Elderly UWS Resident Fights Back After Guardianship Wipes Out Her Life Savings

by Brendan Mohler

After a court-appointed guardianship drained Upper West Side resident Paulette Kohler of more than $800,000 in savings, those closest to the 95-year-old are helping her fight back. NBC New York first reported the story’s most recent developments.

Without any living relatives, Kohler designated her best friend, Inga Eggerud, as her power of attorney and sole beneficiary in 2021. The following year, the management of Kohler’s condo building at 500 West End Avenue (and West 84th Street) filed a petition stating Kohler was incapacitated and potentially a victim of elder abuse at the hands of Eggerud. The petition claimed that Eggerud, who had been close with Kohler since 2011, was also the subject of a criminal investigation, though the petition did not provide evidence to substantiate this claim. The New York Post reported that the petition was filed while Kohler was in a rehab center recovering from surgery.

Despite the lack of evidence, the New York County Supreme Court supported the petition and designated a stranger to take control of Kohler’s care and assets. Shortly thereafter, Kohler’s friends–including Eggerud and Barbara Goodstein, a former corporate executive who also employed Eggerud as a housekeeper–were barred from visiting the then 92-year-old.

Kohler had about $870,000 when the guardianship began in 2022. The guardianship was ruled “improper” and overturned 16 months later, but Kohler’s nest egg dwindled to just $27,000 in that time.

“The avarice of the building has only been rivaled by a predatory court system that has marshaled Ms. Kohler’s entire net worth, which is being used to pay the people the court has imposed on her against her will,” Goodstein told the NY Post in 2022. “She has lost her civil rights, her voice and access to proper medical care. And now she will die alone, while her friends watch helplessly from a distance.”

Goodstein uncovered that more than $500,000 of Kohler’s money went to home health aids hired by the guardian, but that Kohler was not receiving adequate care. Eggerud told NBC that Kohler was wearing the same clothes for a week and her diapers were not changed for three or four days during the guardianship.

Kohler has lived in a two-bedroom apartment at 500 West End since 1957. Goldstein says the potential sale of Kohler’s rent-stabilized apartment–which Kohler rents for less than $2,000 per month–was the motivating factor behind the building’s actions.

Eggerud is now suing those responsible for the guardianship for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress against Kohler. A court recently ruled that the lawsuit may move forward against the firm that represented 500 West End. NBC reports that the defendants deny any wrongdoing.

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Elderly UWS Resident Fights Back After Guardianship Wipes Out Her Life Savings

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After friends win legal battle, new lawsuit filed in Manhattan guardianship case

After friends win legal battle, new lawsuit filed in Manhattan guardianship case

By Sarah Wallace

A legal victory for two best friends unwittingly ensnared in a guardianship battle in Manhattan. The two are now suing the people involved in the guardianship, which was revoked several months ago. NBC New York’s Sarah Wallace reports.

On a recent day, Paulette Kohler celebrated her 95th birthday in her rent-controlled Upper West Side apartment with friends. But the retired hairdresser, who has lived in her home for 70 years, is running out of money.

In March of 2022, Manhattan Judge Carol Sharpe ordered Kohler into a court-appointed guardianship against her will, and her documented wishes. At that time, she had $870,000 in her account.

The guardianship was overturned 16 months later. Kohler says she is now left with just over $27,000.

The court appointed the guardianship amid claims from the landlord of Kohler’s condo building that her best friend, Inga Eggerud, was being investigated by the FBI for financial elder abuse. The year before, Paulette, with no surviving family, had designated Eggerud, her longtime best friend, as power of attorney and beneficiary.

There was never any documented evidence against Eggerud, who has worked for years as the housekeeper for a prominent NYC corporate executive, Barbara Goodstein.

"They were attacking me like I was the worst thing on the planet. All I ever wanted to do was to make sure Paulette could live out her final years in her home. I promised he that I would protect her," said Eggerud.

In Nov. 2023, New York’s Appellate Division ordered the guardianship reversed and reinstated Eggerud as power of attorney. The justices called the guardianship "improper."

Eggerud is now suing parties involved in the guardianship for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress against Paulette. The defendants, who sought to dismiss the charges, deny the allegations.

A trial court judge recently ruled that major claims can go forward against the law firm which originally represented the landlord in the guardianship petition.

Barbara Goodstein says she used her financial expertise to examine accounting documents filed in the guardianship action, which included more than a half-million dollars for home health aides hired by the guardian. Eggerud says she is paying a fraction of that amount now, for what she believes is far better care. Goodstein also says Kohler is still owed court-ordered fees totaling more than $65,000.

“There is no visibility into this entire system,” said Goodstein. “There are massive amounts of money moving around and nobody can see where it’s going. This case is going to end up breaking ground in this space because so many people have made an industry out of this.”

Charles Barbuti, an attorney who served as the court-appointed guardian, did not respond to multiple messages from NBC New York. All of the defendants in the pending defamation lawsuits have filed responses denying the allegations. The landlord's current attorney didn't respond to request for comment. The prior law firm said it does not comment on pending litigation but plans to appeal the judge’s ruling.

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After friends win legal battle, new lawsuit filed in Manhattan guardianship case