Opinion ID: 1751413
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Determining Standing in Guardianship Proceedings

Text: Standing is a legal concept that requires a would-be litigant to demonstrate that he or she reasonably expects to be affected by the outcome of the proceedings, either directly or indirectly. See generally Brown v. Firestone, 382 So.2d 654, 662 (Fla.1980) ([T]his Court has long been committed to the rule that a party does not possess standing to sue unless he or she can demonstrate a direct and articulable stake in the outcome of a controversy.); Weiss v. Johansen, 898 So.2d 1009, 1011 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005) (Standing depends on whether a party has a sufficient stake in a justiciable controversy, with a legally cognizable interest which would be affected by the outcome of the litigation.). Thus, standing to bring or participate in a particular legal proceeding often depends on the nature of the interest asserted. In guardianship proceedings, the overwhelming public policy is the protection of the ward. See § 744.1012, Fla. Stat. (2006) (declaring that the purpose of the Florida Guardianship Law is to promote the public welfare by establishing a system that permits incapacitated persons to participate as fully as possible in all decisions affecting them; that assists such persons in meeting the essential requirements for their physical health and safety, in protecting their rights, in managing their financial resources, and in developing or regaining their abilities to the maximum extent possible; and that accomplishes these objectives through providing, in each case, the form of assistance that least interferes with the legal capacity of a person to act in her or his own behalf). Thus, unlike most other types of litigation, guardianship proceedings are not adversarial and are governed by a comprehensive statutory code and set of procedural rules dictating who should receive notice of a particular proceeding. In deciding who has standing to participate in a guardianship proceeding, the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Districts all focused on whether the person asserting standing is entitled to notice of the proceeding or is expressly authorized to file an objection in the proceeding. Significantly, each of these courts reviewed both the statutory law and the Florida Probate Rules. These courts also evaluated the nature of the interest of the person asserting standing. We agree that when deciding whether a person has standing to participate in a specific guardianship proceeding, the court should begin by considering both the provisions of the Florida Guardianship Law and any pertinent Florida guardianship rules. [9] The guardianship statutes and rules complement one another. The guardianship statutes set out the substantive law in this area and the Florida Probate Rules set out the procedure in all probate and guardianship proceedings. Fla. Prob. R. 5.010. If a party asserting standing is either entitled to notice or authorized to file an objection in the proceeding under either the statutory provisions or the rules, that party should have standing to participate in the proceeding. Otherwise, the right to receive notice or file an objection would be meaningless. Cf. Velez v. Miami-Dade County Police Dep't, 934 So.2d 1162, 1165 (Fla.2006) (This combination of a requirement of notification of the right to the adversarial preliminary hearing and the right to request the hearing indicates that the Legislature intended that the `person entitled to notice' have an opportunity to participate in that hearing.). Where either the Florida Guardianship Law or the Florida Probate Rules expressly require that a person receive notice, the purpose of the provision is to inform the person of the proceeding and give the person an opportunity to participate in the proceeding if he or she chooses. For example, a petition to determine incapacity under section 744.331, Florida Statutes (2006), requires notice of the filing of the petition to be served on the incapacitated person, the attorney for the incapacitated person, and all next of kin identified in the petition. Thus, we hold that if the person is entitled to notice or is authorized to file an objection under the Florida Guardianship Law or the Florida Probate Rules, that person has standing to participate in the guardianship proceeding.