Appellate Division Affirms; Supreme Court of New Jersey Agrees to Hear the Case
The Office of Adult Protective Services (“APS”) filed a verified complaint seeking the appointment of a temporary and permanent guardian for Hank (a fictitious name), an alleged incapacitated and vulnerable adult who had no significant assets or income.
As is required by the court rules governing guardianships, the court appointed an attorney for Hank, as well as a temporary guardian to arrange for Hank’s interim needs.
The court-appointed attorney initially recommended a plenary guardian for Hank, but later modified that recommendation based on services that had been established for Hank. Ultimately, the court ruled that Hank required a limited guardian for legal and medical decision-making, and appointed the Bureau of Guardianship Services as the limited guardian. The judge praised the APS case worker, the court-appointed attorney, and the temporary guardian, for their substantial efforts in the case. However, the judge denied legal fees to the court-appointed attorney and the temporary guardian.
The court-appointed attorney’s fees totaled approximately $3,700; the temporary guardian’s fees and expenses totaled approximately $15,000. The court rules (Rule 4:86-4) allow for compensating court-appointed attorneys and guardians ad litem from the estate of the alleged incapacitated person “or in such other manner as the court shall direct.” Because Hank had no assets, those fees could not be paid from Hank’s estate; therefore, the attorney and temporary guardian sought payment from APS. APS objected, arguing that awarding guardianship fees from their budget would limit APS’s ability to serve its clients.
In denying the fee applications, the judge found that APS had acted properly, and that, absent a finding of misfeasance or other extraordinary circumstances, the court could not order fee-shifting to a state agency. It found that APS was created by the legislature to serve vulnerable adults in the state, and that the APS statute did not provide for funding of court-appointed attorneys or temporary guardians.
The Appellate Division affirmed the lower court’s decision, concluding that:
On April 5, 2024, the Supreme Court of New Jersey granted certification, thereby agreeing to review the case.
A copy of the Appellate Division decision of In re A.D. can be found here.