South Carolina Moves to Stop Elder Financial Abuse

South Carolina now has a law that gives financial service firms and securities regulators in the state new tools to find and prevent the financial exploitation of vulnerable adults, according to LPL Financial, which says it recently “worked closely with South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson to see the bill enacted.”  

The legislation extends the impact of the North American Securities Administrators Association’s Model Act to Protect Vulnerable Adults from Financial Exploitation of 2016. The Model Act was designed to gives states a template for legislation to protect senior investors and others from financial abuse. 

Its measures include mandatory reporting to regulatory agencies, and it lets both firms and financial advisors obtain assistance from state securities regulators to review any red flags. To date, the NASAA’s Model Act has been enacted in 32 jurisdictions.  

“State regulators and local authorities are on the front line of dealing with fraud and exploitation,  and often the first place that investors or their families turn to for help,” said John Cronin, LPL’s head of state government relations, in a statement.