{"id":120,"date":"2019-03-28T17:23:05","date_gmt":"2019-03-28T17:23:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/guardianships-conservatorships\/?p=120"},"modified":"2023-06-12T18:56:29","modified_gmt":"2023-06-12T18:56:29","slug":"is-legal-guardian-responsible-for-medical-bills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/guardianships-conservatorships\/blog\/is-legal-guardian-responsible-for-medical-bills\/","title":{"rendered":"Is a Legal Guardian Responsible for Medical Bills in Arizona?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Introduction<\/h2>\n<p>Generally speaking, a guardian is not personally responsible for the ward\u2019s (person being taken care of) debts or bills. The guardian has a duty of care to ensure that all bills are paid on time, but if there are no assets to cover the ward\u2019s liabilities then the guardian\u2019s responsibility stops there. He or she is not required to pay the ward\u2019s bills with their personal assets, and if the ward\u2019s bills are sent to collections it will have no impact on the guardian\u2019s credit.<\/p>\n<p>However, if a guardian fails to pay the ward\u2019s bills when there are assets available, the guardian may be held responsible for the consequences of not paying those bills. Simple, inconsequential mistakes may be swept under the rug, but any cases of negligence or willful failure will result in the guardian being dismissed. In serious cases, the guardian may be held liable for damages incurred by the estate<\/p>\n<h2>Guardianship Duties<\/h2>\n<p>When the court appoints a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.azleg.gov\/ars\/14\/01201.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">guardian<\/a>\u00a0to care for a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.azleg.gov\/ars\/14\/05101.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ward<\/a>, the judge will provide a detailed explanation of the guardian\u2019s duties in the guardianship agreement. If it\u2019s a general guardianship, the agreement will likely provide complete unsupervised access to the ward\u2019s estate. The guardian will be asked to prudently use these assets as they exercise control of the ward\u2019s healthcare, living situation, and finances. If it\u2019s a limited guardianship, the guardian\u2019s access to estate assets will be limited to the extent of their specific duties.<\/p>\n<p>Generally speaking, a guardian may have the following responsibilities:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Approve and monitor non-medical services (e.g. counseling, group therapy)<\/li>\n<li>Consult with physicians and approve treatment plans<\/li>\n<li>Determine the ward\u2019s living situation<\/li>\n<li>Ensure the ward has transportation to appointments and recreational activities<\/li>\n<li>Institute a care plan for the ward<\/li>\n<li>Invest the ward\u2019s assets in accordance with their risk tolerance and income needs<\/li>\n<li>Keep a detailed accounting of expenditures<\/li>\n<li>Make important end-of-life decisions<\/li>\n<li>Manage real estate holdings<\/li>\n<li>Maximize the ward\u2019s independence<\/li>\n<li>Monitor the ward\u2019s living situation<\/li>\n<li>Release confidential information<\/li>\n<li>Serve as a representative payee<\/li>\n<li>Pay debts and bills<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>A Guardian\u2019s Liabilities<\/h2>\n<p>Guardians have a duty of care to place the needs of the ward above their own. Additionally, a guardian is asked to employ reasonable care and caution when they are acting or speaking on behalf of the ward. Taking control of someone else\u2019s life and affairs isn\u2019t a light matter, after all.<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to managing the ward\u2019s assets, the court imposes a simple test\u2014how would the average prudent investor act when managing the assets in question? If the average prudent investor would act similarly, then the guardian\u2019s actions are safe. If the guardian conducts greater due diligence and exhibits more care than the average investor, that\u2019s even better.<\/p>\n<p>In some cases, the court may require a guardian to take state-mandated classes, but a guardian is not required to have any specialized skills (e.g. he or she doesn\u2019t need a background in law or finance). That said, a guardian who has specialized skills is expected to utilize them, so a guardian with an extensive background in finance may be held to a higher standard than the prudent investor rule.<\/p>\n<p>Generally speaking, guardians aren\u2019t liable for actions taken on behalf of the ward, providing the actions are within the bounds of the guardianship agreement and they reflect how a prudent investor would act. A guardian is not personally responsible for debts that the ward incurred prior to the guardianship\u2019s initiation, nor is a guardian liable for reasonable and necessary debts incurred during the guardianship. If the guardian enters into a contract that\u2019s permissible under the guardianship agreement, the guardian is not personally liable unless the contract specifies that they are.<\/p>\n<p>However, a guardian could be held responsible for their actions if the estate suffers damages due to the guardian\u2019s carelessness, negligence, or personal fault. Cases of negligence, unauthorized use of estate assets, or misappropriation of property typically result in the guardian being dismissed. If the estate doesn\u2019t have a bond (some guardianships require a bond to protect the estate\u2019s assets), the guardian may be personally liable for damages or losses incurred by the estate.<\/p>\n<p>Given the risk of dismissal and personal liability, it\u2019s important that a guardian fully understands their duties and limitations under the guardianship agreement. Guardians who have any questions about their responsibilities should consult with an attorney. For financial questions, it may be prudent to consult with a financial advisor or an accountant.<\/p>\n<h2>Guardianship Bonds<\/h2>\n<p>In some guardianship cases, the court will ask the guardian to take out a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.azleg.gov\/ars\/14\/05105.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">bond<\/a>\u00a0to protect the ward\u2019s estate. The cost of the bond is covered by the estate, not the guardian. The amount of the bond is set by the court and is typically equal to the value of the estate that the guardian has stewardship over, plus one year\u2019s expected income. If the guardian makes a mistake that results in a financial loss, the bond would protect the ward\u2019s assets and compensate the estate for the guardian\u2019s mistake.<\/p>\n<h2>Alternatives to Guardianship<\/h2>\n<p>If you are considering whether a family member or friend needs assistance handling their affairs, guardianship shouldn\u2019t be the first option. As long as the adult in question has a sound mind (i.e. they\u2019re not mentally incapacitated), he or she can issue a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.azleg.gov\/ars\/14\/05501.htm\">durable power of attorney<\/a>instead. While guardianship proceedings can take months to complete and will likely incur substantial court costs, a power of attorney can be drafted in less than an hour and is significantly less expensive.<\/p>\n<p>With a power of attorney, the principal (in this case, the adult who needs help with their affairs) voluntarily designates an agent (known as the attorney-in-fact) to legally act on their behalf. The agreement can take effect immediately, or the transferal of authority can wait until the principal is declared mentally incapacitated by a physician or psychologist. Either way, once the agreement takes effect the agent will have the same powers and authority as a court-appointed guardian.<\/p>\n<p>If the adult in question is already incapacitated, then unfortunately a power of attorney isn\u2019t an option. Instead, you\u2019ll need to petition the court for a guardianship if the adult needs a proxy to handle their healthcare and living situation, a conservator if the adult needs someone to manage their assets, or both if they need assistance with all of their personal and financial affairs.<\/p>\n<p>Call Our Guardianship and Conservatorship Team at <a href=\"tel:4804674313\">(480)467-4313<\/a> to discuss your case today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Introduction Generally speaking, a guardian is not personally responsible for the ward\u2019s (person being taken care of) debts or bills. The guardian has a duty of care to ensure that all bills are paid on time, but if there are no assets to cover the ward\u2019s liabilities then the guardian\u2019s responsibility stops there. He or [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Is a Legal Guardian Responsible for Medical Bills?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"While a legal guardian has a duty of care to ensure that all bills are paid on time, it is not their responsibility to pay for the medical bills personally.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/guardianships-conservatorships\/blog\/is-legal-guardian-responsible-for-medical-bills\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is a Legal Guardian Responsible for Medical Bills?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While a legal guardian has a duty of care to ensure that all bills are paid on time, it is not their responsibility to pay for the medical bills personally.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/guardianships-conservatorships\/blog\/is-legal-guardian-responsible-for-medical-bills\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Arizona Guardianships &amp; 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