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Public Act 102-0258
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| HB0266 Enrolled | LRB102 04304 LNS 14322 b |
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AN ACT concerning civil law.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Probate Act of 1975 is amended by changing |
Section 11a-17 as follows:
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(755 ILCS 5/11a-17) (from Ch. 110 1/2, par. 11a-17)
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Sec. 11a-17. Duties of personal guardian.
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(a) To the extent ordered by the court and under the |
direction of the
court, the guardian of the person shall have |
custody of the ward and the
ward's minor and adult dependent |
children and shall procure for them and shall
make provision |
for their support, care, comfort, health, education and
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maintenance, and professional services as are appropriate, but |
the ward's
spouse may not be deprived of the custody and |
education of the ward's minor
and adult dependent children, |
without the consent of the spouse, unless the
court finds that |
the spouse is not a fit and competent person to have that
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custody and education. The guardian shall assist the ward in |
the
development of maximum self-reliance and independence. The |
guardian of the
person may petition the court for an order |
directing the guardian of the
estate to pay an amount |
periodically for the provision of the services
specified by |
the court order. If the ward's estate is insufficient to
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provide for education and the guardian of the ward's person |
fails to
provide education, the court may award the custody of |
the ward to some
other person for the purpose of providing |
education. If a person makes a
settlement upon or provision |
for the support or education of a ward, the
court may make an |
order for the visitation of the ward by the person making
the |
settlement or provision as the court deems proper. A guardian |
of the person may not admit a ward to a mental health facility |
except at the ward's request as provided in Article IV of the |
Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code and unless |
the ward has the capacity to consent to such admission as |
provided in Article IV of the Mental Health and Developmental |
Disabilities Code.
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(a-3) If a guardian of an estate has not been appointed, |
the guardian of the person may, without an order of court, |
open, maintain, and transfer funds to an ABLE account on |
behalf of the ward and the ward's minor and adult dependent |
children as specified under Section 16.6 of the State |
Treasurer Act. |
(a-5) If the ward filed a petition for dissolution of |
marriage under the
Illinois
Marriage and Dissolution of |
Marriage Act before the ward was adjudicated a
person with a |
disability under this Article, the guardian of the ward's |
person and estate may
maintain that
action for
dissolution of |
marriage on behalf of the ward. Upon petition by the guardian |
of the ward's person or estate, the court may authorize and |
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direct a guardian of the ward's person or estate to file a |
petition for dissolution of marriage or to file a petition for |
legal separation or declaration of invalidity of marriage |
under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act on |
behalf of the ward if the court finds by clear and convincing |
evidence that the relief sought is in the ward's best |
interests. In making its determination, the court shall |
consider the standards set forth in subsection (e) of this |
Section. |
(a-10) Upon petition by the guardian of the ward's person |
or estate, the court may authorize and direct a guardian of the |
ward's person or estate to consent, on behalf of the ward, to |
the ward's marriage pursuant to Part II of the Illinois |
Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act if the court finds by |
clear and convincing evidence that the marriage is in the |
ward's best interests. In making its determination, the court |
shall consider the standards set forth in subsection (e) of |
this Section. Upon presentation of a court order authorizing |
and directing a guardian of the ward's person and estate to |
consent to the ward's marriage, the county clerk shall accept |
the guardian's application, appearance, and signature on |
behalf of the ward for purposes of issuing a license to marry |
under Section 203 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of |
Marriage Act.
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(b) If the court directs, the guardian of the person shall |
file
with the court at intervals indicated by the court, a |
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report that
shall state briefly: (1) the current mental, |
physical, and social
condition of the ward and the ward's |
minor and adult dependent children; (2)
their present living |
arrangement, and a description and the address of
every |
residence where they lived during the reporting period and the |
length
of stay at each place; (3) a summary of the medical, |
educational,
vocational, and other professional services given |
to them; (4) a resume of
the guardian's visits with and |
activities on behalf of the ward and the ward's
minor and adult |
dependent children; (5) a recommendation as to the need for
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continued guardianship; (6) any other information requested by |
the court or
useful in the opinion of the guardian. The Office |
of the State Guardian
shall assist the guardian in filing the |
report when requested by the
guardian. The court may take such |
action as it deems appropriate pursuant
to the report.
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(c) Absent court order pursuant to the Illinois Power of |
Attorney Act
directing a guardian to exercise powers of the |
principal under an agency
that survives disability, the |
guardian has no power, duty, or liability
with respect to any |
personal or health care matters covered by the agency.
This |
subsection (c) applies to all agencies, whenever and wherever |
executed.
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(d) A guardian acting as a surrogate decision maker under |
the Health
Care Surrogate Act shall have all the rights of a |
surrogate under that Act
without court order including the |
right to make medical treatment decisions
such as decisions to |
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forgo or withdraw life-sustaining treatment.
Any decisions by |
the guardian to forgo or withdraw life-sustaining treatment
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that are not authorized under the Health Care Surrogate Act |
shall require a
court order. Nothing in this Section shall |
prevent an agent acting under a
power of attorney for health |
care from exercising his or her authority under
the Illinois |
Power of Attorney Act without further court order, unless a |
court
has acted under Section 2-10 of the Illinois Power of |
Attorney Act. If a
guardian is also a health care agent for the |
ward under a valid power of
attorney for health care, the |
guardian acting as agent may execute his or her
authority |
under that act without further court order.
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(e) Decisions made by a guardian on behalf of a ward shall |
be made in
accordance with the following
standards for |
decision making. The guardian shall consider the ward's |
current preferences to the extent the ward has the ability to |
participate in decision making when those preferences are |
known or reasonably ascertainable by the guardian. Decisions |
by the guardian shall conform to the ward's current |
preferences:
(1) unless the guardian reasonably believes that |
doing
so would result in substantial harm to the ward's |
welfare or personal or financial interests; and
(2) so long as |
such decisions give substantial weight Decisions made by a |
guardian on behalf of a ward
may be made by conforming as |
closely as possible to what the ward, if
competent, would have |
done or intended under the circumstances, taking into
account |
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evidence that includes, but is not limited to, the ward's |
personal,
philosophical, religious and moral beliefs, and |
ethical values relative to the
decision to be made by the |
guardian. Where possible, the guardian shall
determine how the |
ward would have made a decision based on the ward's
previously |
expressed preferences, and make decisions in accordance with |
the
preferences of the ward. If the ward's wishes are unknown |
and remain unknown
after reasonable efforts to discern them, |
or if the guardian reasonably believes that a decision made in |
conformity with the ward's preferences would result in |
substantial harm to the ward's welfare or personal or |
financial interests, the decision shall be made on the
basis |
of the ward's best interests as determined by the guardian. In
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determining the ward's best interests, the guardian shall |
weigh the reason for
and nature of the proposed action, the |
benefit or necessity of the action, the
possible risks and |
other consequences of the proposed action, and any available
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alternatives and their risks, consequences and benefits, and |
shall take into
account any other information, including the |
views of family and friends, that
the guardian believes the |
ward would have considered if able to act for herself
or |
himself.
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(f) Upon petition by any interested person (including the |
standby or
short-term guardian), with such notice to |
interested persons as the court
directs and a finding by the |
court that it is in the best interest of the
person with a |
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disability, the court may terminate or limit the authority of |
a standby or
short-term guardian or may enter such other |
orders as the court deems necessary
to provide for the best |
interest of the person with a disability. The petition
for |
termination or limitation of the authority of a standby or |
short-term
guardian may, but need not, be combined with a |
petition to have another
guardian appointed for the person |
with a disability. |
(g)(1) Unless there is a court order to the contrary, the |
guardian, consistent with the standards set forth in |
subsection (e) of this Section, shall use reasonable efforts |
to notify the ward's known adult children, who have requested |
notification and provided contact information, of the ward's |
admission to a hospital or hospice program, the ward's death, |
and the arrangements for the disposition of the ward's |
remains. |
(2) If a guardian unreasonably prevents an adult child, |
spouse, adult grandchild, parent, or adult sibling of the ward |
from visiting the ward, the court, upon a verified petition, |
may order the guardian to permit visitation between the ward |
and the adult child, spouse, adult grandchild, parent, or |
adult sibling. In making its determination, the court shall |
consider the standards set forth in subsection (e) of this |
Section. The court shall not allow visitation if the court |
finds that the ward has capacity to evaluate and communicate |
decisions regarding visitation and expresses a desire not to |