What is elder abuse and why qualified legal assistance is necessary?
Protecting the rights of the elderly is one of the most important challenges of modern society and a fundamental obligation of a humane state. Violence against an elderly family member is one of the most severe, specific and sensitive forms of domestic violence, which is severely punished by Georgian legislation. This crime involves physical, psychological, economic harassment or coercion of an elderly person by another family member (child, grandchild, spouse or other relative). In many cases, elderly people are unable to independently protect their rights due to their health condition, helplessness or lack of information and become victims of systematic violence.
Legal services in this area serve two main purposes: firstly, it is the immediate legal protection of the victimized elderly person, ensuring his/her safety and isolating him/her from the abuser by using legal levers. On the other hand, the Constitution of Georgia grants every person the right to protection and a fair trial, which means that a person accused of violence also needs qualified criminal protection. In practice, there are not infrequent cases when the accusation of violence against the elderly is used for the purpose of manipulation, to exclude the other party in property or inheritance disputes. That is why, in any case, it is necessary to involve an experienced criminal lawyer in the case in a timely manner in order to establish the objective truth and protect the interests of justice.