99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2015 and 2016
SB0786

 

Introduced 2/5/2015, by Sen. Mattie Hunter

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
755 ILCS 5/11-13  from Ch. 110 1/2, par. 11-13

    Amends the Probate Act of 1975. Provides that a guardianship order for a minor that incorporates language governing removal of the minor from the State encompasses only those removals which take place within one year of the order, and must include a provision for the guardian to provide notice to the parents of the date of removal and the residential address of the minor after removal. Effective immediately.


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A BILL FOR

 

SB0786LRB099 06793 HEP 26867 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Probate Act of 1975 is amended by changing
5Section 11-13 as follows:
 
6    (755 ILCS 5/11-13)  (from Ch. 110 1/2, par. 11-13)
7    Sec. 11-13. Duties of guardian of a minor. Before a
8guardian of a minor may act, the guardian shall be appointed by
9the court of the proper county and, in the case of a guardian
10of the minor's estate, the guardian shall give the bond
11prescribed in Section 12-2. Except as provided in Section
1211-13.1 and Section 11-13.2 with respect to the standby or
13short-term guardian of the person of a minor, the court shall
14have control over the person and estate of the ward. Under the
15direction of the court:
16    (a) The guardian of the person shall have the custody,
17nurture and tuition and shall provide education of the ward and
18of his children, but the ward's spouse may not be deprived of
19the custody and education of the spouse's children, without
20consent of the spouse, unless the court finds that the spouse
21is not a fit and competent person to have such custody and
22education. If the ward's estate is insufficient to provide for
23the ward's education and the guardian of his person fails to

 

 

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1provide education, the court may award the custody of the ward
2to some other person for the purpose of providing education. If
3a person makes a settlement upon or provision for the support
4or education of a ward and if either parent of the ward is
5dead, the court may make such order for the visitation of the
6ward by the person making the settlement or provision as the
7court deems proper. The guardian of the minor shall inform the
8court of the minor's current address by certified mail, hand
9delivery, or other method in accordance with court rules within
1030 days of any change of residence.
11    (b) The guardian or other representative of the ward's
12estate shall have the care, management and investment of the
13estate, shall manage the estate frugally and shall apply the
14income and principal of the estate so far as necessary for the
15comfort and suitable support and education of the ward, his
16children, and persons related by blood or marriage who are
17dependent upon or entitled to support from him, or for any
18other purpose which the court deems to be for the best
19interests of the ward, and the court may approve the making on
20behalf of the ward of such agreements as the court determines
21to be for the ward's best interests. The representative may
22make disbursement of his ward's funds and estate directly to
23the ward or other distributee or in such other manner and in
24such amounts as the court directs. If the estate of a ward is
25derived in whole or in part from payments of compensation,
26adjusted compensation, pension, insurance or other similar

 

 

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1benefits made directly to the estate by the Veterans
2Administration, notice of the application for leave to invest
3or expend the ward's funds or estate, together with a copy of
4the petition and proposed order, shall be given to the
5Veterans' Administration Regional Office in this State at least
67 days before the hearing on the application. The court, upon
7petition of a guardian of the estate of a minor, may permit the
8guardian to make a will or create a revocable or irrevocable
9trust for the minor that the court considers appropriate in
10light of changes in applicable tax laws that allow for
11minimization of State or federal income, estate, or inheritance
12taxes; however, the will or trust must make distributions only
13to the persons who would be entitled to distributions if the
14minor were to die intestate and the will or trust must make
15distributions to those persons in the same amounts to which
16they would be entitled if the minor were to die intestate.
17    (c) Upon the direction of the court which issued his
18letters a representative may perform the contracts of his ward
19which were legally subsisting at the time of the commencement
20of the guardianship. The court may authorize the guardian to
21execute and deliver any bill of sale, deed or other instrument.
22    (d) The representative of the estate of a ward shall appear
23for and represent the ward in all legal proceedings unless
24another person is appointed for that purpose as representative
25or next friend. This does not impair the power of any court to
26appoint a representative or next friend to defend the interests

 

 

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1of the ward in that court, or to appoint or allow any person as
2the next friend of a ward to commence, prosecute or defend any
3proceeding in his behalf. Any proceeding on behalf of a minor
4may be commenced and prosecuted by his next friend, without any
5previous authority or appointment by the court if the next
6friend enters bond for costs and files it in the court where
7the proceeding is pending. Without impairing the power of the
8court in any respect, if the representative of the estate of a
9minor and another person as next friend shall appear for and
10represent the minor in a legal proceeding in which the
11compensation of the attorney or attorneys representing the
12guardian and next friend is solely determined under a
13contingent fee arrangement, the guardian of the estate of the
14minor shall not participate in or have any duty to review the
15prosecution of the action, to participate in or review the
16appropriateness of any settlement of the action, or to
17participate in or review any determination of the
18appropriateness of any fees awarded to the attorney or
19attorneys employed in the prosecution of the action.
20    (e) Upon petition by any interested person (including the
21standby or short-term guardian), with such notice to interested
22persons as the court directs and a finding by the court that it
23is in the best interest of the minor, the court may terminate
24or limit the authority of a standby or short-term guardian or
25may enter such other orders as the court deems necessary to
26provide for the best interest of the minor. The petition for

 

 

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1termination or limitation of the authority of a standby or
2short-term guardian may, but need not, be combined with a
3petition to have a guardian appointed for the minor.
4    (f) The court may grant leave to the guardian of a minor
5child or children to remove such child or children from
6Illinois whenever such approval is in the best interests of
7such child or children. The guardian may not remove a minor
8from Illinois except as permitted under this Section and must
9seek leave of the court prior to removing a child for 30 days
10or more. The burden of proving that such removal is in the best
11interests of such child or children is on the guardian. When
12such removal is permitted, the court may require the guardian
13removing such child or children from Illinois to give
14reasonable security guaranteeing the return of such children.
15    The court shall consider the wishes of the minor's parent
16or parents and the effect of removal on visitation and the
17wishes of the minor if he or she is 14 years of age or older.
18The court may not consider the availability of electronic
19communication as a factor in support of the removal of a child
20by the guardian from Illinois. The guardianship order may
21incorporate language governing removal of the minor from the
22State within one year of the order, but must include a
23provision for the guardian to provide notice to the parents of
24the date of removal and the residential address of the minor
25after removal.
26    Before a minor child is temporarily removed from Illinois

 

 

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1for more than 48 hours but less than 30 days, the guardian
2shall inform the parent or parents of the address and telephone
3number where the child may be reached during the period of
4temporary removal and the date on which the child shall return
5to Illinois. The State of Illinois retains jurisdiction when
6the minor child is absent from the State pursuant to this
7subsection. The guardianship order may incorporate language
8governing out-of-state travel with the minor.
9(Source: P.A. 98-1082, eff. 1-1-15.)
 
10    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
11becoming law.