Ahead of this week’s hearing to allow Aubrey B. Preston to serve as a permanent conservator for his father – Life Care Centers of America’s CEO and founder Forrest Preston – the younger Preston stated that his father’s cognitive state is not conducive to running the nursing home giant.

The neurological reports, currently under seal, point to cognitive disabilities that impair his decision making, a trial brief issued by Aubrey’s attorneys states.

“The medical reports … demonstrate that Forrest has been diagnosed with a moderate to severe cognitive condition that affects his ability to manage his own affairs, property, and healthcare needs,” the trial brief notes.

The trial was initially set to start in mid-January, and is now scheduled to begin on Tuesday.

In late November, a judge made Aubrey the emergency conservator on a limited basis for his 91-year old father. Court documents at the time described turmoil within the company related to the elder Preston’s alleged inability to make executive decisions, including related to crucial financial matters. For the moment, Aubrey Preston can make such decisions in consultation with Life Care Centers’ executive leaders.

Aside from the evidence on his father’s cognitive health, the trial brief states that Aubrey has gathered more evidence of his father’s vulnerability and exploitation by his current wife, Kim Phuong Nguyen Preston, and her family, who misused this power to misappropriate Forrest’s assets. This reinforces the need for Aubrey’s protection, the brief argues.

The trial will also determine the full extent of support Forrest requires, with Aubrey seeking sole conservatorship.

“OnIy through the appointment of Aubrey as the sole conservator can Forrest’s personal, business, and financial matters be properly managed. And only in this way can Forrest be protected from his disabilities and those who seek to prey upon him,” Aubrey’s attorneys argue in the brief.

Sole conservatorship

Meanwhile, attorneys for Forrest could request others, such as his business associates George Mueller and Henry Luken, to play a role in his conservatorship.

But Aubrey’s attorneys argue otherwise.

Mueller, they claim, was terminated from Life Care after an unapproved payment was found in a real estate transaction he handled for the company. Moreover, Forrest lost at least $52 million from investments with Luken along with owing him $3.7 million, the brief states. 

“The fact that Mueller and Luken have been suggested as playing some role in this process is further evidence of Forrest’s severe disabilities as he would never make such recommendations were he competent,” states the trial brief filed by the attorneys for Aubrey.

William Horton, a lawyer for Forrest Preston, told Skilled Nursing News that the brief should not be treated as evidence and pushed back against the claims made in it.

“It is full of misinformation; only relevant evidence is what will be presented before the court,” Horton said. 

The trial brief filed by Aubrey’s attorneys also suggests that he is uniquely qualified to serve as Forrest’s conservator due to his experience in managing the family’s business interests. Aubrey had closely worked alongside Forrest in overseeing the company’s real estate strategy. The appointment of Aubrey as conservator is also supported by all those knowledgeable about Forrest’s condition, including Kim herself, who acknowledged Aubrey as the best person to serve as Forrest’s conservator in her response to petition for conservatorship, the trial brief notes.

And so, any alternative proposals or objections to Aubrey’s role as the sole and permanent conservator should be scrutinized, the brief suggests.

“His father’s personal, financial, and business affairs are all in disarray with his father’s continued decline into the grips of his cognitive disability and as those who prey upon the vulnerable act upon him,” the trial brief states.