Colorado § 15-14-315 - Powers of guardian.

§ 15-14-315. Powers of guardian.

(1) Subject to the limitations set forth in section 15-14-316 and except as otherwise limited by the court, a guardian may:

(a) Apply for and receive money payable to the ward or the ward's guardian or custodian for the support of the ward under the terms of any statutory system of benefits or insurance or any private contract, devise, trust, conservatorship, or custodianship;

(b) If otherwise consistent with the terms of any order by a court of competent jurisdiction relating to custody of the ward, take custody of the ward and establish the ward's place of custodial dwelling, but may only establish or move the ward's place of dwelling outside this state upon express authorization of the court;

(c) If a conservator for the estate of the ward has not been appointed with existing authority, commence a proceeding, including an administrative proceeding, or take other appropriate action to compel a person to support the ward or to pay money for the benefit of the ward;

(d) Consent to medical or other care, treatment, or service for the ward; and

(e) If reasonable under all of the circumstances, delegate to the ward certain responsibilities for decisions affecting the ward's well-being.

(2) The court may specifically authorize or direct the guardian to consent to the adoption or marriage of the ward.

Source: L. 2000: Entire part R&RE, p. 1799, § 1, effective January 1, 2001 (see § 15-17-103).

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 15-14-312 as it existed prior to 2001.

ANNOTATION

Law reviews. For article, "Adult Guardianships and Conservatorships: Protection of Constitutional Rights", see 15 Colo. Law. 820 (1986). For article, "Colorado Guardianship and Conservatorship Law: A Status Report", see 16 Colo. Law. 421 (1987). For article, "Anticipating Disabilities: Voluntary Planning Opportunities in Colorado", see 17 Colo. Law. 437 (1988). For article, "Marriage, Divorce, and Annulment When One Party is Arguably Incapacitated", see 43 Colo. Law. 39 (Feb. 2014).

This section confers upon the guardian no greater right to the custody of his ward than had the parent at common law. People ex rel. Flannery v. Bolton, 27 Colo. App. 39, 146 P. 489 (1915) (decided under repealed CSA, C. 176, § 140).

A nonlawyer conservator or guardian in this state is a statutory legal representative only and is therefore prohibited from practicing law and serving as legal counsel in court. The powers granted to conservators under § 15-14-425 and to guardians under this section and § 15-14-315.5 do not establish an exception to § 12-5-101 regarding the practice of law. In re Kanefsky, 260 P.3d 327 (Colo. App. 2010) (decided prior to 2017 amendments relocating article 5 of title 12 to article 93 of title 13).

The plain meaning of "outside this state" in subsection (1)(b) includes a foreign country. In Interest of Diaz, 2024 COA 101, 560 P.3d 434.

Applied in In re A.W., 637 P.2d 366 (Colo. 1981).