In this Elder Law Minute, Kaye DeSelms Dent explains how it is possible to get guardianship over your loved one who is not of sound mind, but there are a lot of hoops to jump through, so DCEL can help with that.
Hi, I’m Kaye DeSelms Dent with Dent Coulson Elder Law, Here with an Elder Law Minute for you. These videos are intended to educate you about the elder care journey, which begins earlier in life than you might think. We hope that you find them useful, and if you have further questions, please call us at Dent Coulson Elder Law.
I’m gonna follow up with this Elder Law Minute on an earlier one about why you can’t get Power of Attorney over another person.
If you’ve got someone in your life who is incapacitated and can’t make their own decisions, does not have Powers of Attorney or the Powers of Attorney they have don’t allow you to do what you need to do, the alternative is often guardianship. How is that done? Well, it’s a court process, and you have to file some documents with the court, you have to have the person served, they have the right to be in court to have an attorney, even to a jury trial. It is a full court proceeding.
In many cases it’s not a difficult proceeding. It’s very common for us to assist families where there is a parent with Alzheimer’s or Dementia who can no longer make decisions and its very clear that they can’t, or they who has a disabled child who can’t make decisions and who’s turning 18; because the minute your child turns 18 no matter what their condition is, they’re presumed to not be disabled until a court determines otherwise. This is very-very important. Again it’s a court proceeding, documents have to be filed, we need a physician’s report, the person has to be served by a private server or the Sheriff. So there’s quite a few hoops to jump through and for us because we do this routinely it’s not necessarily a difficult thing at all, but for families who’ve never dealt with it, it can be daunting.
We are here to help, were here to walk you through the whole process. Get you and your loved one through it with dignity.
If you are in that situation where your loved one does not have a powers of attorney but needs assistance in decision making, call us for a consult to determine whether or not guardianship might be appropriate and how we can help.
Also looking for information about Medicaid and Asset Preservation? Visit these articles:
“Your Trusted Advisor on the Elder Care Journey”
Dent-Coulson Elder Law is dedicated to providing families in the St. Louis area with their Elder Law needs. Our practice areas include Asset Preservation Planning, Veterans Benefits, Medicaid Eligibility, Alzheimer’s Planning, Special Needs Planning, Estate Planning and more. We understand the financial challenges you may face as you and your loved ones grow older. At Dent-Coulson Elder Law, our clients’ well-being is our number one priority. For immediate help, call (618) 632-7000 (IL) or (314) 567-9292 (MO), or Contact Us and we will get in touch as soon as possible.
