Our Florida-based Guardianship lawyers understand the many challenges associated with managing a loved one who is unfit to care for themselves. In more severe cases, an Emergency Temporary Guardianship (ETG) may be necessary to protect an incapacitated person at risk to ensure they can access proper treatment for mental or physical disabilities and make critical decisions.
A Guardianship is a legal proceeding that allows a petitioner to make legal and welfare decisions on behalf of a respondent. Florida Courts have specific requirements surrounding legal capacity that must be satisfied to assign Guardianship to a qualified person, including a parent or physician.
According to Florida Law, an unfit person must meet the following test for Guardianship to be considered, “Imminent danger that the physical or mental health or safety of the person will be seriously impaired or that the person’s property is in danger of being wasted, misappropriated, or lost unless immediate action is taken,”
Talking to experienced Guardianship lawyers can help you discover all of the legal options available to you as concerned family members, friends, or loved ones. Our law offices in Boca Raton, Florida, can help you to make the right decision for your unique circumstances and guide you through every aspect of Guardianship litigation.
When you visit our law offices, we will present you with all of the resources needed to help the person of concern with substance abuse disorders and become your advocate throughout the Guardianship process. We’re Florida Guardianship law experts with hundreds of satisfied clients and XX years of combined experience delivering personal care for legal issues while protecting our client’s legal rights.
An emergency temporary Guardianship or an ETG is a form of limited Guardianship that is granted on a temporary basis.
For example, a parent or a potential guardian could ask the court to provide authority to make medical and financial decisions for somebody over 18 years of age on a temporary basis (generally court appoints a guardian for up to 90 days).
Anyone over the age of 18 years of age who is not a convicted felon can seek permanent Guardianship.
For example, the mother or father of a young adult who has succumbed to the disease of addiction or is experiencing mental illness.
A family law firm with Guardianship attorneys specializing in Guardianship issues and legal issues.
At Drug and Alcohol Attorneys, our law office is dedicated to helping families in emotional crises due to addiction and mental illness put a game plan together. As a last resort, we use the Marchman Act and the Guardianship Statute to help parents get their kids into treatment and take control of an out-of-control situation.
Yes, you will need an experienced attorney to file an ETG (emergency temporary Guardianship) petition on your own behalf.
Unlike the Marchman Act (Florida’s involuntary commitment statute), which can be filed on your own.
However, in both instances, we recommend hiring experienced attorneys who practice family law for assistance with the complex legal paperwork and Guardianship litigation required.
Yes, ETGs (emergency temporary Guardianships) can be extended by a further 90 days after the initial 90-day period.
The petitioner must demonstrate to the court that there is a valid reason to extend the ETG. Following court approval, this will result in a total ETG period of 180 days, allowing the petitioner to make medical and financial decisions on behalf of the respondent.
Yes, you can hire individuals to act as professional guardians in Guardianship matters.
Generally, this will occur in circumstances where there is no one to serve as guardian for the respondent, or the family of the respondent is unable to decide who to appoint.
Yes, a competent Guardianship lawyer who understands the dynamics of addiction and mental illness can assist you greatly throughout this challenging period.
You should not need to do this all on your own.
Ensure that you select attorneys that are highly experienced with the Marchman Act (Florida’s involuntary commitment statute) and the Guardianship statute.
Yes, a respondent has the legal right to a hearing with counsel present to challenge the allegations made in the petition (and to have counsel appointed for them if they cannot afford a lawyer).
If the petitioner doesn’t meet their burden of proof or doesn’t prove all the allegations that are made, a judge may deny the petition entirely or may deny part (granting only part).
Three separate requirements exist for potential guardians:
You must be over 18 years of age.
You must not be a convicted felon.
You must take the eight-hour Guardianship course, which can be completed online.
When a child or a young adult is dealing with the diseases of addiction and mental illness, typically, they are not making rational decisions as these diseases take over their mind.
Guardianship allows a family member to:
Take control of an out-of-control situation and place their child into treatment.
Prevent finances or property from being depleted or used to feed the addiction.
Make decisions on health care and other important life choices for their child to assist them in resuming daily life.
Permanent Guardianship is a legal process used by the petitioner is to get control of the respondent’s medical decisions, financial decisions and access to the medical records.
The determining factor is whether or not the addiction issue or the mental illness issue will be an ongoing problem. Will the issue continue for longer than the 90 days or 180 days emergency temporary Guardianship period? If yes, then the petitioner has the ability to make decisions for the person dealing with a long term illness or disease on a long-term basis.
There are three ways to legally access somebody’s medical records:
Consent (permission to look at medical records)
Directive (healthcare directive where I put in writing that in the event that I cannot grant you consent, I give you written consent to have access to my medical records)
Guardianship (emergency temporary Guardianship or permanent Guardianship)
When someone is dealing with the diseases of addiction and mental illness, typically, they are not making rational decisions as these diseases take over their mind.
ETG (emergency temporary Guardianship) allows a respondent to:
Take control of an out-of-control situation and place their child into treatment.
Prevent finances from being depleted or used to feed the addiction.
Make decisions on health care and other important choices for their child.
An ETG (emergency temporary Guardianship) is issued for 90 days and can be extended by a further 90 days after the initial period (180 days in total).
HIPPA is the Federal statute protecting medical records.
The Guardianship statute provides an exception to HIPPA, allowing someone that has filed a petition for Guardianship to legally access the medical records of the incapacitated person.
A permanent Guardianship requires two things to be determined by a court:
A petition to determine incapacity
The court will appoint three experts to determine if the respondent is incapable of making rational decisions on their own behalf.
If the court determines, based on the evidence presented by experts, that the respondent lacks capacity, a petition to appoint a guardian will get filed.
A petition to appoint a guardian
The court will conduct a hearing to determine:
A. If the person who’s requesting to be the guardian is the appropriate person to be the guardian and to make decisions in the best interests of the ward.
B. How long should the Guardianship last?
An Emergency Temporary Guardianship (ETG) is only granted on a temporary basis.
Initially, an ETP can be up for 90 days with a provision for an extension for a further 90 days (180 days total).
The primary difference from permanent Guardianship is that throughout the ETG hearing, no expert testimony is presented. Rather, the petitioner files a petition to prove their case, and the judge makes a determination based on the allegations and testimony presented by the petitioner.
For permanent Guardianship to be granted, the court requires three experts to make a determination and recommendation to the court that the respondent (the ward) is incapable of making decisions for themselves and that inability has continued beyond the initial period of determination for the ETG.
As drug and alcohol attorneys, we specialize in helping young adults who have addiction and mental illness issues using:
The Marchman Act (Florida’s involuntary commitment statute for addiction and co-occurring mental illness) allows family members to petition the court to send their child to treatment when that child is either incapable of making that decision or they just won’t make the decision. In effect, this Act allows a judge to make their child attend treatment.
The Guardianship statute allows parents or other potential guardians to:
Take control of an out-of-control situation and place their child into treatment.
Prevent finances or property from being depleted or used to feed the addiction.
Make decisions on health care and other important life choices for their child to assist them in resuming daily life.
The appointment of a guardian is a fiduciary relationship with significant responsibility. A court has determined that you, as the guardian, are trustworthy, and you’ll make decisions that are in the ward’s best interest.
You’re not going to steal from them.
You’re going to make the right medical decisions.
You’re going to make financial decisions that benefit them.
Health Care Directive
A health care directive provides you with the ability to make medical decisions for others when they’re unable to do so themselves (e.g. car accident or other serious illness)
Power of Attorney
Power of Attorney provides you with the ability to make financial and other important decisions for someone when they’re unable to do so themselves.
Guardianship
Guardianship is the legal process of going to a court and saying, “This person isn’t capable of making decisions for themselves. They’re not rational, so I should be able to do that for them.”
The primary difference is that with a healthcare directive or power of attorney, someone has given you the ability to make decisions for them. In Guardianship, this hasn’t occurred, and the person that even that you’re attempting to assist may even challenge your authority or your reasoning for wanting Guardianship over them. However, the court reviews all of the evidence and reaches a final determination.
A Guardianship is a legal proceeding that allows someone to go into court and ask a judge to give them authority to make financial and medical decisions for somebody else.
A respondent has the legal right to a hearing with counsel present to challenge the allegations made in the petition (and to have counsel appointed for them if they cannot afford a lawyer).
If the petitioner doesn’t meet their burden of proof or doesn’t prove all the allegations that are made, a judge may deny the petition entirely or may deny part (granting only part).
An emergency temporary Guardianship (ETG) can only be granted after a petition has been filed and the court has conducted a hearing to determine if the allegations in the petition are true and that respondent is not capable of making decisions that are in their best interest.
You should seek permanent Guardianship when the respondent (the ward) is incapable of making decisions for themselves, and that inability has continued beyond the initial period of an ETG (90-180 days).
To become a permanent guardian:
You must be over 18 years of age.
You must not be a convicted felon.
You must take the eight-hour Guardianship course, which can be completed online.
To become appointed as an ETG guardian:
You must be over 18 years of age.
You must not be a convicted felon.
You must take the eight-hour Guardianship course, which can be completed online.
The respondent is the ward or the AIP (alleged incapacitated person), whom somebody else is trying to get control over by becoming a guardian.
The petitioner can be anybody over 18 years of age who’s not a convicted felon and has direct personal knowledge of the other person’s alleged incapacity.
Yes. Our experienced team of attorneys can assist with any family law matters in West Palm Beach, from probate court to divorces to custody cases involving a minor child. Talk to us today or visit our family law offices.
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Drug and Alcohol Attorneys is a practice dedicated to providing those with mental health and substance abuse disorders with exemplary legal representation and guidance to the appropriate services for a successful future.
