SB 278: Elder abuse: emergency financial contact program.

Existing law, the Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act, establishes various procedures for the reporting, investigation, and prosecution of elder and dependent adult abuse. Existing law defines financial abuse for those purposes and provides that it occurs when, among other instances, a person or entity takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains, or assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining, real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both. Existing law requires a person or entity to be deemed to have taken, secreted, appropriated, obtained, or retained property for a wrongful use if, among other things, the person or entity takes the property and the person or entity knew or should have known that the conduct is likely to be harmful to the elder or dependent adult. Existing law requires the court to award specified costs if a defendant is found liable for financial abuse, as specified.

Existing law makes the failure to report, or impeding or inhibiting a report of, among other things, financial abuse of an elder or dependent adult, in violation of certain reporting requirements a misdemeanor.

This bill, commencing January 1, 2026, would require a covered person or entity, as defined, to establish an emergency financial contact program for covered accountholders, as specified. The bill would require a covered person or entity to notify a joint accountholder or an emergency financial contact, if one has been provided, if the covered person or entity should reasonably suspect a covered transaction requested by the covered accountholder is the result of financial abuse. The bill would also require a covered person or entity to delay, by at least 3 business days, a covered transaction initiated by a covered accountholder if the covered person or entity should reasonably suspect the transaction is the result of financial abuse and would make a covered person or entity immune from administrative, civil, or other liability that might arise from a delayed or refused transaction. The bill would authorize a covered person or entity to implement an emergency financial contact program for an accountholder who is not an elder or dependent adult, as specified.

Existing law provides for the award of attorneys fees and costs, and damages, to a plaintiff when it is proven by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant is liable for financial abuse of an elder or dependent adult.

This bill would, if proven by a preponderance of the evidence, subject a covered person or entity to liability for actual and noneconomic damages, for certain specified violations. The bill would prohibit a nonmanagerial employee of a covered entity or a covered person who is an employee of a covered entity who meets certain specifications from being held personally liable in their individual capacity for specified violations. The bill would make these provisions severable, except as specified.