There is, as the saying goes, a special place in hell for the person who made this new law necessary.
It's called "Ronnie's Law," after former Audubon resident Ronnie Mich, who is autistic. In 2003, Mich was the beneficiary of $1.2 million estate left to him by his father. But the executor of the will stole the money - and Ronnie Mich's home had to be sold to pay debts.
The developmentally disabled face difficult enough lives. The fact that they also run the risk of someone stealing an inheritance is shocking and disturbing ... but, we suppose, not particularly surprising given human nature. So the additional safeguards in Ronnie's Law are welcome.
The measure, which was sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, addresses situations where a developmentally disabled person who does not have a legal guardian is named as a beneficiary of an estate. Under such circumstances, the executor of the estate will be required to file a bond, an initial inventory and a final accounting with the Superior Court to ensure the estate is properly distributed. The court will determine the amount and conditions of the bond.
In the event the estate is a drawn-out affair, the executor will be required to provide an accounting every five years.
Under the new law, any executor of such an estate who does not post a bond and the required accounting can be replaced by the court. The law also requires that all of the estate information must be provided to the state Public Advocate, who will have the authority to intervene on behalf of disabled beneficiaries.
Full Article and Source:
Stealing From the Disabled/Law Adds Protection
6 comments:
Unfortunately, what happened to Ronnie happens to many special needs people who receive either inheritances or personal injury awards.
The vultures smell the money and they run to it.
The executor who did this to Ronnie shoul dhave to pay him resitution.
Yes, a person doesn't have to be elderly to be a guardianship victim - or be ripped off by the executor like what happened to Ronnie.
There needs to be stricter oversight and penalties for those who abuse the vulnerable either emotionally, physically or financially.
This is good - executors in these circumstances shoudl be mandatorily bonded, so there could be some recourse.
I can't imagine how Ronnie's father would react if he could get a hold of the perp who stole his son's money.
Yes, there's a special place in hell....
The more safeguards to protect the compromised, the better.
Ronnie's Law is a very good thing.
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