How does adult guardianship work in the Philadelphia region?
Two hospitalizations and a 10-minute hearing: According to one witness, thats all it took back in 2008 for Britney Spears parents to seize control over the pop stars autonomy and her multimillion-dollar estate. Now, after years of cryptic social media posts, documentaries, podcasts, exposes, and long-awaited testimony from Spears herself, one of her conservators is petitioning to be removed from the arrangement while the other (her father) won his fight to stay on. The legal battle has caused a public outcry aimed at Spears family, friends, conservators, and the California adult guardianship regime that made it all possible. But though her case remains unique in its exposure, local advocates say the issues that plague adult guardianships dont end with the singer, or at the borders of the Golden State. Guardianship is really the taking away of your most fundamental rights: your right to make decisions about your own life and your autonomy, said Karen Buck, executive director of the Senior Law Center, a public interest law nonprofit focused on issues affecting Pennsylvanias elderly community. It goes to the essence of who we are as human beings. And so it really should be the last resort, in terms of a decision made by a court to give rights over you to a third party.  Though most state guardianship laws differ in the details  some states, such as California, use the term conservatorship to refer to adult guardianship cases; other states, like Pennsylvania, do not  the needs for such systems are similar nationwide. Adult guardianship arrangements are meant to help those deemed legally incapacitated due to intellectual or developmental disabilities, and thus unable to make important decisions for themselves, by granting a third party the legal authority to make those decisions on behalf of the person under guardianship. Typically, if necessary, guardians may be appointed to manage two general aspects of ones life: the person and the estate. For example, in Spears case, one appointed co-conservator manages her personal and medical decisions (which recently led to horrific allegations of legally mandated contraception), and another manages her fortune, business ventures, and other financial matters.