Franklin and Fulton Counties Enact a New Local Rule Requiring a Guardianship Acknowledgment Form and Rescind Other Local Rules

May 14, 2024
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On April 17, 2024, President Judge Shawn D. Meyers signed an Order adopting a new Local Rule for Franklin and Fulton counties, which is codified at 39th Jud.Dist.O.C. Rule 14.8.1. This new Local Rule requires the completion and filing of a Guardianship Acknowledgment Form upon the Court’s entry of the decree appointing the guardian. Specifically, Rule 39-14.8.1 requires the court-appointed guardian to initial, sign, and file the Guardian Acknowledgment of Duties and Liabilities Form in the form set forth in the Rule itself. The Guardianship Acknowledgment Form sets forth an informative and illustrative set of duties, requirements, and liabilities, including their corresponding statutory cites, that the guardian must acknowledge, accept, and assent to under penalty of perjury upon assuming his or her fiduciary role as guardian. The Form lists duties and liabilities that apply to someone serving in either the role of guardian of the person or guardian of the estate. Thus, it should be completed and filed even where the court is making an appointment of someone to serve in only one of those capacities. Rule 39-14.8.1 will become effective thirty (30) days after its publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin; it becomes effective on May 27, 2024.

Also by the April 17, 2024 Order, the Court rescinded a series of other Franklin and Fulton County Local Rules, which are as follows: Rule 39-2.6 Time for Filing Accounts, Rule 39-2.7 Time for Filing Objections, Rule 39-14.2 Adjudication of Incompetency, Rule 39-15.1 Practice and Procedure, Rule 39-15.5.4 Involuntary Termination, Rule 39-15.5.5 Adoption, Rule 39-15.5.8 Confirmation of Consents, Rule 39-15.5.9 Compliance with Act 101 of 2010, and Rule 39-16 Forms.

For more information or guidance, please contact Courtney M. Wentzel, who regularly practices in the areas of guardianship, elder law, and fiduciary litigation at McNees.

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