sunlit_music | Guardianship Tribunal - Get the facts. Part 2 (Reply)

Hey there people,

The following information is from a workshop on the Guardianship Tribunal at Liverpool Hospital. All mistakes are mine. Let me know if I need to correct something!

Speaker Malcolm Scuyver

Person Responsible

The person after a Guardian who can consent to decisions being made on a person’s behalf is the Person Responsible. “Person Responsible” is the legal name for a person with the legal authority to make decisions on someone’s behalf.

Persons Responsible (in order of the person with the most legal authority to make decisions on someone’s behalf):

1. Guardian

2. Spouse

3. Carer (must be unpaid)

4. Close relative or friend

When is someone not a Person Responsible?

1. They can decline the role of being the Person Responsible in writing

2. A doctor can write that a person is incapable of being the Person Responsible

Urgent Medical Treatment

1. You don’t need consent for urgent medical treatment e.g. lifesaving treatment

2. Doctors decide which treatment is urgent

If a person objects to a decision made on their behalf, another Guardianship Tribunal hearing is needed.

Person Responsible can consent to these things (as long as the clinet is not objecting):

1. Minor medical treatment

A Person Responsible can’t consent to:

1. Special treatments such as sterilisation.

2. Treatments that the client objects to.

Only the Guardianship Tribunal can consent to special treatments or treatment the client objects to.

Esther Cho (2^nd speaker)

Guardianship Tribunal is a last resort. It should only be used when:

- Breakdown of informal arrangements where family disagree on important life decisions for client (where client should live, medical treatment, where client is being abused or neglected)

- Legal problems that require a financial manager (where a person is at risk of being financially abused)

- Allegations of abuse/neglect

- The Guardianship Tribunal can’t order services or a hostel or nursing home to accept a client.

Financial Manager makes decisions on land, property, money

Financial Orders have no power to order for land to be transferred back. They have no power to order for money to be returned (only the Supreme Court has the power to order someone to return money or transfer land back).

The Guardianship Tribunal won’t investigate situations like the Police would. The Guardianship Application will be given to everyone attending the Tribunal Hearing.