4560 - S - Financial Services Regulatory Framework in Relation to Financial Abuse

We support the Inquiry’s focus on the role of financial institutions in the identification and prevention of financial abuse, the effectiveness of existing laws to govern the ability of banks to deal with financial abuse, and potential areas for reform. [...] Indeed, the mitigation of elder financial abuse is the guiding principle that underpins the Law Council’s existing model provisions for nationally consistent EPOA laws,24 in addition to the suite of recommendations contained in the Law Council’s 2023 submission to the Attorney-General’s Department on this issue.25 The Law Council commends this body of work to the Committee. [...] In the Law Council’s view, additional training for the employees of financial institutions on the nature of financial abuse and elder abuse, including the different ways in which it can manifest, and how to monitor for warning signs, will greatly assist in enabling employees to take proactive steps to identify and prevent financial abuse. [...] The Law Council points to the recently released Final Report of the Independent Review of the National Legal Assistance Partnership, which highlighted that current funding levels for legal assistance services—including those responding to financial abuse—are insufficient to meet the legal assistance needs of the Australian 42 Department of Health and Aged Care, About the new Aged Care Act (Web Pag. [...] Financial Services Regulatory Framework in Relation to Financial Abuse 18 About the Law Council of Australia Acknowledgements Executive summary Introduction Defining financial abuse The prevalence and impact of financial abuse Approaches taken by financial institutions to identify, record and report financial abuse Inconsistent approaches to enduring powers of attorney The shift of financial produ.