Self-determination Guide for Parents

Protections For Your Adult Child 

Parents often decide their child needs help with making major life decisions, such as medical procedures, financial transactions, and contracts.  There are many ways that this help can be provided, and the choices will be different for every family.  Some protections, such as representative payee, dual signature checking accounts, are fairly easy to create.  Others, such as Trusts, Conservatorship and Guardianship, require legal expertise. Guardianship and Conservator ship require a court finding of incapacity and result in the loss of rights to your child. Alaska Statue 13.26.090 states that guardianship “shall be used only as is necessary”.

A good rule to follow is the least restrictive alternative.  It is much easier to lose individual rights, than to get them back.  This becomes much more important when parents pass away, which can be very unexpected.  This means that someone else will be making decisions for your child.

Alternatives to Guardianship and Conservatorship

In Alaska Statutes [AS 13.26.113(6)(c)], the court should consider alternative options to guardianship or conservatorship, if it will meet the respondent's needs.

Partial Guardianship
One who has special powers conferred by the court order that states explicitly what those powers are. Generally less powers than a Full Guardianship.

Conservatorship
Less restrictive than a guardianship, and recommended if the person's needs are only financial in nature.

Advanced Directives
Documents which state exactly which measures you want to be followed in the event of your incapacity or terminal illness.

Will
A document stating how you want your assets to be distributed among your heirs after your death.

Living Wills
A document by which an individual, while competent, may specify that in the event there is no reasonable expectation that he/she will recover from a terminal illness or vegetative condition, no extraordinary or heroic measures are to be used to prolong the act of dying; is only employed to prevent the use of life sustaining procedures.

Native Stock Wills
A Native Corporation will ask its shareholders to sign who and how stock should be distributed after death.

Power of Attorney (POA)
Power granted to the attorney or attorney-in-fact to conduct any business which the principal could do himself, i.e. banking, real estate, stock and other business transactions, tax issues, claims, running the principal's business, etc.

Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA)
A legal document used to give someone else or more than one person the authority to act on your behalf even after you are incapacitated.

Health Care Surrogate or Durable POA for Health Care
A durable power of attorney (DPOA) by which the principal may choose an agent to make health-care decisions after the principal has become incapacitated and is unable to make those decisions. They can receive medical information, consent or refuse to consent to medical care or relief from your pain, and must take all steps necessary to make sure your wishes are followed in the living will.

Declaration for Mental Health Treatment
AS 47.30.950-.980 allows a person to sign a Declaration for Mental Health Treatment to express their wishes about their treatment when they no longer can.

Five Wishes
A questionnaire that helps you express your wishes for your dying process. The five questions are: Who do I want to make care decisions for me when I can't? What kind of medical treatment do I want toward the end? What would help me feel comfortable while I am dying? How do I want people to treat me? What do I want my loved ones to know about me and my feelings after I'm gone?

Alternatives to Conservatorship

Representative Payee
Person who receives federal (SSA, SSI) money on behalf of another if the recipient is unable to manage their own finances. Several agencies provide rep payee services in Alaska.

VA Fiduciary
Person who receives federal VA monies on behalf of another if the recipient is unable to manage their own finances.

Bill Paying Service
Some areas have agencies or banks that provide bill paying.

Direct Deposit and Direct Bill Paying
Some banks provide direct payments for certain utilities, mortgages, and other vendors in addition to direct depositing.

Joint Checking Account
A second signer on the person's bank account to assist if the person can't. Must be trusted.

The above can be found at 900 W 5th Ave. Ste. 525 • Anchorage, Alaska 99501 • Phone: 907 269-3500 • Fax: 907 269-3535 • Toll-Free: 877 957-3500; or online at:    http://www.state.ak.us/guardianship/alternatives.shtml