|
_______________________________________________________________
Guardianship Applications and
Contests
A guardianship is sometimes needed when a
person cannot take care of herself or himself.
Typically, a Texas Probate Court will look to alternative
less drastic measures to avoid a guardianship or making
someone a ward. This is because a guardianship takes a
person's rights away including use of their finances and
decisions on their daily care. An Application for a
Guardianship should only be filed to further a person's best
interests.
Austin
Guardian Lawyer, Jason Coomer works with families and friends
that have lost someone and need help navigating the Travis
County Probate Court. He also works to
draft Wills and Trusts to
protect the wishes and best interests of his clients. For
questions on Probate Administration, Estate Planning, or
Wills and Trusts, please e-mail Austin Texas Guardianship Attorney
Jason S. Coomer at
AustinGuardianLawyer@texaslawyers.com or
use our
Law Office contact form.
Incapacitated Persons
and Guardians
According to
the Texas Probate Code Section 601 (14), there are three
types of incapacitated people that need guardians. The
first is a minor which includes those under 18 years of age
that have not been emancipated. The second are adults
who because of a physical or mental condition, are
substantially unable to provide food, clothing, or shelter
for themselves, to care for their own physical health, or to
manage the individual's own financial affairs. The
third are people that must have a guardian appointed to
receive funds due the person from any governmental sources.
A person is determined to be
"incapacitated" upon a finding by a court that the person
lacks the capacity to do some, but not necessarily all, or
the tasks necessary to care for himself or herself or to
manage his or her property.
A court may appoint a guardian with full authority over an incapacitated person or may
grant a guardian limited authority over an incapacitated person as indicated by the incapacitated
person's actual mental or physical limitations and only as necessary to promote and protect
the well-being of the person. If the person is not a minor, the court may not use age as the sole
factor in determining whether to appoint a guardian for the person. In creating a guardianship
that gives a guardian limited power or authority over an incapacitated person, the court shall
design the guardianship to encourage the development or maintenance of maximum self-reliance
and independence in the incapacitated person.
Setting Up A Guardianship & Filing an Application for Guardianship
An Application for Guardianship can be filed by any person that does not have an adverse interest
to the proposed ward. This rule is to make it easy for a good Samaritan to help
a person that is unable to help themselves, but to prevent people from attempting to take control over
people that they owe money to or are fighting in a court battle. Most applications for guardianships
are filed and determined in a county court or probate court, however, the determination can be
transferred to District Court. To have a guardian appointed the applicants
must have a medical report from a doctor that states that
the proposed ward is substantially unable to take care of
themselves. This medical report can be obtained prior
to the application or as part of the court's determination.
Drive By Guardianships &
the Race to the Court House
A proceeding for the appointment of a guardian for the person or estate, or both, of an incapacitated
person shall be brought 1) in the county in which the proposed ward resides, or 2 ) is located on the
date the application is filed or 3) in the county in which the principal estate of the proposed ward is
located. If there are multiple counties where the application for a guardianship can be heard, then
the place where the first application is filed controls. Combining this rule with 2) above, we have
instances where a family member is brought for a visit for the purpose of filing for an application to
get the proceeding in a local court. This can be convenient, but also can create races to the court
house for different family members.
The Duties of a Guardian
The duties
of a guardian are not only to take care of the ward or
minor, but to manage the ward's finances or estate.
Included in these duties are accounting reports that must be
filed in managing the ward's finances. The failure to
properly manage the estate or prepare the accounting reports
can be a breach of fiduciary duty and can subject the
guardian to liability for any misspent money or unaccounted
assets.
As an Austin
Guardianship Lawyer, Jason Coomer helps families find
alternatives to guardianships, file applications for
guardianships, contest applications for guardianships, file
breach of fiduciary duty claims against guardians that have
mismanaged or stolen money, and defend guardians that have
been accused of misappropriation of funds.
If someone
close to you is in need of a guardian and needs someone to
take care of their financial affairs or even worse if there are others that are attempting
to wrongfully seize your or someone you love's assets, make sure that there is someone
to look out for your interests. A court appointed
attorney may help Someone to assist in
seeking inventories and obtaining an accounting as to what
has been spent and what needs to be done to free up property
and assets.
Austin
Texas Guardianship Lawyer, Jason Coomer works with families and friends
that have lost someone and need help navigating the Travis
County Probate Court. He also works to
draft Wills and Trusts to
protect the wishes and best interests of his clients. For
questions on Probate Administration, Estate Planning, or
Wills and Trusts, please e-mail Austin Probate Attorney
Jason S. Coomer at
austinguardianlawyer@texaslawyers.com or use our contact form
The Law Offices of Jason S. Coomer.
        
The Law Offices of Jason S.
Coomer, PLLC
406 Sterzing, Second Floor
Austin, Texas 78704
(512) 474-1477
jason@texaslawyers.com
|
