How does one get legal guardianship over an adult?

Question

My friend is bi-polar and has just been left some money and her sister is trying to tell her because she is bi-polar she is not stable and that she should have power of attorney and legal guardianship over her. We live in Ontario Canada. Any websites or thoughts on this? What does her sister need to do before this happens?

Answer 1

Many bi-polar patients are highly functional, and can even hold down jobs. Simply because she is bi-polar does not necessarily mean that she cannot act in an adult capacity when she is taking her prescribed medications regularly. If she has very recently become very unstable, hospitalization, or even rehab care may be required to stabilize her condition. If she is able to dress herself, bathe herself, and feed herself, she can meet her own basic needs. If she is in crisis or suicidal, she probably may need a temporary guardian and hospitalization. If she simply is a poor manager of money, a trust can be set up for her to distribute a set amount of money per month so that she does not squander it all away in one manic shopping spree. This might even be a better option than a guardianship if money management is the primary issue.

The following information comes from the first link on my list about when guardianship is needed:
It may be necessary to petition a court to appoint a legal guardian for persons:

*Who have a physical or mental problem that prevents them from taking care of their own basic needs;

*Who as a result are in danger of substantial harm; and
*Who have no person already legally authorized to assume responsibility for them.

Under some circumstances, it may be necessary for a court to appoint an emergency guardian, who can act on your behalf during a crisis (such as immediately following a car accident) until you regain your ability to make your own decisions.

Answer 2

Why wasn't the sister concerned before the Money thing.
Has she been concerned before this. Your bi-polar friend has problems yea but are they that bad that someone needs to have say so over her rights. It is very hard to prove someone is mentally incapacitated because once they have been declared incompetent they have almost no control over finances,healthcare,etc... If your friend can function independently without supervision the court won't declare it.
Your friend can however appoint someone to have power of attorney to handle just her finances like doing banking and such and it can be limited to certain things. If your friend feels the need to do this she needs to get a lawyer to draw up the papers. Also with a power of attorney she can break the agreement anytime she wants.

Answer 3

As long as the person has their condition under control at the time that judgment is passed, no one will get guardianship over them if they don't want it. You can't force someone to act in their own best interest, and bi-polar people feel so out of control as a natural state, that they often resist anyone attempting to take away any 'control' that they do still have, like their freedom, their money, their choice of where to live, etc. My wife's aunt is bi-polar and has been locked up many times, but she would never allow anyone to dictate any aspect of her life.

Answer 4

Your friend needs to demonstrate she is responsible for her money, spending it wisely - not wasting it on drugs or beer or partying, but paying rent, paying bills, proper groceries and things like that - assuming your friend is living on her own.

I know in the U.S. you have to prove that a person is not mentally capable of taking care of his or her self before someone can attain power of attorney.

IF you friend signs Power of Attorney over to her sister, no court hearing will be necessary. If she does not want her sister to have power of attorney - she must NOT sign ANY papers from her sister. She needs to have you read any papers for her if she doesn't understand whats it says.

Its strange the sister didn't want to help take care of her until money came into the picture. It tells me the sister purely smells money and she wants her cut.

Answer 5

Get an attorney! That is indeed possible for her sister to do. The court will have her evaluated by two physicians, both court appointed, and make the final judgment. Get an attorney.

Answer 6

You have to get in touch with someone called the Public Trustee. He evaluates adult cases and judges whether they need to be put in the care of competent authorities.

Answer 7

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