Guardianship matters are quite complicated. When you request the court to grant you permission or appoint you as guardian to someone else, you’re taking on the challenge of overseeing that person’s life. You have to be ready to make highly sensitive decisions on behalf of such individual, such as health care decision, financial and property management decisions. In New York, you can only obtain guardianship for an individual if that person has been proved as incapacitated, and for that, you need the legal assistance of the Guardianship lawyer New York.
Benefits of having guardianship
The guardian has full authority to make bill payments on behalf of the incapacitated individual. If an incapacitated person has no one to take care of their affairs, there may be self-neglect issues or financial abuse. His or her estate will be left in shambles, starvation is likely to occur, health may deteriorate, along other devastating situations. The guardian prevents all these from happening. He is responsible for paying of rent, ensures the kitchen is well-stocked, and health of the incapacitated is well looked after. He sees to it that the incapacitated still looks like a decent human being and is treated as one.
But all these would not be possible if guardianship is not established. Are you an adult and in need of protection for your personal and estate affairs should you suddenly become incapacitated? Do you have a loved one who is disabled right from birth or a parent/grandparent who has gotten to that stage when they can’t care for their own needs? Then you need to seek the esteemed legal services of the guardianship lawyer New York today!
How an adult guardianship is obtained in New York
In New York, Guardianship cases are subject to article 81 of the New York Mental hygiene law. This article was developed by the state legislature to provide flexibility in meeting the aging needs of New Yorkers. Be that as it may, not all adults need help in meeting all their every need. More so, not all incapacitated adults need guardianship for all of their need. Some adults simply need assistance with payment of bills, some domestic assistance, while others need someone to make medical decisions on their behalf. Article 81 therefore provides clarity on what specific areas assistance is required by the individual, and hence, guardianship will be provided to cover only those areas. Any incapacitated individual will therefore have complete control over other areas where he or she still has the physical and mental capacity in handling.
To obtain guardianship, the incapacitated person may initiate the process. Any individual above 18 years of age may also do it on their behalf. A trustee, executor or beneficiary of a will may also initiate a guardianship case when the need arise. In that manner, there is legal provision for “anyone who is concerned with the welfare” of the allegedly incapacitated individual to bring up a guardianship case.
Once the petition has been filed in a law court, a court hearing will be slated to hold at a certain date and the allegedly incapacitated person (AIP) will be notified, along with his guardianship lawyer, spouse and family members.
When all this has been done, during the hearing, the court must ascertain that the AIP is indeed incapacitated (according to the legal definition of incapacitation) and if he or she consents to the guardianship. How all these things are done are set up in the Elder Laws of new York. Incapacity must be clearly proved with convincing evidence. It requires more than just the words of the person who filed the petition, and a little less than the strict “beyond every reasonable doubt” employed in criminal cases. This amounts to a lot of responsibility and actions from the family member trying to prove incapacity. This is proved by determining whether or not the AIP is prone to harm or abuse due to his inability to perform certain actions or make certain decisions for himself.
Even after incapacity has been proved and a guardian has been appointed, a family member may challenge court decisions. Or you may feel that the guardian so appointed is deficient in carrying out his duties.
In any of these situations, you’ll need the legal backing of the guardianship lawyer New York in representing your case. He is experienced in handling elder law and guardianship matters in New York, and will see to it that you and your loved ones get the quality of life that you deserve. Contact the guardianship lawyer New York today!
