Based on a recent appellate decision from Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal, “standing” in some Florida guardianship matters has been severely restricted to those people with an immediate and direct interestin the guardianship proceedings. “Standing” is the ability of a party in a legal proceeding to demonstrate to the court that he or she has a sufficient connection to the proceeding, such to support the party’s participation in the case.
The Florida 4th DCA has recently ruled that simply being a spouse or a child of a person under guardianship (called a “ward”) gives no standing to participate in some matters before the guardianship court on its own.
- In fact, spouses, adult children, and parents of wards may have limited to no rights to oversee and protect the affairs of their family and loved ones in Florida guardianship battles.
- In Rudolph v. Rosecan, 4D13-1440, 2014 WL 6674749 (Fla. 4th DCA 2014), the 4th DCA held that the mother of an autistic adult ward was not an “interested person” for the purpose of inspecting guardianship reports and other information.
- The father had been appointed guardian of the ward.
- The parents had agreed to a parenting and timesharing agreement, where the parents had spelled out several responsibilities to be divided between the two of them.
- The agreement also required them to confer and attempt to agree on all major issues affecting the ward.
- The father had the ultimate authority in the case where the two could not agree.
- Inevitably, a dispute ensued: The mother objected to the guardianship agreement anddemanded an accounting of all of the finances related to her son.
- The father/guardian moved to dismiss the mother’s objections and demands.
The court in Rudolph v. Rosecan granted the father’s motion to dismiss and denied the mother’s assertion of standing to challenge the handling of the son’s affairs by the guardian. Specifically, the accounting and financial aspects of the guardianship. Although being an immediate family membergives a person certain rights with respect to a guardianship proceeding, that status, alone, does not provide the necessary standing in ALL matters relating to the Florida guardianship.
So, is your mom or dad under the supervision of a guardian in Delray Beach? Do you have a loved inPalm Beach Gardens in guardianship court? Boca Raton probate litigation attorneys know that while all matters are important to the family of an incapacitated ward, the court system may not be the best way to go about seeking that information.
Find out more on Guardianship in Florida. See http://www.pankauskilawfirm.com/ for videos and information on Guardianship Law, Court-Appointed Guardians, and Power of Attorney.