Monday, February 4, 2013

N.J. Courts Offer More Protections for Incapacitated

New Jersey is launching a volunteer program to monitor legal guardians across the state.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Rabner says the new program will help ensure that those being cared for by a legal guardian are treated properly.

Rabner says the increased oversight is needed as the population ages and more legal guardians will be appointed to serve.

He says most, but not all, are caring and responsible.

Legal guardians are appointed by the courts to make decisions for an incapacitated person about personal and medical care, residence, transportation and finances.

The volunteer monitors will review guardian files and annual written reports that legal guardians are required to file.

The Judiciary has also developed a statewide database to track guardianships.

Full Article and Source:
N.J. Courts Offer More Protections for incapacitated

See Also:
Good News for New Jersey: Guardianships Get a Safety Net

9 comments:

Sara said...

One state at time. This is great news. Good Luck Barbara and Stewart in todays accounting hearing in front of McVeigh. Make sure you take this article with you to remind the court.

Thelma said...

Yes, very good news.
Computers can do the tracking which is very necessary when guardians can't be trusted.

Stewart said...

Sara, the ironic part of all of this and the quote by Judge McVeigh in the prior article posted here at NASGA, is that we have repeatedly filed motions to stop the profligate spednding down of Mary's estate that this judge ignore time and again at the cost of many thousands of dollars just to file the motions.
In one example decks were being built with out permits by Mary's grandson Roy mirko @ Lakeside Carpaentry with out permits! The township condemned one deck and ordered it demolished, and when they did, it was Judge McVeigh who opined that this was a case of harassment by me upon the siblings!!!
Among the numerous and manifold instances of the accounting today where three boxes of some 3,000 receipts dumped by the financial POA upon the court there was no representation by a CPA, except of course the accounting for selling Mary Sudovars home, for the money that the Stephen G Sudovar jr's attorneys want which comes to over $12,000.00!
So for the judge to bemoan the fact that there are not enough staff to do proper accountings, it is this court, in this example, on this day, who has allowed this travesty to pass muster.
How then is anyone to have trust in the courts?
Stay tuned, I will report the results of todays Kabuki Dance

Betty said...

I think Chief Justice Stuart Rabner is going to be added to my hero list.

Sylvia said...

Thank you Stewart for shining the light on what appears to be good news in the press but we do not know what is going on in specific cases behind courtroom doors. Please keep us informed.

stewart said...

Today Judge McVeigh took the attorneys in to chambers for an hour, and we all know what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas right?
Court reconvenes 2pm tomorrow.

The game is afoot.

One thing is for certain,the submitted three thousand documents, do not rise to the threshold of an accounting, but rather are a pile of paper thrown on the court.

stewart said...

Today the matter was sent to what else?
ARBITRATION!!!!!!

IMHO, this judge has thrown her hands up in the air after hundreds of thousands of attorney's fees spent standing up for Mary who fell vicitm to not only a covertly obtained medical proxy but also a financial POA signed in New Jersey then filed in Delaware by John Ridley esq @ Drinker Biddle and Reath who have been mentioned in the Lillian Glasser matter here: http://elderabusereformnow.org/videos.php

stewart said...

The consent order written by John Ridley esq of Drinker Biddle and Reathe http://elderabusereformnow.org/videos.php

has come through and atty Mecca refuses to agree to sign it until such time as the transcript is completed by the court stenographer.

The cautionary tale for doing this for those who may read this, is because people like Mr Ridley tend to bend the curve of a consent in order to more comport to their clients advantage, great care and detail in these regards to stop the over reach of atty's like Mr Ridley is a required and prudent action.
themech 111

stewart said...

Here is a quote from Judge McVeigh regarding accountings:

So I am going to have to see what the law is presented and what facts are presented to justify the exceptions. I need a specific clarification of each one of those exceptions. It needs to be detailed and it needs to have a legal basis behind the exception, not simply the fact that there's an allegation in the exception that the document went to Mr. Mecca and his client in an unwieldy, unorganized basis. That is not the base of an exception.
..................................

So? what Judge McVeigh appears to be saying is, that a guardian can walk in to court and dump boxes containing thousands of receiepts that some one else has to justify?

And the court expects volunteers to provide CPA/Accounting services?
For gratis instead?

If the court does not require that these accountings be presented in a workmanlike manner to the surrogate (or the courts for that matter) then it is the court itself who is at fault for the potential for fraud, and the collapse of the accounting system.