N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.20 – Duties of guardian
§ 81.20 Duties of guardian.
Terms Used In N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.20
- activities of daily living: means activities such as, but not limited to, mobility, eating, toileting, dressing, grooming, housekeeping, cooking, shopping, money management, banking, driving or using public transportation, and other activities related to personal needs and to property management. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.03
- Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
- functional level: means the ability to provide for personal needs and/or the ability with respect to property management. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.03
- functional limitations: means behavior or conditions of a person which impair the ability to provide for personal needs and/or property management. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.03
- 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.
- guardian: means a person who is eighteen years of age or older, a corporation, or a public agency, including a local department of social services, appointed in accordance with terms of this article by the supreme court, the surrogate's court, or the county court to act on behalf of an incapacitated person in providing for personal needs and/or for property management. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.03
- personal needs: means needs such as, but not limited to, food, clothing, shelter, health care, and safety. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.03
- property management: means taking actions to obtain, administer, protect, and dispose of real and personal property, intangible property, business property, benefits, and income and to deal with financial affairs. See N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law 81.03
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
(a) Duties of guardian generally.
1. a guardian shall exercise only those powers that the guardian is authorized to exercise by court order;
2. a guardian shall exercise the utmost care and diligence when acting on behalf of the incapacitated person;
3. a guardian shall exhibit the utmost degree of trust, loyalty and fidelity in relation to the incapacitated person;
4. a guardian shall file an initial and annual reports in accordance with sections 81.30 and 81.31 of this article;
5. a guardian shall visit the incapacitated person not less than four times a year or more frequently as specified in the court order;
6. a guardian who is given authority with respect to property management for the incapacitated person shall:
(i) afford the incapacitated person the greatest amount of independence and self-determination with respect to property management in light of that person's functional level, understanding and appreciation of his or her functional limitations, and personal wishes, preferences and desires with regard to managing the activities of daily living;
(ii) preserve, protect, and account for such property and financial resources faithfully;
(iii) determine whether the incapacitated person has executed a will, determine the location of any will, and the appropriate persons to be notified in the event of the death of the incapacitated person and, in the event of the death of the incapacitated person, notify those persons;
(iv) use the property and financial resources and income available therefrom to maintain and support the incapacitated person, and to maintain and support those persons dependent upon the incapacitated person;
(v) at the termination of the appointment, deliver such property to the person legally entitled to it;
(vi) file with the recording officer of the county wherein the incapacitated person is possessed of real property, an acknowledged statement to be recorded and indexed under the name of the incapacitated person identifying the real property possessed by the incapacitated person, and the tax map numbers of the property, and stating the date of adjudication of incapacity of the person regarding property management, and the name, address, and telephone number of the guardian and the guardian's surety; and
(vii) perform all other duties required by law.
7. a guardian who is given authority relating to the personal needs of the incapacitated person shall afford the incapacitated person the greatest amount of independence and self-determination with respect to personal needs in light of that person's functional level, understanding and appreciation of that person's functional limitations, and personal wishes, preferences and desires with regard to managing the activities of daily living.