Jacobsen to introduce bills to protect against unscrupulous guardians

OLYMPIA – Finding that laws to protect elderly or vulnerable citizens are far too lax, Sen. Ken Jacobsen, D-Seattle, is introducing a series of proposed laws that would add important protections against predatory, incompetent or unnecessary guardians.

“With little or no notice, professional guardians are able to get themselves appointed to manage the affairs of our seniors and more vulnerable adults, often over the objections of those they seek to help,” Jacobsen said. “Adding insult to injury, there’s nothing in law now that prevents an attorney from making both legal decisions and personal, medical decisions for someone. If that isn’t a potential conflict of interest, I don’t know what is.”

Jacobsen’s bills would:

• Prevent someone from serving both as a guardian (or limited guardian) and as an attorney (or guardian ad litem);
• Prohibit professional guardians from petitioning a court to represent the interests of an incapacitated person; and
• Charge the cost of a guardianship mediation to the prevailing party.

Jacobsen is concerned that professional guardians — those who represent several and sometimes dozens of people — often do not have the best interests of their clients at heart. As professional guardians are able to set their own fees, they have the ability to “bleed their charges dry,” according to Jacobsen. And often the client must pay the legal fees incurred when they sue to sever ties with a guardian.

“Right now, there are individuals looking for ‘easy marks.’ These could be your parents or mine,” Jacobsen said. “We need to make sure that our families, friends and those who are vulnerable are not victimized.”

The Legislature convenes on Jan. 8 for what is expected to be a 105-day session.

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