(a) A court of this state has jurisdiction to appoint a guardian or issue a protective order for a respondent if:

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Terms Used In Alabama Code 26-2B-203

  • circuit: means judicial circuit. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • 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.
  • person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • Probate: Proving a will
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • United States: includes the territories thereof and the District of Columbia. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
(1) this state is the respondent’s home state;
(2) on the date the petition is filed, this state 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 this state 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 this state concludes that it is an appropriate forum under the factors set forth in Section 26-2B-206;
(3) this state 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 this state is the more appropriate forum, and jurisdiction in this state is consistent with the Constitutions of this state and the United States; or
(4) the requirements for special jurisdiction under Section 26-2B-204 are met.
(b) When the jurisdiction of a court of this state is contested under this article, such guardianship or protective proceeding may be removed to circuit court by the court’s own motion or in accordance with Section probate to circuit court” class=”unlinked-ref” datatype=”S” sessionyear=”2020″ statecd=”AL” title=”26″>26-2-2.
(c) Nothing in this section is intended to limit the jurisdiction of those Alabama probate courts which have been granted equity jurisdiction.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed as extending the provisions of this chapter to proceedings brought pursuant to Sections 30-5-1, et seq., the Protection from Abuse Act or Sections 38-9-1, et seq., the Adult Protective Services Act.
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