Putting One’s Personal Affairs in Order: an Estate Planning Overview – Vol. 8: Court Appointed Guardian of the Person

In my last blog, I wrote about the hierarchy of decision-makers that the law provides in the event you are incapable of making your own medical decisions and do not have a valid Power of Attorney for Personal Care.  The alternative is for an interested person (a friend or relative, most likely), to apply to the court to be appointed as your Guardian “of the person” (which is distinct from a Guardian or Property, discussed in a previous blog). If you do not have a Power of Attorney for Personal Care and you become incapable of personal care decisions, a guardian of the person may be appointed by the court in the same manner as a guardian of property. A guardian of the person has extensive powers including the power to make decisions regarding your living arrangements, recreational activities, treatment, health care and nutrition. The Public Guardian and Trustee may be appointed as your temporary guardian of the person where it reasonably believes that you are incapable of managing your person in the same circumstances and by the same procedure in which it may be appointed as temporary guardian of property. The value of a Power of Attorney for Personal Care is that you can be certain about the choice of person who is to act as your attorney.  It is also faster, easier, and less costly to establish than a court-appointed guardianship.