The Seniors Legal and Support Service, or SLASS, provides free legal and social work support for seniors experiencing elder abuse, mistreatment or financial exploitation. SLASS is part of Caxton Legal Centre Inc.
The services can assist where the exploitation or abuse are taking place as part of a family or informal care relationship. Clients should be over the age of 60, or 50 in the case of Indigenous clients.
Get in touch if you are an older person experiencing or at risk of abuse or if you are concerned about someone that you know.
All contact with the Seniors Legal and Support Service is confidential and free.
SLASS and Caxton Legal Centre cannot provide assistance with estate planning or conveyancing.
How can the Seniors Legal and Support Service assist me?
The service can:
- provide information, advice and support regarding elder abuse, mistreatment or financial exploitation
- provide short-term counselling
- provide information on your legal rights
- refer you to other legal, consumer and support services
- in certain circumstances, represent you in court or before tribunals
- provide community education.
How do I access the service?
You can telephone us on (07) 3214 6333. We will generally follow up with a telephone consultation and arrange a home visit if the service can assist.
What is elder abuse?
Elder abuse is any act within a relationship of trust which results in harm to an older person, such as:
- intentionally hurting a person - for example slapping or hitting
- intentionally damaging another person's property - for example hurting pets or breaking belongings
- verbal intimidation, humiliation, harassment, controlling behaviour or threats of physical harm or abandonment
- unwanted sexual approaches or indecent behaviour towards another person
- preventing a person from seeing others or denying them the right to make their own decisions
- intentional or unintentional failure to provide adequate care
- a threat to do any of the above.
What is financial exploitation?
Financial exploitation can include:
- the illegal or improper use or misappropriation of a person's property or finances
- being forced to make changes to a will or other legal documents
- denying someone the right to access and control their personal funds
- unfair or fraudulent practices relating to retirement villages, aged rental accommodation or residential park.
Our approach to client care
We respect an older person's right to confidentiality. We acknowledge that safety is an issue for all people experiencing abuse and we will work with an older person to promote their safety.
We respect an older person's right to:
- choose whether or not SLASS will become involved in a particular situation
- choose whether or not to follow through with any of the options discussed with workers
- make comments about the services they receive from SLASS.
