Alaska Court System Self-Help

Guardianship is when a court appoints another person called a conservator to make financial decisions for someone who does not have the capacity to do so. Conservatorship removes the rights of a person to handle their financial affairs, but they can make decisions in other areas of their life. It should be the last resort when no other restrictive option exists, meaning other options have been tried and have failed or are unreasonable to try before making an appointment of conservatorship. Alternatives to conservatorship should be explored before petitioning for conservatorship.

Some less restrictive options may be:

• Set up auto-pay for rent and utilities accounts to be paid from their bank account every month if they have trouble remembering to pay bills on time.
• Provide a secure or pre-paid debit card for personal spending where money is deposited from their bank account to use for personal spending. Examples are Greenlight or True Link but you can find other options online.
• Hire a representative payee to manage someone’s Social Security funds.
• More than one tool may fit the person’s needs to help in a needed area but still giving them independence to make decisions. For example, a person could have a Power of Attorney for financial decisions, but a Supported Decision-Making Agreement for healthcare needs. Or an order from the court authorizing someone to conduct a single transaction if a Power of Attorney does not exist or cover a specific need such as signing a contract for an assisted living home.

Supported decision making is a tool that allows people with disabilities or older adults to retain their decision-making capacity by choosing supports to assist them when making choices. An SDMA is a written agreement that outlines the supports needing by the person needing assistance to make their own decisions. The SDMA states which specific trusted family members, friends, or providers will serve as supporters. The supporters agree to assist the person understand information, consider options or consequences and then communicate decisions when certain situations arise. This method provides the person the tools to make their own informed decisions.

The Disability Law Center of Alaska has several videos regarding SDMAs that may be helpful to learn more.

The Governor's Council on Disabilities and Special Education (GCDSE) developed a workbook to design an SDMA and a legal form to prepare and present to various providers.

To learn more about SDMAs you can review the Frequently Asked Questions from the National Resource Center for Supported Decision Making . You can also review the Alaska law regarding SDMA legislation AS 13.56.100-13.56.195 .

A representative payee is a person or organization appointed by the Social Security Administration (SSA) to receive and manage Social Security funds only. The Social Security Administration appoints a representative payee when a beneficiary is not capable of managing their Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Family members, friends, or an approved organizational payee program can act as a payee. You must be appointed as a representative payee to manage Social Security funds. Guardians and conservators and a Power of Attorney cannot manage Social Security funds without also becoming a representative payee. Find out more on the Social Security website under Representative Payee Program .

If the person you wish to help has other sources of income, another tool may be needed to help manage those funds.

A power of attorney is a document signed by the person needing assistance stating which specific issues another person is able to act on their behalf. The person granting the power of attorney must have capacity to make that decision and there is no court oversight. Alaska has two forms for a power of attorney – (1) for health care decisions, and (2) a general power of attorney used more a variety of issues such as banking, dealing with real estate, paying taxes, making business transactions, or any other issue. Powers of attorney can be time-limited. The person who has granted the power of attorney may revoke it at any time. The court is not involved.

You can learn more about POAs and get the forms on the Alaska Legal Services website or the Alaska Court System FAQs.

A financial order of protection is a court order that can be requested to address if someone is currently or will be financially abused by another person. It allows the court to offer a variety of protections such as:

• Revoking a Power of Attorney that gave the abuser financial making authority.
• Limiting the abuser’s ability to handle the vulnerable person’s funds, or
• Freezing access to the vulnerable person’s bank account.

You can file a petition requesting the court to issue an order on behalf of a person who does not have the ability to perform the transaction on their own because of mental or physical illness, disability, advanced age, chronic use of drugs, chronic intoxication, fraud, or confinement. Read the instructions for petitioning the court for a financial order of protection in PG-850. You can find the petitions for a financial order of protection and other forms on the court webpage.

The court can issue an order authorizing someone to conduct a single transaction to perform a specific financial or legal task for another person’s benefit, without first getting that person’s consent. You can request this court order on behalf of a person who does not have the ability to perform the transaction on their own because of mental illness or physical illness, disability, advanced age, chronic use of drugs, chronic intoxication, fraud, or confinement.

A single transaction is a less restrictive alternative to a guardianship because it is for a limited purpose and for a limited time period. Examples of situations might be;

• A person needs help getting into a living placement from the hospital. A single transaction could be used to sign the contract and make initial payment at an assisted living home.
• A person needs a large amount of money for an emergency or unexpected medical situation. A single transaction authorization could be used to access funds for this one-time circumstance.
• A person needs help setting up a regular source of income. A single transaction can be used to apply for government benefits, set up a regular transfer from a retirement account or create a trust.

PG-540 provides a set of instructions and the protocol for filing this court request. This along with the other forms associated can be found on the court webpage.

Yes, conservatorship orders can be limited or partial for a specific unmet need or temporary while recovers from an acute illness or injury.

You can learn more about (1) less restrictive options to guardianship like supported decision-making, power of attorney, and advance directive, and (2) guardianship through the interactive online training: Finding the Right Fit: Decision-Making Supports and Guardianship .