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What the Adult Guardianship Legislation Does British Columbia has four laws that promote every adult's right to self-determination and provide support and protection for those who are vulnerable to abuse or no longer capable of making their own decisions. The four acts that comprise the adult guardianship legislation are:
Together these acts:
Proclamation of the Selective Package On Feb. 28, 2000 , the following parts of the legislation came into effect: Representation Agreements - The act enables adults to plan for a time when they may become incapable of making their own decisions. Representation agreements can cover all aspects of an adult's life - health and personal care, as well as financial and legal matters. Support and Assistance for Adults who are Abused or Neglected – Part 3 of the Adult Guardianship Act promotes a co-ordinated community response to abuse, neglect or self-neglect. The Act emphasizes the importance of support and assistance and provides new tools for intervening when abused or neglected adults are found to be incapable of making the decision to refuse assistance. Health Care Consent Law - The consent provisions affirm the right of adults to make their own health care decisions and to have those decisions respected. When an adult is incapable of giving consent, procedures are set out that allow family members to give substitute consent. The Public Guardian and Trustee will act as decision-maker when there is no one else to assist. Public Guardian and Trustee Act - This act clarifies the powers of the Public Guardian and Trustee in the investigation of financial abuse. It changes the name "Public Trustee" to "Public Guardian and Trustee" and provides for more accountability in service planning and performance reporting. Balance of the Legislation Sections not brought into force in 2000 will be reviewed, including: Adult Guardianship Act - Part 2 (Court Ordered Decision-Making) - This part of the Act was intended to replace the Patients Property Act by providing for a revised system of formal court appointments of substitute decision-makers where necessary. Care Facility Admission Legislation - This part of the Health Care (Consent) and Care Facility (Admission) Act sets out procedures for the admission of adults to care facilities. Reviews of Adult Guardianship Legislation in BC Personal Planning and Guardianship The Government has released reports to stimulate discussion about reforming the law governing individual personal planning instruments and court-ordered and statutory guardianship. The goals are to: provide British Columbians with the best possible mechanisms to enable them to plan for the management of their financial affairs and property, and for personal and health care decision-making; modernize court-ordered and statutory guardianship; and ensure that these laws work together effectively. Two reports were prepared for Government, to assist in shaping possible reforms: McClean Review of Powers of Attorney and Representation Agreements In 2001 the Attorney General commissioned Professor A. McClean, Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of British Columbia , to review powers of attorney and representation agreements. See the McClean Report , the Government's 2002 Information Bulletin and the Government's 2004 Response. PGT Review of Court and Statutory Guardianship: The Patients Property Act and Adult Guardianship Act (Part 2) In February 2004, the Public Guardian and Trustee, Jay Chalke, prepared a Discussion Paper proposing reforms to the Patients Property Act and Part 2 of the Adult Guardianship Act. McCallum Report on Section 9 Representation Agreements In 2000, Dulcie McCallum was asked to undertake a consultation process with the community regarding who, if anyone, should be designated as a class of persons prescribed by regulation to be a consultant for the purpose of section 9 of the Representation Agreement Act . The McCallum Report describes the February to July 2000 consultation process and makes several recommendations. The Public Guardian and Trustee submitted the report to Government and on September 25, 2000 the Attorney General made an Announcement about which recommendations were accepted. BC Government Passes Two Acts Designed to Reform Guardianship Law in BC By November 2008 the provincial government had passed the Adult Guardianship and Planning Statutes Amendment Act and the Health Statutes Amendment Act that, once proclaimed will:
Here are the links for the amending bills:
Some additional changes to these amending bills can also be found in the following bill at the following link:
Any information we receive about a proclamation date to bring the changes into force will be posted here. More Information For more information, please visit our Reports and Publications page and view our Adult Guardianship Video.
In order to view the videos, you will need either Windows Media™ Player or Apple Quick Time Player®. If you do not already have these plug-ins installed, you can download them at no cost by clicking on one of the following links.
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