‘THE INCREDIBLE HULK’ CREATOR DEFRAUDED BY TRUSTED ADVISORS
I have written many times and recorded several videos about the importance of having a proper power of attorney before a catastrophic life event occurs. Here in Florida, a power of attorney becomes effective immediately upon signing. This document is sometimes called a “license to steal!” For this reason, the person you pick as your agent under your power of attorney must be someone you trust implicitly. Unfortunately, as described below, even being rich and famous does not protect you from unscrupulous individuals. Stan Lee, the legendary comic book creator, died in November 2018, and his estate has been in litigation ever since.
since 2019, and he faces several felony charges, including theft, embezzlement, and false imprisonment of a senior.
Stan Lee’s case highlights how important it is to be aware of and take steps to prevent senior abuse. Stan was extremely wealthy, with access to virtually any resource or planning strategy, but still fell victim to fraud and abuse. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that out of those aged 60 and above, 1 in 10 will experience elder abuse. For tips on preventing elder abuse and reporting resources, visit the National Center on Elder Abuse at NCEA.ACL.gov/resources/state.aspx.
Stan’s wife had died in July 2017, and after that, Stan named Jerry Olivarez, a publicist, as agent under a power of attorney. The complaint in the probate case alleged that Jerry did several unscrupulous
Stan’s situation brings to mind two critical takeaways: The first is that in my
practice, I see so often that after one spouse passes who was trusted to take care of the other, no one else serves in that trusted advisor role. Either they have no children, or they are estranged from their children. Also, many friends and relatives may be deceased or live far away. This poses a significant
acts: dismissed Stan’s lawyer and hired his own without disclosing the conflict of interest, fired Stan’s banker and transferred roughly $4.6 million out of Stan’s account, duped Stan into loaning him $300,000, bought an
challenge for many and illustrates why it’s essential to maintain close relationships with trusted friends and relatives as we age. Unfortunately, many people in this situation fall prey to fraudsters in their neighborhood or church, where devious individuals say they will help them while cleaning out their bank accounts. The second observation is that one way to prevent this is to choose co-agents and require them to sign off equally on everything. At least this provides a double layer of protection from the wolves hiding in sheep’s clothing. –Mark Martella, Esq.
expensive condo using Stan’s money, and more. The suit listed several causes of action, including financial abuse of an elder, fraud, and misappropriation of name and likeness. Jerry denied the allegations. A settlement has been reached in the case for an undisclosed amount, and now the probate case can proceed. However, there are still some pending claims in the case against Stan’s former attorney, Uvi Litvak. Also notable is a criminal case Los Angeles prosecutors are pursuing against Stan’s former business manager, Keya Morgan. His case has been pending
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