Officiallythick

Adult Guardianship

Posted on 09 Jun 2011 by admin | Filled under: uncategorized

Adult guardianship is a legal proceeding in which a ‘ward' is found lacking in the capacity to care for themselves and legally authorizes a guardian to make their decisions.

Adult guardianship is often required when an elderly person can no longer care for themselves because of declining health, dementia, a stroke or another medical condition. Adult guardianship is a court procedure during which the ‘ward' is found to be mentally incompetent and lacking the capacity to care for themselves. A guardian is then legally authorized to make decisions on the ward's behalf. There are two types of guardianship in this situation:

Guardianship of the person, which authorizes the adult guardian to make decisions regarding the health care and living arrangements of the ward

Guardianship of the estate – also commonly referred to as a conservator, which authorizes them to make financial transactions and decisions on behalf of the ward.

One person may be appointed to act as both types of guardian to the ward. While the adult guardian takes over many of the day-to-day decisions for their ward, they are not given absolute power over this person. In fact, some decisions may need to have court approval, such as selling the ward's home and putting them into a long term care facility or nursing home.

Adult guardians are often required to file periodic written reports with a judge. Their responsibility is to make decisions within the best interest of their ward, as well as decisions that would be what their ward would have wanted if they had the capacity to make their own choice.
Adult guardianship is a drastic legal remedy and should only be used when absolutely necessary. It is often the last choice in caring for an adult, as there are interim steps that can be taken to address issues, such as a financial power of attorney. All alternatives should be explored to ensure the best decision for the adult is made.