Legal Question in Elder Law in New Jersey

My aunt has been declared financially incompetent and has a financial guardian via th ny courts since 2006. She has no personal guardian and lives in a nursing home in nj.My sister is the financial guardian and has appointed my other sister,an employee of my aunt( a nurse) as her health care poa,taking my mother and I off her chart even though we were until this year able to ask her nurses,doctors,etc for full medical info and there was no health care POA. Can a financial guardian do this?My aunt is currently in the hospital and my mother and I are being frozen out of information.We do not want to ask either sister because they are terrible,verbally abusive to us,and the hospital will not show us the health care poa.Is this legal?


Asked on 2/13/12, 1:16 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Antoinette Wooten The Wooten Legal Consulting, PC

Typically, a financial guardian cannot freeze other people out of a Ward's healthcare information, and indeed, may not have access to the Ward's healthcare information himself. The questioner should inquire as to whether the Court granted the other party guardianship authority over the person of the Ward. If no one has guardianship authority over the person, the questioner may consider petitioning the court in NY. However, unless the nursing home inhabitant is of sound mind and body, I find it hard to believe that s/he would not have an appointed guardian over her person.

Antoinette M. Wooten, Esq.

Marcel Florestall, Esq. Senior Counsel

Read more
Answered on 2/13/12, 2:26 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Elder Law questions and answers in New Jersey