partners in seeing that the book is successful.
    ABA Book Publishing creates trade publication paperbacks, which means the book is printed and distributed soon after you finish the manuscript. Throughout the process the turnabout time is short and the editors very professional. The result is a handsome product that will bring you pride of authorship and hopefully some additional income.
    If you have any questions about publishing with the ABA, please feel free to contact me or you can contact Catherine A. Kruse at ABA Book Publishing. Her phone number is 312-988-6112 and her email is KruseC@staff.abanet.org.
    Remember. You don’t have to have a fully developed book idea to initiate a discussion about publication. The ABA will work with you to bring your concept into a published book.

Upcoming conferences on aging issues

March 11–15, 2009
Ninth International Conference on Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases
Prague, Czech Republic

March 12–15, 2009
Ageing in the Mediterranean World
Valletta, Malta

April 14–16, 2009
Sixth-Annual World Health Care Congress
Washington, D.C., United States

...via AARP International newsletter.

Borchard Fellowship application period now open

The Borchard Foundation Center on Law & Aging Invites Applications For
The 2009-2010 Borchard Fellowship in Law & Aging

Fellowship Information

The Borchard Fellowship in Law & Aging affords one year for two law school graduates interested in, and perhaps already in the early stages of pursuing, an academic and/or professional career in law and aging, the opportunity to pursue their research and professional interests.

During the Fellowship period, the Center’s Executive Director and Assistant Director stand ready to assist each Fellow with the further development of his/her knowledge, skills, and contacts. A legal services or other non-profit organization involved in law and aging must supervise a Fellow’s activities and projects.  In addition to the Fellow's planned activities and project (unless the Fellow's project includes the provision of legal services), the Fellow must also provide some pro bono direct legal services to older persons under appropriate supervision.  A Fellow is expected to provide the Center with monthly activities reports.

The Fellowship is $40,000 and is intended as a full-time position only.  The Fellow’s sponsoring agency is responsible for providing employee benefits, workspace, administrative support, computer, telephone, email access, and employer’s FICA payment.  Fellows may live and work where they choose in the United States; Fellows must be either U.S. citizens or legal residents of the U.S.

The Fellowship period runs from July 1 to June 30 each year, or for the calendar year beginning the month after the Fellow’s completion of a state Bar examination.

Examples of activities and projects by recent Borchard Fellows include:

·      Writing and publication of law review articles on law and aging issues;
·      Writing and publication of state specific, consumer oriented handbooks on legal issues affecting older persons;
·      Teaching elder law and related courses at law schools where fellows reside;
·      Development of a non-profit senior law resource center providing direct legal services and public education;
·      Development of an interdisciplinary elder law clinical program at a major public university law school;
·      Development of a mediation component for a legal services program elder law hotline;
·      Development of an interdisciplinary project for graduate students in law, medicine, and health advocacy to foster understanding and collaboration between professions;
·      Development of training materials and statewide trainings for lawyers, judges and other court personnel, and social service providers on new comprehensive state guardianship laws;
·      Organizing and/or attending national conferences on law and aging issues;
·      Providing supervised pro bono legal representation of older clients;
·      Analysis of Medicare policies;
·      Development of legal services programs for older clients in consumer law and small claims matters.

Application Process

Applicants must submit a completed application form, an explanation of the applicant’s planned activities and projects, a current curriculum vitae, a law school transcript, a letter of support from the proposed supervisor, and two other letters of support.  Fellowship application information and form are available at www.borchardcenter.org. 

Completed applications should be sent to:

The Borchard Foundation Center on Law & Aging
Mary Jane Ciccarello, Assistant Director
335 4th Avenue
Salt Lake City, Utah 84103

Applications must be postmarked by April 15, 2009.  Selections are made by June 1, 2009.  For further information, please contact:  Mary Jane Ciccarello, 801-598-5810, mjcr@xmission.com.

The Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Older People in Asia

The Asia Society and AARP will host a discussion of how the current global financial and economic crisis is disproportionately affecting Asia's older populations. Panelists will discuss the challenges and issues and will provide a platform for the exchange of ideas and innovations to help older workers and improve their financial security. Jan. 26, 2009, New York, N.Y., United States
Read more.

Preparing for an Aging Society: The Singapore Experience

In the Winter 2009 edition of AARP's The Journal, the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, shares how his country is crafting new policies, improving the infrastructure, and developing effective programs to enable older citizens to lead full and happy lives.
Read more.

Reinventing Retirement Asia: Employment and Active Engagement Beyond 50

AARP and the Council for the Third Age (C3A) cohosted an international conference on older workers and financial security for seniors in Singapore, Jan. 7–9, 2009. The conference brought together more than 400 thought leaders and policy makers from governments, businesses, NGOs, and academia, from throughout Asia, Oceania, the United States, and from international bodies, such as the United Nations, the International Labor Organization, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Read more.

AARP Offers Two New International Databases

AARP has launched two new, searchable international databases. AgeSource Worldwide identifies several hundred information resources, such as clearinghouses, libraries, databases, training modules, and the like, in some 25 countries. AgeStats Worldwide provides access to comparative statistical data on the situation of older adults across countries or regions and covers a variety of topics. Start your search at: www.aarpinternational.org/database/.

Obama's Big Idea: Digital Health Records

The president-elect wants to computerize the nation's health care records in five years. But the plan comes with a hefty price tag, and specialized labor is scarce. Read this “CCN Money” article in AARP’s Bulletin Today.
Read More.

A Year-End Look at the Economic Slowdown’s Impact on Middle-Age and Older Americans

Throughout 2008, the economy was battered by falling housing prices, increasing foreclosure rates, record stock-market losses, rising unemployment, and weak consumer spending. In December 2008, AARP conducted a survey of middle-age and older Americans to learn how they had fared during the previous 12 months and to examine their expectations of the government during difficult times.
Read more.

2009 AARP International Innovative Employer Awards

Apply online for the 2009 AARP International Innovative Employer Awards, which are intended to recognize employers that have demonstrated innovative workforce or human-resources practices that address issues relevant to the age-50+ workforce.
Read more.

Events

Feb. 3–4, 2009

  2009 AARP–U.N. Briefing, Series on Global Aging: 'In Commemoration of the 10th Anniversary of the International Year of Older Persons'
United Nations Headquarters, New York, N.Y., United States

March 11–15, 2009
Ninth International Conference on Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases
Prague, Czech Republic

March 12–15, 2009
Ageing in the Mediterranean World
Valletta, Malta

Jeffrey Baker Faulkner) featured in "spirit profile"

Jeffrey Baker, Associate professor of law and director of clinical studies at Faulkner University's Jones School of Law; director of Jones Elder Law Clinic and the Family Violence Clinic, was recently profiled in the Montogomery (AL) Advertiser.  He was nominated for the award by Charles I. Nelson, dean and professor of law, Faulkner University's Jones School of Law.  Dean Nelson said, "Professor Baker is making a difference in our community by taking on unpleasant issues that many would rather turn away from. He gives not only voice and attention to victims, but also hope."

Through his work, Jeffrey Baker ensures that those who are too often overlooked, and often the most in peril, get help.  As director of the Jones Elder Law Clinic and the Family Violence Clinic, he oversees law students who provide free legal counsel to those in need.  The Elder Law Clinic provides representation for low-income, elderly citizens whose legal needs include guardianships, wills, benefit applications, elder abuse protection and medical decision-making.  Similarly, the Family Violence Clinic provides legal service to people who seek protection from domestic violence, which means Baker maintains close contact with an area abuse shelter and directs law students as they litigate pro bono on behalf of people in abusive family relationships. The clinic can obtain orders so that survivors find safety, to protect their children and establish more peaceful lives.  In September, Baker organized "Freedom from Fear: A Candidates Forum on Domestic Violence" in conjunction with area task forces and the Family Sunshine Center. The forum sought to raise awareness of domestic violence crimes and to encouraged elected officials to commit attention and voice to these problems before taking office.

Read more:  http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20090119/NEWS01/901190314

News from the National Senior Citizens Law Center

National Senior Citizens Law Center

Los Angeles, CA | Oakland, CA | Washington, DC

January 15, 2009

 

Listed below are highlights of NSCLC’s work since our last update. You can find out more on our website: http://www.nsclc.org/whats_new

 

“Please Hold”: Medicare Plans Leave Limited English Proficient Beneficiaries Waiting for Access
This new report from the National Senior Citizens Law Center and other members of the California Medicare Part D Language Access Coalition shows that Medicare plans are not meeting their obligation to serve LEP beneficiaries.
Read the report  | For more information, contact: Kevin Prindiville

New Part D Pricing Scheme Causes Confusion, Increased Costs
NSCLC and other advocates warn that new pricing schemes used by some Medicare prescription drug plans will cause high, hidden costs for beneficiaries in 2009. NSCLC filed a complaint with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) asking the agency to stop marketing of plans that include the new “penalty” pricing.
Read more | For more information, contact: NSCLC’s Oakland office

 

CMS Nursing Home Ratings

In December CMS began a system in which each nursing facility in the country will receive a rating from one to five stars.  In response to the new program, NSCLC issued a press release analyzing the limitations of CMS's new rating system, and sent an alert to subscribers of the Long-Term Care Law Reporter analyzing the new system. This issue received a lot of media coverage, including the Contra Costa Times, the Arizona Daily Star and the Toledo Blade.
A full list of articles is available here. |  For more information, contact: Eric Carlson

 

Recommendations for DOJ Transition Team and Solicitor General
In addition to our Legislative and Administrative Agenda, NSCLC issued several recommendations for the Department of Justice transition team and the new Solicitor General. NSCLC believes that by consistently opposing unwarranted barriers to judicial relief, the Solicitor General could help to restore the integrity of a broad array of vital statutory safeguards.
Read the recommendations: Reinvigorating Federal Safeguards for Individual Rights and Benefits

For more information, contact: Simon Lazarus

 

Social Security “Fleeing” Penalty Litigation

In December, NSCLC and Munger, Tolles & Olson filed an amended complaint in the class-action lawsuit against the Social Security Administration (SSA) for suspending the retirement and disability benefits of over 100,000 poor, elderly and disabled Americans because of outstanding arrest warrants.  NSCLC attorneys put in an incredible amount of work to find and vet four new plaintiffs in the case, including an elderly Oklahoma woman who has gone without her Social Security Widows benefits for three years and has been unable to heat her home this winter.  This week, NSCLC filed motions to certify a nationwide class and for a preliminary injunction.
Read the amended complaint  |  For more information, contact: Gerald McIntyre

 

Monitoring State Medicaid Cuts

Calls from advocates seeking to prevent Medicaid cuts have jumped since the economic crisis hit. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, at least 17 states and DC are cutting medical, rehabilitative, home care or others services used by elderly or disabled people, or significantly increasing the costs of these services. Some of the cuts can be challenged. In other cases, NSCLC and our allies must advocate to ensure that states reinstate benefits if and when Congress passes a federal stimulus package.
For more information, contact: Gene Coffey

 

Tools for Medicare Part D Advocates

Enrollment Period Chart: This chart lists all Part D enrollment period available to Medicare beneficiaries and provides information on when enrollment and disenrollment rights start, on how long they last, and on special or unique elements of the enrollment right.  This should be particularly useful when you have clients who need to change plans but who do not qualify for the continuous Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for Low Income Beneficiaries.  The chart incorporates changes from CMS’s most recent guidance. Download the chart

 

Transition Rights Under Part D: This tool summarizes CMS’s requirements for plans to supply transition drug supplies to their enrollees.  Note that transition supply rights apply not just at the beginning of the plan year but also when a beneficiary changes plans midyear, when a beneficiary experiences a change in level of care, and when a beneficiary resides in a nursing home or similar institution. Download the tool

 

Upcoming Events
Webinar on Fire Safety in Assisting Living, January 28, 2009
Health Action 2009 Conference, January 29-31, 2009

Annals of Health Law Launches Online Journal and Blog

The Annals of Health Law is proud to announce its online counterpart, Advanced Directive: Bringing You the Latest Developments in Health Law. Advanced Directive provides timely student articles on a variety of cutting-edge health law topics. To view the first issue visit www.luc.edu/annalshealthlaw/advancedirective.  For more information about the Annals visit www.luc.edu/annalshealthlaw/.

The Annals of Health Law would also like to extend an invitation to join its new blog, Dialogue. The Annals created Dialogue to continue the discussion started at the Fall 2008 Symposium, entitled "Patents versus Patients: Can They Co-Exist?" Members of the health law and intellectual property law communities are invited to share their questions, comments, and insights regarding the intersection of patents and health care access and innovation. To view Dialogue visit http://annalshealthlaw.blogspot.com.

SSRN adds new Elder Law Studies Network

We are pleased to announce a new Legal Scholarship Network (LSN) Sponsored Subject Matter eJournal -- Elder Law Studies.

ELDER LAW STUDIES
View Papers: http://www.ssrn.com/link/Elder-Law-Studies.html
Subscribe: http://hq.ssrn.com/jourInvite.cfm?link=Elder-Law-Studies

Editor: Nina Kohn, Assistant Professor, Syracuse University - College of Law

Sponsor: The Elder Law Studies Journal is sponsored by Syracuse University College of Law, which offers a certificate in Gerontology in cooperation with the Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs.

Description: The Elder Law Studies journal provides a forum for sharing current scholarship on elder law. Elder law is a specialized area of law focused on counseling and representing older persons or their representatives on later-in-life planning and other legal issues of particular importance to older adults. Unlike many other areas of the law, elder law is defined primarily by the client population to be served, not by a distinct set of legal doctrines. Accordingly, the Elder Law Studies Journal publishes articles that provide a learned, disinterested, and significant analysis of one or more legal issues of particular importance to older adults.

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
You can subscribe to the eJournal by clicking on the "subscribe" link listed below the journal name.

You can modify your subscriptions by going to the SSRN User HeadQuarters: http://hq.ssrn.com. (If you do not remember your User ID or Password, please click "Forgot Password" and fill in the necessary fields. This information will then be emailed to you.) Once you have successfully logged in, you will be able to change your journal subscriptions. If you have questions or problems with this process, please email UserSupport@SSRN.com or call 877-SSRNHelp (toll free 877.777.6435 within the United States or 00+1+585+4428170 outside of the United States).

NAELA Student Elder Law Writing Competition opens March 1

The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys is pleased to present the Fourth Annual NAELA Elder Law Writing Competition offering a $1,500 cash prize for the best article submitted. The winner will be honored at a national NAELA conference in Fall 2009 and, in addition to the $1,500 cash award, will receive up to $1,000 for travel and meeting-related expenses. The second place winner receives $1,000 cash, and the third place winner receives $500 cash.

The top eight articles will be published in the NAELA Student Journal, an annual publication, and may also be considered for publication in the NAELA Journal. The top eight authors will receive a complimentary one-year student membership to NAELA. This competition is open to all students in good standing who attend a U.S. law school. To view previous editions of the NAELA Student Journal, visit your local law library.

All entries must be submitted electronically between March 1, 2009 and June 1, 2009 to
mewhinka@wfu.edu. Winners will be announced August 14, 2009. A confirmation e-mail will be sent within 72 hours after receipt of your article. Please include the following
information in the body of the e-mail:

(1) title (2) date submitted for academic credit (if applicable), (3) name, (4) law school, (5) year of graduation, (6) mailing addresses, telephone number, and e-mail addresses for future contact.

For more information visit:  http://www.naela.com/pdffiles 2009WritingCompetitionflyerfinal.pdf

Elder law pioneer Clifton Kruse dies at age 74

Clifton Bryan Kruse, Jr., 74, passed away surrounded by his family on December 30, 2008, from complications of Alzheimer's disease.

After receiving his undergraduate degree from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas in 1956, and his graduate degree in theology from Boston University in 1959, Mr. Kruse was awarded a Juris Doctorate Degree from Washburn University School of Law in 1963. He was an ordained Methodist Minister and prison chaplain. A nationally acclaimed elder law attorney, in 1956 Mr. Kruse was given the Colorado Bar Association's Award of Merit, the highest honor given by the CBA for outstanding contributions to the legal profession and the bar association. He was a member of the American Bar Association, Colorado Bar Association (Vice President), El Paso County Bar Association Past President), National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (Past President and Fellow), and the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. He taught Business Law at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs for 27 years and taught at the University of Denver School of Law.

Mr. Kruse lectured at seminars, symposiums and workshops throughout the country and authored many books and articles. Mr. Kruse was the founding member of Kruse and Lynch, P.C. and specialized in the preparation of wills, trusts, estate administration and elder law.

He had a passion for helping others, especially the elderly. His book, "Selma's Cat and Other Things That Matter," is a collection of essays pertaining to the concerns and experiences of senior citizens.

A memorial service was held Saturday, January 3, 2009, 1:00 P.M. at the Broadmoor Community Church, 315 Lake Avenue, Colorado Springs.

In lieu of flowers the family suggests donations to Pikes Peak Hospice, 825 E. Pikes Peak Avenue, Suite 600, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903, or the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, 610 Abbott Lane, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80905.

More info:  http://www.legacy.com/Gazette/Obituaries.asp?Page=LifeStoryPrint&PersonID=122107885

Note:  In an odd coincidence, my Aunt Lois was Clifton's legal secretary for twenty five years--she started with him years and years before I even started law school. 

Senior hotline newsletter now on line

The Center for Elder Rights Advocacy, the new technical assistance for senior legal helplines and a partner in the National Legal Resource Center, is producing an electronic newsletter, The Legal Helplines Connection,  every other month to keep you informed of what is happening in the world of legal helplines.

To view the  Legal Helplines Connection  please go to:
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs012/1101979383624/archive/1102372233046.html

New credit card rules will help some seniors

In the most sweeping changes to credit cards in decades, federal regulators on Thursday approved new rules to crack down on so-called unfair and deceptive practices by card issuers, such as raising interest rates on existing debt.  The rules, issued by the Office of Thrift Supervision and expected to be approved later Thursday by the Federal Reserve and the National Credit Union Administration, come at a time when the economy has plunged into recession, and loan delinquencies and charge-offs are swelling as borrowers struggle to pay their bills.

The rules, which take effect in July 2010, will let credit card companies raise interest rates only on new credit cards and future purchases or advances, rather than on current balances.  They also restrict such lender practices as allocating all payments to balances with lower interest rates when a borrower has balances with different rates.

Source/more:  USA Today, http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/credit/2008-12-17-credit-cards-new-rule_N.htm

Credit card debt is a leading cause of senior bankruptcy filings, see http://www.consumerlaw.org/initiatives/seniors_initiative/credit_1.shtml

This just in: 2008 No. 3 NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health

Available at http://www.nber.org/aginghealth/2008no3/2008no3.pdf

TOC:  The 2008 No. 3 Bulletin includes the articles below:

1)  The Past and Future of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act     by David Neumark     http://www.nber.org/aginghealth/2008no3/w14317.html   

2)  The Relative (In)Efficiency of the U.S. Health Care System     by Alan Garber and Jonathan Skinner     http://www.nber.org/aginghealth/2008no3/w14257.html

3)  Do Discount Rates Affect Behaviors Like Saving and Smoking?     by Christopher Chabris, David Laibson, Carrie Morris, Jonathon Schuldt, and Dmitry Taubinsky
    http://www.nber.org/aginghealth/2008no3/w14270.html    

NBER Profile:  Amy Finkelstein, http://www.nber.org/aginghealth/2008no3/finkelstein.html

Abstracts of Selected Recent NBER Working Papers
http://www.nber.org/aginghealth/2008no3/WorkingPaperSummaries.html

Vol. !, Issue 1 of Canadian Journal on Elder Law published

The Canadian Centre for Elder Law, a Division of the British Columbia Law Institute, has released the first issue of the Canadian Journal of Elder Law (CJEL). The journal is the first Canadian peer‐reviewed journal focused on elder law issues, and its goal is to promote the scholarly exploration of issues of law and aging. The CJEL publishes manuscripts on law reform, elder law issues, the intersection of law and policy, and other issues of key consideration for lawyers practising in this area of law.

The scope of this journal makes it an excellent resource for heath care providers, academics, and lawyers engaged in the areas of wills, estates, trusts, pensions and benefits, health law, family law, long‐term care, guardianship, and interjurisdictional
law.

This issue of the CJEL has a varied selection of articles. From the tensions between the rights of care recipients and providers in Australia, to the practice of predatory lending in Canada, the journal canvasses some of the most pressing issues in Canada and around the world. The journal also contains a case comment, and the student paper about class action suits relating to long term care. Article abstracts are available on our website at http://www.bcli.org/cjel.

To place an order please contact us at cjel@bcli.org