Jacksonville Divorce Attorney Blog

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention one in every six American children now has a developmental disability, which is a 15% increase since 1997.

The Los Angeles Times further reports that the increase is due to the rise in the prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and is based on reports by parents during a phone survey. But because ADHD has become a catchall phrase for a variety of behavioral problems in schools and elsewhere, it is not clear whether the increase represents a real upsurge in such developmental delays or simply parental and physician attribution of old behaviors to a disorder that might be treated with drugs.

Developmentally disabled Floridians living in Jacksonville and the surrounding area, suffer from retardation, cerebral palsy, autism, spina bifida and Prader-Willi Syndrome. To qualify under the Florida Statutes as an individual with a developmental disorder, the syndrome or disorder must manifest before the age of 18. The disability must further constitute a substantial handicap that can reasonable be expected to continue indefinitely.

Say it isn’t so. A recent story in the American Bar Association Journal reports that an attorney in practice for over 30 years has been disbarred for helping a Ward “Will” 5 million to the attorney’s wife.

A Florida Guardian is appointed by the court to make personal and financial decisions for a minor child or an adult who is either physically or mentally incapacitated. The subject of the guardianship is called a “ward”.

In many instances a family member, or close personal friend petitions the court for a guardian to be appointed. However, there are times when an incapacitated person has no family or friend willing or able to act as guardian. In this case, either an attorney or a professional guardian will be chosen. In either instance, a Ward by virtue of being either incapacitated or a minor, is often easy prey for an unsavory guardian.

Florida law allows for a non-legal parent to become the legal Guardian of a Florida Minor should the natural or adoptive parent become incapacitated or die. One way for parents to designate who they want as guardian is name a guardian in their Florida Will. The court shall consider any person designated as guardian in any will in which the ward is designated as a beneficiary. Florida Statute 744.312(3)(c)

It is however, better practice to follow Florida Guardianship Law in having a Preneed Guardian Designation prepared. Both parents, if living, or the surviving parent, may nominate a preneed guardian of the minor by making a written declaration. In that way, when the surviving parent becomes incapacitated or dies his or her wishes as to who should be the guardian of their child has been memorialized in writing. It is important to consult with an Orange Park Guardian Lawyer to make sure that the preneed guardian designation has been executed pursuant to Florida Law and is therefore, valid. The Designation must also be filed with the proper clerk of the court.

Upon a proceeding to determine the last surviving parent incapacitated, or upon the death of the last surviving parent, the production of a preneed declaration constitutes a rebuttable presumption that the designated preneed guardian is entitled to become the guardian. However, the court is not bound by the preneed guardian designation if the guardian is found to be “unqualified” to serve or if the court believes that such appointment of the preneed guardian would be contrary to the minor’s best interest.

Florida is home to a vast majority of senior citizens. As with any elderly population, Jacksonville elders suffers from an array of physical, degenerative and mental health illnesses and disease. Among a newly recognized and growing condition in the elderly, is Hoarding. The International Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation estimates that 1 in 20 people hoard. As with any disease, hoarding has many serious implications regarding the health, safety, and even mortality of an afflicted individual.

As a Jacksonville Elder Law Attorney, I have heard many stories about the negative implications associated with this growing phenomenon. Experts say that seniors are prone to cluttering for a variety of reasons, including fear of loss, anxiety, depression, not knowing how to get rid of possessions, or even memories associated with specific items that hold no intrinsic value.

The risks of living in clutter are many, and can lead to more serious physical health problems, including slip and falls from papers and debris on the floor, threat of fire, health effects of mold and mildew, exposure to vermin from rotting food and trash, complications from eating outdated food and much worse. Clutter can also interfere with family relationships, and creates conflict.