What role does a county attorney play in disability hearings?
County attorneys are the attorneys who handle disability hearings in district court. It is their role to ensure that there is a need for guardianship. Disability hearings are held when someone, usually a close friend or relative, files a petition for guardianship over a person because of medical or mental conditions. A jury can decide to grant full or partial guardianship over personal affairs, financial affairs or both. When people are under guardianship, they lose many of the rights we take for granted. They can t spend their own money; they no longer determine where they live or even the medical treatment they receive. Before the hearing, the judge appoints a team of doctors, psychologists and social workers to evaluate the person s need for a guardian. That team, along with other witnesses, testify during a disability hearing in district court. Those who become guardians are placed under bond and are required to make periodic reports to the judge. Disability hearings help us make s
