Source: https://www.alzheimer-europe.org/Policy-in-Practice2/Country-comparisons/2016-Decision-making-and-legal-capacity-in-dementia/Germany
Timestamp: 2019-11-21 01:34:12
Document Index: 106978120

Matched Legal Cases: ['§104', '§1896', '§1907', '§105', '§28', '§832', '§ 20']

Germany - 2016: Decision making and legal capacity in dementia - Country comparisons - Policy in Practice - Alzheimer Europe
anybody participating in such research must have given informed consent;
anybody who has been involuntarily committed cannot participate;
An advance directive can only be written by an adult who has capacity and is not subject to external pressure. For example, writing an advance directive cannot be made a condition for concluding a contract. The advance directive must be in written form. It is assumed that a person has capacity but confirmation of this by a notary may be helpful. The advance directive should refer to specific treatment or situations and cannot include a request for something that is illegal, e.g. assisted suicide. Advice from a doctor is advisable but not necessary. There is no set procedure for registering advance directives and they are not limited to a set period of time.
Paragraph 1901a BGB does, however, outline the obligation of guardians to take into account previously wishes in cases where the person lacking capacity did not make an advance directive or made one but it does not apply to the current situation. In doing so, guardians must base their appraisal of the person’s wishes on concrete evidence such as wishes which were previously expressed either in writing or orally, ethical or religious convictions and known personal values. This must be done irrespective of the stage or type of illness that the person has.
The process of declaring a person legally incompetent as part of the guardianship process has been abolished. However, it is still possible to make such a declaration if really necessary. In English there is only one word, whereas in German there are two and the significance of the terms used is important. In an information brochure on the law governing guardianship (Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch/BGB) produced by the Ministry of Justice (Bundesministerium der Justiz, 1996), it is stated that a person can no longer be “entmündigt”. This word means incapacitated or “declared incapable of managing one’s own affairs”. This term has connotations of the loss of fundamental and basic rights, which are acquired with adulthood. The term “geschäftsunfähig” which is used in §104 of the Civil Code simply means “incompetent to carry out business” and therefore has fewer derogatory connotations. Please see the section on contractual capacity for more details.
The Betreuungsgesetz (“Guardianship Law”) is part of the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (BGB) (i.e. the German Civil Code).
The Guardianship Law, which came into force in January 1992, was the result of the Act to Reform the Law Concerning Guardianship and Curatorship for Adult Persons from12 September 1990. It is generally considered to be a vast improvement on the previous provisions for guardianship and care of the frail.
According to §1896 of the Civil Code, a guardian can be appointed by the Guardianship Court if due to a psychiatric illness or mental impediment an adult is wholly or partly unable to look after his/her own affairs. A guardian is only appointed for tasks for which guardianship is necessary. If the person’s affairs could be managed equally satisfactorily in a way other than by appointment of a legal representative, this should be done. Similarly, if a person merely needs help with household tasks or to leave the house, this should be arranged, without this necessitating the appointment of a legal representative.
The Court can decide to appoint more than one guardian if this would mean that the person’s affairs could be managed more efficiently this way. The duties and responsibilities of each guardian can be specified. Moreover, the Court can also appoint several guardians so that only one looks after the affairs of the person, but another can take over if the first is prevented from doing so or transfers the duty to him/her.
“The carer will look after the affairs of the person cared for in the way his/her welfare requires. The welfare of the person cared for also includes the possibility of arranging his/her life within the scope of his/her capabilities in accordance with his/her own wishes and ideas.”
The guardian will comply with the wishes of the ward if this does not conflict with the latter’s welfare and if it can be expected of the guardian. This also applies to desires that the ward expressed before the guardian was appointed unless s/he demonstrably does not wish to keep to this desire. The guardian will discuss important matters with the ward before discharging them, insofar as it does not conflict with his/her welfare.
How the financial affairs of the person under guardianship are handled?
If the guardian has responsibility for handling the ward’s financial affairs, s/he must provide the Court with a complete list of the ward’s finances and assets. The Court decides when and how often this should be done. If the guardians are relatives, they only need to provide proof of the financial situation when the Court demands it, but at least every two years. The ward is entitled to demand to see this list whenever s/he wants to.
Money should be put into an account which can only be accessed with the authorisation of the Guardianship Court. Financial investments can only be made with the approval of the Court. If there is a current account, the guardian can withdraw money without authorisation from the Guardianship Court provided that there is not more than a specified amount in the account (EUR 3,000). If the guardian is the ward’s spouse or a relative, withdrawals can be made without authorisation for larger amounts.
Numerous authorisations are necessary for the purchase and sale of a piece of ground belonging to the ward or for taking out mortgages. If a contract is made between the guardian and the ward, the guardian cannot act on the ward’s behalf with regard to this contract. In such cases, the guardian must contact the Court so that an additional guardian can be appointed to deal with this matter.
In rare cases, if the ward seems to be a danger to him/herself or assets, the Guardianship Court can order a “reservation of consent”. This means that s/he can only make a decla­ration of will with the consent of his/her guardian. This protective measure is similar to measures designed to protect minors when carrying out business transactions. There is a clause in the Civil Code (§1907), which states that the guardian must obtain authorisation before terminating a rental agreement for the ward’s accommodation. This measure is designed to protect the ward from the adverse effects of losing a trusted environment and circle of acquaintances.
A normal guardianship case for a person living in a flat with no money would cost EUR 1,848. Guardians who are relatives or volunteers are entitled to a payment of EUR 323 per year to cover various costs such as transportation and telephone calls. If the ward has more than EUR 2,600, s/he must cover this cost. If the ward has more than EUR 2,600, s/he must cover this cost; otherwise it is paid by the State (International Guardianship Network, 2008). Guardians are responsible for any loss or damage suffered by the ward due to their actions but some communes provide volunteer guardians with an insurance against this (Marburger Verein für Selbstbestimmung und Betreuung, 2008).
A durable power of attorney (known as Vorsorgevollmacht) is a power of attorney which only becomes valid when the person who wrote it is no longer able to handle his/ her finances and other matters. The person who writes the durable power of attorney can limit the powers of the future attorney to certain matters. People holding a power of attorney are not routinely controlled.
A person has the right to contract a marriage provided that s/he has not been declared legally incompetent in the sense of “geschäftsunfähig” (Bundesministerium der Justiz, 1996).
According to article 12 Bundeswahlgesetz (Federal Election Law), every person who has reached the age of 18 has the right to vote.
There is no system of relative incompetence. However, a person may be partially incompetent, which means that s/he may be able to carry out transactions or make decisions in a certain domain but not in others. A guardian can carry out a transaction on behalf of a ward, provided that s/he has the authority to act in this domain. If a person who has been declared legally incompetent makes a declaration of will, it can be declared invalid (§105 Abs.1 BGB/Civil Code). This also applies if the person who made it was in a state of unconsciousness or temporary disturbance of the mind.
Making a will is therefore linked to the concept of mental incapacity. As such, it is not affected by the mere naming of a guardian or by the “reservation of consent”. Anybody who wants to have a will declared invalid must prove that the person who made it was incapable at the time of writing.
If a person makes a will with the help of a lawyer or in an emergency situation with the help of other people, the lawyer or those people must assess the testator’s mental capacity. Without deciding whether s/he has testamentary capacity, they must simply record any indications they detect of a possible lack of such capacity (§28 Beurkungsgesetz) (Lipp, 2008).
Family members are not responsible either in that each person can only be held responsible for his/her own actions. Nevertheless, the injured party may attempt to obtain compensation from the head of the household for failure to prevent the person from causing damage. This is governed by §832 of the Civil Code which states that, if the damage was caused by a minor or a major who on account of his/her mental or physical condition was under supervision, the person responsible for his/her supervision is obliged to compensate the third party. However, the obligation to compensate for damage shall not arise if s/he has sufficiently carried out the task of supervision or if the damage would have occurred even if proper supervision had been carried out.
According to the Penal Code, a person who commits a crime may be deemed to have acted without criminal responsibility due to incapacity or may be given a lighter sentence due to a state of diminished responsibility. The relevant paragraphs of the Penal Code are as follows:
“§ 20 Incapacity due to mental disturbance - A person who, when s/he perpetrates an act, is unable, on account of mental disturbance, of farreaching disturbance of consciousness, of mental deficiency or a serious mental abnormality of some other kind, to understand the wrongfulness of the act or to behave in accordance with this understanding, acts without criminal responsibility.
Paragraph 63 of the Penal Code states that if a person who has committed an illegal act is suffering from mental incapacity or diminished responsibility, s/he may be committed to a psychiatric hospital or clinic. This could occur if following an overall assessment, the Court establishes that s/he would be likely to commit a serious illegal act due to his/her condition, which would render him/her a danger to the public.