Section 5A–203. [Jurisdiction.]

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Terms Used In Massachusetts General Laws ch. 190B sec. 5A-203

  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.

A court of the commonwealth has jurisdiction to appoint a guardian or issue a protective order for a respondent if:

(1) the commonwealth is the respondent’s home state;

(2) on the date the petition is filed, the commonwealth is a significant-connection state and:

(A) the respondent does not have a home state or a court of the respondent’s home state has declined to exercise jurisdiction because the commonwealth is a more appropriate forum; or

(B) the respondent has a home state, a petition for an appointment or order is not pending in a court of that state or another significant-connection state and, before the court makes the appointment or issues the order:

(i) a petition for an appointment or order is not filed in the respondent’s home state;

(ii) an objection to the court’s jurisdiction is not filed by a person required to be notified of the proceeding; and

(iii) the court in the commonwealth concludes that it is an appropriate forum under the factors in section 5A–206;

(3) the commonwealth does not have jurisdiction under either paragraph (1) or (2), the respondent’s home state and all significant-connection states have declined to exercise jurisdiction because the commonwealth is the more appropriate forum and jurisdiction in the commonwealth is consistent with the constitutions of the commonwealth and the United States; or

(4) the requirements for special jurisdiction under section 5A–204 are met.

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