News and Events
April 18, 2023, 12-1:30 pm – What Every Guardian Should Know about Supported Decision Making and Other Less Restrictive Alternatives
Do you serve as a Guardian of an adult, or support someone who does? This session is for you! This session will address: What Supported Decision Making (SDM) is and who it benefits, including whether SDM can alleviate the need for guardianship and/or conservatorship, and will include content on the role of the guardian, reporting requirements, rights retained, person-centered guardianships, considerations for termination and modification of guardianship and the role of supported decision making, changes in the role of a family member vs. guardian of a person with a disability; navigating health/safety and life satisfaction conflicts; and more. Click here to register for the webinar.
Objectives:
· Describe rights retained by people subject to guardianship.
· List at least three resources to help decide whether guardianship could be modified or terminated
· Compare and contrast role of family in supporting person vs. serving as guardian
November 16, 2022, 12-1:30 pm – Supported Decision Making & Guardianship: Which One is Right for Me?
Are you or someone you know considering guardianship for a younger adult with disabilities? This session is for you! We will discuss important pre-petitioning considerations such as: statutory requirements regarding less restrictive alternatives; Supported Decision Making (SDM) and who can benefit; how SDM can alleviate the need for guardianship and/or conservatorship; unintended consequences of guardianship; how to build on a person’s abilities, support teams, and available systems to address vulnerabilities as alternatives to guardianship. This event has passed. To watch the recording, click here.
New Guardianship and Conservatorship Complaint Process Established
The Minnesota Judicial Branch recently established a new process to allow individuals to report concerns or complaints about court-appointed guardians and conservators.
The new Conservatorship and Guardianship Complaint Process (click Review Process) was established through a grant from Department of Health and Human Services – Administration for Community Living (DHH-ACL) and is part of a broader effort to ensure that persons subject to guardianship or conservatorship in Minnesota are adequately protected and well cared for (EP312; Advancement of Vulnerable Care Act Project).
How the complaint process works
Anyone with a concern that a court-appointed guardian or conservator is not acting in the best interests of the person subject to guardianship or conservatorship can file a complaint. Individuals can submit their complaint either by phone (by calling the complaint hotline at 651-215-0032) or by email at SCAOExaminer@courts.state.mn.us, by submitting the complaint form available on the Guardianship or Conservatorship Judicial Branch website (click Review Process).
Examples of a guardian or conservator not acting in the best interests of the Person include, but are not limited to:
- the person subject to guardianship is not receiving adequate and appropriate food, proper health care or medications;
- the guardian or conservator is abusing the person subject to guardianship/conservatorship or failing to prevent or report abuse by another person;
- family or friends are not permitted to visit or communicate with the person subject to conservatorship/guardianship; or
- the guardian or conservator is not following the orders of the court, or is failing to safeguard the money or financial investments of person subject to conservatorship.
For more information
For more information about this new complaint process, contact the Judicial Branch’s Audit Manager, Jamie Majerus, at jamie.majerus@courts.state.mn.us or the new Examiner who will investigate guardianship/conservatorship complaints, Mark Mestad, at SCAOExaminer@courts.state.mn.us.
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