A study of Russian perspectives on elder abuse (Rinsky & Malley-Morrison, 2006) noted that very little attention has been given to the problem of elder mistreatment in Russia. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, domestic violence has appeared on the national agenda, and in 1996 a new family policy was ratified. Various protections against family violence were included in the country’s criminal codes. Despite this, not a single case of elder abuse went to the courts between 1993 and 1999, and no statistics have been maintained on elder abuse. The authors assert that many Russians grew up in an era when all forms of domestic violence went unaddressed, thus public recognition and acceptance of elder abuse is a new phenomenon.