Legal Help
There are many resources to help you plan for when you may be unable to take care of yourself including a useful Tool Kit from the American Bar Association.
Issues facing older adults aging in place can range from those affecting any age group, like taxes. More specialized issues include: elder abuse; wills and estates; the sale of the family home; decision-making around end of life planning and how to pay for long term care. In some situations, an impartial mediator (elder mediation) may be the first point of contact, not an attorney. Identifying a suitable or affordable attorney when needed and where to find help for those on limited budgets are other key issues.
Adult Protective Services
Advance Directives
Disability Rights and Resources
Elder Mediation
Fairfax Lawyers
Financial Caregivers
Elder Law Attorneys
Financial Caregivers
End of Life Planning
Free Tax Preparation (AARP)
Funerals
Health Care Advance Planning
Legal Aid
Legal Help for the Neediest
Legal Information and Resources
Long Term Care Ombudsman
Managing Someone Else’s Money
Older Drivers
Adult Protective Services
Fairfax County Adult Protective Services (APS) receives and investigates reports of abuse, neglect or exploitation of adults. It may provide case management such as helping older and incapacitated adults become as self-sufficient as possible or find appropriate nursing home placement. (703) 324-7450 TTY 711/888-832-3858 (24 hour number)
If hoarding is an issue, you may want to contact APS or county code enforcement especially if it is a violation of a building code that may affect quality of life.
For an event related to domestic or sexual violence even if it happened in the past, Fairfax County offers a Domestic and Sexual Violence hotline. (703) 360-7273
Advance Directives
An advance directive is a written statement of your wishes regarding medical treatment especially if you are no longer able to communicate them or to make decisions. There are many examples available online; Virginia Legal Information System and the Virginia State Bar offer free examples. You do not need an attorney to create one nor do you need a notary or witnesses.
Disability Rights and Resources
Fairfax County Disability Rights and Resources offers information, assistance and referrals for those with disabilities concerning assistive technology, housing and transportation. (703) 324-7948 TTY711
Elder Mediation
Elder mediation provides a forum for family decision-making for some aging transitions and hard-to-handle topics. It is private, confidential and completely voluntary. Meetings are informal and are held in locations which meet the family's needs, including private homes and mediators' offices as well as virtuallly. The National Care Planning Council offers resources on finding a mediator, funeral pre-planning, tips for Vets, and hospice care, among other topics
End of Life Planning
The National Institute on Aging offers a free checklist that helps you organize the kind of information you should share with family members as part of planning for the end of life. Getting Your Affairs in Order: Documents to Prepare for the Future also contains a good resource list for doing more research around this important area such as The Conversation Project. AARP sells a publication Checklist for My Family: A Guide to My History, Financial Plans, and Final Wishes, Second Edition on Amazon and elsewhere.
Fairfax Lawyers
Fairfax Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service can help find a local attorney to meet your legal needs. For example, there are lawyers who specialize in wills, estate planning and probate as well as those who work on government benefits. It is recommended that you use a Virginia attorney to draft a power of attorney if you live in Reston. (703) 246-3780
Elder Law Attorneys
The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) are attorneys who are experienced and trained in working with the legal problems of older Americans and individuals of all ages with disabilities. Such attorneys can be especially helpful in planning to pay for long term care. To find an attorney, enter your zip code and desired language.
Financial Caregivers
The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau publishes Considering a Financial Caregiver? Know Your Options. It has good information about what to consider if you may need a financial caregiver at some point when you might not be able to manage your money because of a health problem or memory issues.
Free Tax Preparation
AARP Foundation Tax-Aide provides in-person tax assistance free of charge to anyone, with a special focus on taxpayers who are 50 or older or who have low to moderate income. This includes free federal and Virginia tax return preparation and e-filing at the Reston Community Center. Check the site for dates of operation and how to book an appointment.
The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program offers free tax help to people who generally make $54,000 or less, persons with disabilities, the elderly and limited English speaking taxpayers who need assistance in preparing their own tax returns. IRS-certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation. See the list of sites and hours. IRS trained and certified volunteers are available at 15 sites throughout Northern Virginia. (800) 906-9887
Funerals
Funerals are difficult to plan for and implement especially in a crisis. Fairfax County has a good funeral planning guide.
The Funeral Home Association of Virginia offers a checklist about what to do when a loved one dies.
While there is currently no funeral home or cemetery in Reston, there are several in surrounding communities.
Legal Aid
Legal Services of Northern Virginia (LSNV) is the largest legal aid organization in Northern Virginia, helping thousands of clients with limited income and resources each year in civil legal matters. LSNV partners with other legal aid organizations, state and local bar associations, as well as the courts to serve the region’s neediest populations. Areas of assistance include elder law; consumer law; family law; public benefits disputes regarding Social Security, SSDI or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) as well as help with wills or advance directives. Contact LSNV to get help. (703) 778-6800
Legal Information and Resources
While dated, the Virginia State Bar has an online Senior Virginians Handbook that is comprehensive in its coverage of legal issues confronting older Virginians.
Legal Help for the Neediest
Office for Aging Services of Virginia focuses on serving seniors in the greatest need on medical-social issues identified under the Older Americans Act such as priority legal matters, including public benefits and income issues; long-term care; housing; age discrimination; alternatives to guardianship; and abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation. (800) 552-3402
Legal Aid Programs in Virginia has a list of legal providers in the state who offer free legal assistance on civil matters for those with limited income and resources. (866) 534-5243
Long Term Care Ombudsman
If there are problems with a nursing home, the county’s Ombudsman Program can help resolve them. Staffed by volunteers, it is funded by the federal Older Americans Act. (703) 324-5861 TTY 711 or email NVLTCOP@fairfaxcounty.gov
Managing Someone Else’s Money
The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau offers a free guide that helps a guardian, trustee, government fiduciary or someone with power of attorney manage money or property for a loved one who’s unable to make financial decisions or pay bills.
Older Drivers
If you are a Virginia driver 75 or older, you must appear in person at the Department of Motor Vehicles at your next license renewal. Once issued, your license will generally be valid for five years. (804) 497-7100
Older Drivers – The National Institute on Aging provides information for older drivers or those who care for them about when it may be a good idea to stop driving.
Silver Shield
Silver Shield is Fairfax County’s anti-scam campaign that shares critical information to help older adults avoid being scammed. You can report scams and unlicensed solicitors to the Fairfax County Police Non-Emergency line at (703) 691-2131 TTY 711
Voter Registration
Use this website to apply for or update your registration as well as find sample ballots and voting locations.