New Hampshire Revised Statutes 631:9 – Financial Exploitation of an Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adult
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I. Whoever commits any of the following acts against an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult, as defined in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 631:8, shall be guilty of financial exploitation and penalized pursuant to N.H. Rev. Stat. § 631:10 if:
(a) In breach of a fiduciary obligation recognized in law, including pertinent regulations, contractual obligations, documented consent by a competent person, including, but not limited to, an agent under a durable power of attorney, guardian, conservator, or trustee, a person, knowingly or recklessly, for his or her own profit or advantage:
(1) Fails to use the real or personal property or other financial resources of the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult to provide food, clothing, shelter, health care, therapeutic conduct, or supervision for the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult when under a duty to do so; or
(2) Unless authorized by the instrument establishing fiduciary obligation, deprives, uses, manages, or takes either temporarily or permanently the real or personal property or other financial resources of the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult for the benefit of someone other than the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult; or
(b) In the absence of legal authority a person knowingly or recklessly through the use of undue influence, harassment, duress, force, compulsion, coercion, or under any circumstances where the person knew that the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult lacked capacity to consent, or consciously disregarded a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult lacked capacity to consent:
(1) Acquires possession or control of an interest in real or personal property or other financial resources of an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult;
(2) Induces an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult against the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult’s will to perform services for the profit or advantage of another; or
(3) Establishes a relationship with a fiduciary obligation to an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult that gives the person control of an interest in real or personal property or other financial resources of an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult.
II. State and local law enforcement agencies shall have concurrent jurisdiction to investigate reports of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable adults as defined in N.H. Rev. Stat. Chapter 161-F or incapacitated adults under N.H. Rev. Stat. Chapter 464-A and all other crimes against elderly, disabled, or impaired adult victims including, but not limited to, the crimes set forth in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 631:8 and this section. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to alter the duties and responsibilities of the commissioner of the department of health and human services, or his or her designees, relative to investigating reports of abuse, neglect, self-neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable adults pursuant to RSA 161-F.
III. Nothing in this section requires a health or residential care facility, licensed under RSA 151, or any person to provide financial management or supervise financial management for an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult except as otherwise required by law.
IV. If the person knew or had reason to know that the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult lacked capacity to consent, consent is not a defense to a violation of this section.
V. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose criminal liability on a person who makes a good faith effort to assist an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult in the management of funds, assets, or property which effort fails through no fault of the person.
(a) In breach of a fiduciary obligation recognized in law, including pertinent regulations, contractual obligations, documented consent by a competent person, including, but not limited to, an agent under a durable power of attorney, guardian, conservator, or trustee, a person, knowingly or recklessly, for his or her own profit or advantage:
Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes 631:9
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
- following: when used by way of reference to any section of these laws, shall mean the section next preceding or following that in which such reference is made, unless some other is expressly designated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:13
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- person: may extend and be applied to bodies corporate and politic as well as to individuals. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:9
- Personal property: All property that is not real property.
- Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
- state: when applied to different parts of the United States, may extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories, so called; and the words "United States" shall include said district and territories. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:4
- Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
(1) Fails to use the real or personal property or other financial resources of the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult to provide food, clothing, shelter, health care, therapeutic conduct, or supervision for the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult when under a duty to do so; or
(2) Unless authorized by the instrument establishing fiduciary obligation, deprives, uses, manages, or takes either temporarily or permanently the real or personal property or other financial resources of the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult for the benefit of someone other than the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult; or
(b) In the absence of legal authority a person knowingly or recklessly through the use of undue influence, harassment, duress, force, compulsion, coercion, or under any circumstances where the person knew that the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult lacked capacity to consent, or consciously disregarded a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult lacked capacity to consent:
(1) Acquires possession or control of an interest in real or personal property or other financial resources of an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult;
(2) Induces an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult against the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult’s will to perform services for the profit or advantage of another; or
(3) Establishes a relationship with a fiduciary obligation to an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult that gives the person control of an interest in real or personal property or other financial resources of an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult.
II. State and local law enforcement agencies shall have concurrent jurisdiction to investigate reports of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable adults as defined in N.H. Rev. Stat. Chapter 161-F or incapacitated adults under N.H. Rev. Stat. Chapter 464-A and all other crimes against elderly, disabled, or impaired adult victims including, but not limited to, the crimes set forth in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 631:8 and this section. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to alter the duties and responsibilities of the commissioner of the department of health and human services, or his or her designees, relative to investigating reports of abuse, neglect, self-neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable adults pursuant to RSA 161-F.
III. Nothing in this section requires a health or residential care facility, licensed under RSA 151, or any person to provide financial management or supervise financial management for an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult except as otherwise required by law.
IV. If the person knew or had reason to know that the elderly, disabled, or impaired adult lacked capacity to consent, consent is not a defense to a violation of this section.
V. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose criminal liability on a person who makes a good faith effort to assist an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult in the management of funds, assets, or property which effort fails through no fault of the person.