Rule for Certifying Professional Guardians

1 GR 23 2 Rule for Certifying Professional Guardians 3 4 5 (a) Purpose and Scope. This rule establishes the standards and criteria for 6the certification of professional guardians as defined by RCW 11.88.008 and 7prescribes the conditions of and limitations upon their activities. This rule does 8not duplicate the statutory process by which the courts supervise guardians nor 9is it a mechanism to appeal a court decision regarding the appointment or 10conduct of a guardian. 11 12 (b) Jurisdiction. All professional guardians who practice in the state of 13Washington are subject to these rules and regulations. Jurisdiction shall 14continue whether or not the professional guardian retains certification under 15this rule, and regardless of the professional guardian’s residence. 16 17 (c) Certified Professional Guardian Board. 18 19 (1) Establishment. 20 (i) Membership. The Supreme Court shall appoint a Certified 21Professional Guardian Board (“Board”) of 12 or more members. The Board shall 22include representatives from the following areas of expertise: professional 23guardians; attorneys; guardianship advocates for incapacitated persons; courts; 24state agencies; and those employed in medical, social, health, financial, or other 25fields pertinent to guardianships. No more than one-third of the Board 26membership shall be practicing professional guardians. 27 28 (ii) Terms. The term for a member of the Board shall be three 29years. No member may serve more than three consecutive full three-year terms, 30not to exceed nine consecutive years, including any unfilled term. Terms shall be 31established such that one-third shall end each year. All terms of office begin 32October 1 and end September 30 or when a successor has been appointed, 33whichever occurs later. 34 35 (iii) Leadership. The Supreme Court shall designate the Chair 36of the Board. The Board shall designate the Vice-Chair, who shall serve in the 37absence of or at the request of the Chair. 38 39 (iv) Vacancies. Any vacancy occurring in the terms of office of 40Board members shall be filled for the unexpired term. 41 42 (2) Duties and Powers. 43 44 (i) Applications. The Board shall process applications for 45professional guardian certification under this rule. The Board may delay or deny

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 1 1certification if an applicant fails to provide required basic or supplemental 2information. 3 4 (ii) Standards of Practice. The Board shall adopt and 5implement policies or regulations setting forth minimum standards of practice 6which professional guardians shall meet. 7 8 (iii) Training Program. The Board shall adopt and implement 9regulations establishing a professional guardian training program. 10 11 (iv) Examination. The Board may adopt and implement 12regulations governing the preparation and administration of certification 13examinations. 14 15 (v) Recommendation of Certification. The Board may 16recommend certification to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court shall review 17the Board’s recommendation and enter an appropriate order. 18 19 (vi) Denial of Certification. The Board may deny certification. If 20the Board denies certification, it shall notify an applicant in writing of the basis for 21denial of certification and inform the applicant of the appeal process. 22 23 (vii) Continuing Education. The Board may adopt and 24implement regulations for continuing education. 25 26 (viii) Grievances and Disciplineary Sanctions. The Board shall 27adopt and implement procedures to review any allegation that a professional 28guardian has violated an applicable statute, fiduciary duty, standard of practice, 29rule, or regulation, or other requirement governing the conduct of professional 30guardiansauthority. The Board may take disciplinary action and impose 31disciplinary sanctions based onupon a findings that establish aof violation of an 32applicable statute, duty, standard of practice, rule, regulation or other 33requirement governing the conduct of professional guardians. Sanctions may 34include decertification or lesser remedies or actions designed to ensure 35compliance with duties, standards, and requirements for professional guardians. 36 37 (ix) Investigation. The Board may investigate to determine 38whether an applicant for certification meets the certification requirements 39established in this rule. The Board may also investigate to determine whether a 40professional guardian has violated anythe statute, duty, standard of practice, 41rule, regulation, or other requirementstatute governing the conduct of 42professional guardians. 43 44 (x) Authority to Conduct Hearings. The Board may adopt 45regulations pertaining to the orderly conduct of hearings. 46

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 2 1 a) Subpoenas. The Chair of the Board, Hearing 2Officer, or designated a party’s attorney shall have the power to issue 3subpoenas. 4 5 b) Orders. The Chair or Hearing Officer may make 6such pre-hearing or other orders as are necessary for the orderly conduct of any 7hearing. 8 9 c) Enforcement. The Board may refer a Subpoena or 10order to the Supreme Court for enforcement. 11 12 (xi) Confidentiality. Information in the Board’s possession shall 13be disclosed upon request, except that the following information shall not be 14disclosed without a court order: 15 16 a) Personal information, including, but not limited to, home address, 17financial information, medical information, or Social Security number; 18 19 b) Records required by law, regulation, or court order to be confidential; 20 21 c) Records of reviews or investigations by the Board which did not result in 22sanctions; 23 24 d) Professional guardian examination questions, answers, or scores; 25 26 e) Records of investigations shall remain confidential except for documents 27showing the results of the investigation where there has been an appeal; and 28 29 f) Records of disciplinary actions shall remain confidential except all formal 30complaints and the process after filing the formal complaint shall be public. 31 32 (xi) Disclosure of Records. The Board may adopt regulations 33pertaining to the disclosure of records in the Board’s possession. 34 35 (xii) Meetings. The Board shall hold meetings as determined to 36be necessary by the chair. Meetings of the Board will be open to the public 37except for executive session,s of th,e Board, and review panel, or and 38disciplinary meetings prior to filing of a formal disciplinary complaint. 39 40 (xiii) Fees. The Board shall establish and collect fees in such 41amounts as are necessary to carry out support the duties and responsibilities of 42the Board. 43 44 (3) Board Expenses. Board members shall not be compensated for 45their services. Consistent with the Office of Financial Management rules, Board 46members shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in the

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 3 1performance of their duties. All expenses shall be paid pursuant to a budget 2submitted to and approved by the Supreme Court. Funds accumulated from 3examination fees, annual fees, and other revenues shall be used to defray Board 4expenses. 5 6 (4) Agency. Hearing officers are agents of the Board and are accorded 7rights of such agency. 8 9 10 (5) (xiv) Immunity from Liability. No cause of action against the 11Board, its members, or agents, including hearing officers appointed by the Board 12or its Chair, shall accrue in favor of a professional guardian or any other person 13arising from any act taken pursuant to this rule, provided that the Board or 14individual acted in good faith. The burden of proving that the acts were not taken 15were not in good faith shall be on the party so asserting it. 16 17 (6) Conflict of Interest. A Board member should disqualify himself or 18herself from making any decisions in a proceeding in which his or her impartiality 19might reasonably be questioned, such as when the Board member has a 20personal bias or prejudice concerning a party or personal knowledge of disputed 21evidentiary facts concerning the proceeding. 22 23 (7) Leave of Absence. The Board may adopt regulations specifying that 24a Board member who is the subject of a disciplinary investigation by the Board 25must take a leave of absence from the Board. A Board member may not 26continue to serve as a member of the Board if the Board or Supreme Court has 27imposed a final disciplinary sanction on the Board member. 28 29 (8)_Administration. The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)Office 30of the Administrator for the Courts (OAC) shall provide administrative support to 31the Board, and may contract with agencies or organizations to carry out the 32Board’s administrative functions. 33 34 (d) Certification Requirements. Applicants, Certified Professional 35Guardians, and Certified Agencies shall comply with the provisions of Chapter 3611.88 and 11.92 RCW. In addition, individuals and agencies must meet the 37following requirements. 38 39 (1) Individual Certification. An individual applicant shall: 40 41 (i) Be at least 18 years of age; 42 43 (ii) Be of sound mind; 44 45 (iii) Have no felony or misdemeanor convictions involving moral 46turpitude;

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 4 1 2 (iv) Possess an high school diploma or equivalency (GED) 3associate’s degree from an accredited institution and at least four five full years’ 4experience working in a discipline pertinent to the provision of guardianship 5services , such as legal, financial, social service, or health care; or an Associate 6of Arts degree and three years experience working in a discipline pertinent to the 7provision of guardianship services, such as legal, financial, social service, or 8health care; or a Bachelor of Artsbaccalaureate degree from an accredited 9institution and at least two one full years’ of experience working in a discipline 10pertinent to the provision of guardianship services, such as legal, financial, 11social service, or health care; and; 12 13 (v) The experience required by this rule must include decision- 14making or the use of independent judgment on behalf of client(s) in the area of 15legal, financial, social services or healthcare or other disciplines pertinent to the 16provision of guardianship services; 17 18 (vi) Have completed the mandatory certification training. 19 20 (vii) Provide a personal credit report from a recognized credit 21reporting bureau satisfactory to the Board; 22 23 (2) Agency Certification. Agencies must meet the following additional 24requirements: 25 26 (i) All officers and directors of the corporation must meet the 27qualifications of Chapter 11.88.020 RCW for guardians; 28 29 (ii) Each agency shall have at least two (2) individuals in the 30agency certified as professional guardians, whose residence or principal place of 31business is in Washington State and who are so designated in minutes or a 32resolution from the Board of Directors; and 33 34 (iii) Each agency shall file and maintain in every guardianship 35court file a current designation of each certified professional guardian with final 36decision-making authority for the incapacitated person or their estate. 37 38 (3) Training Program and Examination. Applicants must satisfy the 39Board’s training program and examination requirements. 40 41 (4) Insurance Coverage. In addition to the bonding requirements of 42Chapter 11.88 RCW, applicants must be insured or bonded at all times in such 43amount as may be determined by the Board and shall notify the Board 44immediately of cancellation of required coverage. 45

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 5 1 (5) Financial Responsibility. Applicants must provide proof of ability to 2respond to damages resulting from acts or omissions in the performance of 3services as a guardian. Proof of financial responsibility shall be in such form and 4in such amount as the Board may prescribe by regulation. 5 6 (6) Application and Under Oath. Applicants must execute and file with 7the Board an approved application under oath. 8 9 (7) Application Fees. Applicants must pay fees as the Board may 10require by regulation. 11 12 (8) Disclosure. An applicant for certified professional guardian or 13certified agency shall disclose upon application: 14 15 (i) The existence of a judgment against the applicant arising 16from the applicant’s performance of services as a fiduciary; 17 18 (ii) A court finding that the applicant has violated its duties as a 19fiduciary, or committed a felony or any crime involving moral turpitude; 20 21 (iii) Any adjudication of the types specified in RCW 43.43.830, 22and RCW 43.43.842; 23 24 (iv) Pending or final licensing or disciplinary board actions or 25findings of violations; 26 27 (v) The existence of a judgment against the applicant within the 28preceding eight years in any civil action; 29 30 (vi) Whether the applicant has ever filed for bankruptcy; 31 32 (vii) The existence of a judgment against the applicant or any 33corporation, partnership or limited liability corporation for which the applicant was 34a managing partner, controlling member or majority shareholder within the 35preceding eight years in any civil action. 36 37 (89) Denial of Certification. The Board may deny certification of an 38individual or agency based on any of the following criteria: 39 40 (i) Removal as guardian by a court order where Failure to 41satisfy certification requirements provided in section (d) of this rule; 42 43 (aii) The existence of a jJudgment has been entered against the 44guardian applicant arising froms a result of the applicant’s performance of 45services as a guardian fiduciary; 46

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 6 1 (biii) There is aA court finding by the a court that the guardian 2applicant has violated its fiduciary duties or committed malfeasance, 3nonfeasance, misfeasance, a felony or any crime involving of moral turpitude; 4 5 (iiiv) Any adjudication of the types specified in RCW 43.43.830, 6and RCW 43.43.842; 7 8 (iii) Finding by the court that the professional guardian has violated the 9guardian’s duties to the incapacitated person or their estate; and 10 11 (iv) Pending or final professional licensing or disciplinary board 12actions or findings of violations.; 13 14 (vi) A Board determination based on specific findings that the 15applicant lacks the requisite moral character or is otherwise unqualified to 16practice as a professional guardian; 17 18 (vii) A Board determination based on specific findings that the 19applicant’s financial responsibility background is unsatisfactory. 20 21 (10) Designation/Title. An individual certified under this rule may use 22the initials “CPG” following the individual’s name to indicate status as “Certified 23Professional Guardian.” An agency certified under this rule may indicate that it is 24a “Certified Professional Guardian Agency” by using the initials “CPGA” after its 25name. An individual or agency may not use the term “certified professional 26guardian” or “certified professional guardian agency” as part of a business name. 27 28 (e) Guardian Disclosure Requirements. 29 30 (1) A Certified Professional Guardian or Certified Agency shall disclose 31to the Board in writing upon application within 30 days of occurrence and on a 32continuing basis: 33 34 (1) Removal as guardian by a court order where; 35 36 (ai) The existence of a Jjudgment has been entered against the 37professional guardian arising s a result of from the professional guardian’s 38performance of services as a guardian fiduciary; 39 40 (bii) There is aA court finding by a court that the professional 41guardian violated its fiduciary duties, or has committed malfeasance, 42nonfeasance, misfeasance, a felony, or any crime of involving moral turpitude; 43 44 (2iii) Any adjudication of the types specified in RCW 43.43.830, 45and RCW 43.43.842; 46

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 7 1 (3) Finding by a court that the professional guardian has violated the 2guardian’s duties to the incapacitated person or their estate; 3 4 (4iv) Pending or final professional licensing or disciplinary board 5actions or findings of violations; 6 7 (5v) Residential or business moves or changes in employment; 8and 9 10 (6vi) Names of Certified Professional Guardians they employ or 11who leave their employ. 12 13 (2) Not later than June 30 of each year, each professional guardian and 14guardian agency shall complete and submit an annual disclosure statement 15providing information required by the Board. 16 17 (f) Regulations. The Board shall adopt regulations to implement this rule. 18 19 (g) Provisional Certification. The Board may adopt and implement regulations 20permitting provisional certification of professional guardians and the initial 21certification of successful applicants. 22 23 (hg) Personal Identification Number. The Board shall establish an 24identification numbering system for professional guardians. The Personal 25Identification Number shall be included with the professional guardian’s signature 26on documents filed with the court. 27 28 (i) Expenses of the Board. Members of the Board shall not be compensated 29for their services. Consistent with the Office of Financial Management rules, 30Board members shall be reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses 31incurred in the performance of their duties. All expenses shall be paid pursuant 32to a budget submitted to and approved by the Supreme Court. Funds 33accumulated from examination fees, annual fees, and other revenues shall be 34used to defray expenses of the Board. 35 36 (j) Administration. The Office of the Administrator for the Courts (OAC) shall 37provide administrative support to the Board, and may contract with agencies or 38organizations to carry out the Board’s administrative functions. 39 40 (k) Title. An individual certified under this rule may use the initials “CPG” 41following the individual’s name to indicate status as “Certified Professional 42Guardian.” An agency certified under this rule may indicate that it is a “Certified 43Professional Guardian Agency” by using the initials “CPGA” after its name. 44 45 (l) Existing Law Unchanged. This rule shall not expand, narrow, or otherwise 46affect existing law, including but not limited to, Title 11 RCW.

1Suggested Rule Change - GR 23 8 1 2 (mh) Ethics Advisory Opinions. 3 4 (1) The Board may issue written ethics advisory opinions to inform and 5advise Certified Professional Guardians and Certified Agencies of their ethical 6obligations. 7 8 (2) Any Certified Professional Guardian or Certified Agency may request 9in writing an ethical advisory opinion from the Board. Compliance with an opinion 10issued by the Board shall be considered as evidence of good faith in any 11subsequent disciplinary proceeding involving a Certified Professional Guardian or 12Certified Agency. 13 14 (3) The Board shall publish opinions issued pursuant to this rule in 15electronic or paper format. The identity of the person requesting an opinion is 16confidential and not public information. 17 18 (i) Existing Law Unchanged. This rule shall not expand, narrow, or 19otherwise affect existing law, including but not limited to, Title 11 RCW. 20 21 22[Adopted effective January 25, 2000; amended effective April 30, 2002; amended 23effective April 1, 2003; September 1, 2004.] 24[Proposed amendments October 15, 2007.]

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