Guardianships and Protective Placement Orders are defined in
Wisconsin
Statutes Chapters 54 and 55. They are legal methods for appointing an alternative decision-maker and identifying required
services for individuals who are legally incompetent. These individuals are usually people with one of the following: developmental
disabilities, degenerative brain disorder, serious and persistent mental illness, or other permanent conditions that limit their
decision making ability.
While positive outcomes are usually the result of guardianship and/or protective
placement orders, these legal processes limit or
remove rights to which individuals in our society are normally entitled. Care must
be taken to protect each individual's rights
while assuring that individuals who are legally incompetent receive the support
and services they need.
Guardianship
A guardian is a court-appointed decision-maker for an individual who is not able
to make their own decisions, usually based on one of the
conditions listed above. The court may appoint the guardian as the guardian of the
person, guardian of the person's estate, or both.
To proceed with guardianship, a medical doctor or licensed psychologist must complete
an examination of the individual, find that
the individual is no longer competent and be available to testify if the guardianship
is contested. Those interested in becoming a guardian are required to complete a one-time online guardianship training.
Protective Placement
A court can issue orders for a person who has a guardian to be protectively placed.
The legal standard says, without the
protective placement, the individual is so totally incapable of providing for their
own care and well-being, it creates a substantial
risk of serious harm to themselves or others.
Protective placement is required for anyone under guardianship who lives in a licensed facility of more than 16 beds. Protective
placements must be the least restrictive setting necessary to meet the individual's needs, and are reviewed annually by the court.
To help the courts review these placement orders, annual reviews are completed by Emergency Mental Health/APS coordinators for any
person who has a court-ordered placement.