Most people assume that the elder abuse law only applies to senior citizens. The elder abuse protections apply to both "elders," a person residing in California who is 65 years of age or older and "dependent adults" who are defined as any person residing in California between the ages of 16 and 64 who has physical or mental limitations that restrict his or her ability to carry out normal activities or to protect his or her rights.

Further, a "dependent adult" includes any person between the ages of 18 and 64 who is admitted to a 24-hour health care facility including general acute care hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, skilled nursing and intermediate care facilities, congregate living health facilities, psychiatric health facilities and chemical dependency recovery hospitals.

Thus, elder abuse protections apply to any person over 65, any disabled adult and any adult, even a young adult, with no disability whatsoever admitted to an inpatient facility.

If you are a concerned relative or friend of an elderly person that you believe is suffering from elder abuse in the Los Angeles area, we’d like to hear from you. Contact us online or call us at 818-756-2029 to set up a FREE consultation to discuss your legal options.