a person of adult years and in sound mind has the right

A person of adult years and in sound mind has the right professional#

Less restrictive alternatives that should be considered before pursuing guardianship include: Guardians who cannot prove that they have adequately cared for the ward may be removed and replaced by another guardian.īecause guardianship involves a profound loss of freedom and dignity, state laws require that guardianship be imposed only when less restrictive alternatives have been tried and proven to be ineffective. Guardians must offer proof that they made adequate residential arrangements for the ward, that they provided sufficient health care and treatment services, and that they made available educational and training programs, as needed. In some states guardians must also give an annual report on the ward's status. Guardians must file an annual account of how they have handled the ward's finances.

A guardian of the property also must obtain court approval for certain financial transactions. The guardian of the property inventories the ward's property, invests the ward's funds so that they can be used for the ward's support, and files regular, detailed reports with the court. For this reason, courts hold guardians accountable for their actions to ensure that they don't take advantage of or neglect the ward. Guardians are expected to act in the best interests of the ward, but given the guardian's often broad authority, there is the potential for abuse. In addition to lacking the power to decide how money is spent or managed, where to live and what medical care he or she should receive, wards also may not have the right to vote, marry or divorce, or carry a driver's license. If two individuals wish to share guardianship duties, courts can name co-guardians.Ĭourts often give guardians broad authority to manage the ward's affairs. In naming someone to serve as a guardian, courts give first consideration to those who play a significant role in the ward's life - people who are both aware of and sensitive to the ward's needs and preferences. If a person is found to be incapacitated and a suitable guardian cannot be found, courts in many states can appoint a public guardian, a publicly financed agency that serves this purpose. The guardian need not be a person at all - it can be a non-profit agency or a public or private corporation. A competent individual may nominate a proposed guardian through a durable power of attorney in case she ever needs a guardian.

A person of adult years and in sound mind has the right professional#

If the court determines that the proposed ward is indeed incapacitated, the court then decides if the person seeking the role of guardian will be a responsible guardian.Ī guardian can be any competent adult - the ward's spouse, another family member, a friend, a neighbor, or a professional guardian (an unrelated person who has received special training).

The proposed ward is usually entitled to legal representation at the hearing, and the court will appoint an attorney if the allegedly incapacitated person cannot afford a lawyer.Īt the hearing, the court attempts to determine if the proposed ward is incapacitated and, if so, to what extent the individual requires assistance. Protections for the proposed ward vary greatly from state to state, with some simply requiring that notice of the proceeding be provided and others requiring the proposed ward's presence at the hearing.

An attorney is usually retained to file a petition for a hearing in the probate court in the proposed ward's county of residence. In most states, anyone interested in the proposed ward's well-being can request a guardianship. Also, a developmental disability or mental illness is not, by itself, enough to declare a person incompetent. For example, a person may not be declared incompetent simply because he spends money in ways that seem odd to someone else. A person cannot be declared incompetent simply because he or she makes irresponsible or foolish decisions, but only if the person is shown to lack the capacity to make sound decisions. Generally, a person is judged to be in need of guardianship when he or she shows a lack of capacity to make responsible decisions. In some states the standards are different, depending on whether a complete guardianship or a conservatorship over finances only is being sought. The standard under which a person is deemed to require a guardian differs from state to state. In other words, the guardian may exercise only those rights that have been removed from the ward and delegated to the guardian. In such cases, the court may give the guardian decision making power over only those areas in which the incapacitated person is unable to make responsible decisions (a so-called 'limited guardianship'). Some incapacitated individuals can make responsible decisions in some areas of their lives but not others.