Alternatives to Guardianship
When a court decides whether a person needs a Guardianship, the court has to decide whether that person can make decisions for themselves.
But the court has to consider alternatives before placing that person in a Guardianship. This includes Power of Attorney, Supported Decision Making, and Limited Guardianship.
Power of Attorney
A Power of Attorney (POA) is a legal document that a person writes. This document allows other people to make decisions for that person in specific cases.
There are many kinds of Powers of Attorney. Some allow other people to make decisions for a person right away. Others only take effect when a person gets sick. And some end when a person gets sick. It is important to make sure you have the right kind of Power of Attorney for what you want.
A Power of Attorney can sometimes be used as an alternative to Guardianship. A court must consider Powers of Attorney before placing someone in a Guardianship.
Mo P&A can help a person with a disability draft or review Powers of Attorney.
Supported Decision Making
Supported Decision Making is a way for a person to make decisions with help from others. It is a set of supports that helps a person make their own decisions by using people they trust to:
Help understand issues and choices
Ask questions
Receive explanations in understandable language
Communicate their own decisions to others
Blanck & Martinis 2015; Dinerstein 2012; Salzman 2011
A person using Supported Decision Making has more opportunities for making choices, called self-determination. Studies have shown significant positive outcomes for people with more self-determination. People are more likely to:
Be employed
Live indepdently
Be active in their communities
Have a higher quality of life
Supported Decision Making: Theory, Research, and Practice to Enhance Self-Determination and Quality of Life, by Shogren et al.
Informal Supported Decision Making
Supported Decision Making can be something as simple as asking for advice from a friend, supporter, or family member.
If you have a group of people you trust to help you with tough decisions, you are already using informal Supported Decision Making.
Formal Supported Decision Making
Supported Decision Making can be written down to make it more “formal.” This written plan can state who you trust to help you make decisions, and what decisions they can help you with. The plan can also state which people should not try to help you, or which decisions you don’t want help with.
Having this written down is a more formal way of practicing the same Supported Decision Making. If you write this down in a very formal way, it may be a Supported Decision Making Agreement.
Mo P&A can help both informal and formal Supported Decision Making. See below for some sample Supported Decision Making Agreements.
Limited Guardianship
With Limited Guardianship, a Guardian still makes certain decisions for a person. But the person retains some of their rights, such as the right to vote, drive, or get married.
Mo P&A can provide direct legal services to help restore a person’s rights by ending a Guardianship, or changing it to a Limited Guardianship.