Trustee association

A trustee association was a non-profit association in Austria that could be commissioned by the competent court to represent adults with mental or intellectual impairments. Since July 1, 2018, guardian associations have been referred to as adult protection associations and have expanded tasks.

history

In 1984 the guardianship replaced the "incapacitation" (incapacitation order) that had been customary until then. With the change in the law in 1990, the transferred guardianship was bound to the association as a legal person , regardless of the association's employees . This should create the basis for a system that is as flexible as possible, also serving the interests of the impaired people, and which can act independently of an individually commissioned person.

With the Accommodation Act (UbG, 1991), administrator associations were also assigned tasks of patient advocacy, with the Residence Act (HeimAufG, 2005) tasks of resident representatives and with the Administrator Law Amendment Act 2006 (SWRÄG 2006) so-called clearing tasks within the framework of guardianship.

On July 1, 2018, the protection of adults is to be significantly changed and improved by the adult protection associations and the Adult Protection Act.

General information on club guardians

By the guardianship of a person is the legal representative for the competent court adult people transferred if it is unable due to an intellectual impairment or mental illness to do its own affairs, without running the risk of being disadvantaged. Physical disabilities and addictions are not grounds for guardianship.

Trustee associations should only be appointed as trustees if there is no suitable person close to them for this task or if there are special requirements associated with the trustee in question. Trustees' associations can also be appointed by the court as procedural trustees. They then represent the interests of the person concerned in this procedure and clarify whether a trustee is necessary in the respective case and how broad his sphere of activity should be.

There are four recognized trustee associations in Austria:

• VertretungsNetz (VSP) as the largest and federal transnational, Association for trustees properties, patient advocacies, residents representations in the provinces of Burgenland , Carinthia , Upper Austria , Styria , Tyrol and Vienna and in the parishes of the district courts Gänserndorf , Hollabrunn , Klosterneuburg , Korneuburg , Mistelbach , Tulln , Neumarkt in Salzburg , Oberndorf , Salzburg and Thalgau ,
• Lower Austrian regional association for guardianship and residents' representation in the districts of the district courts of Amstetten , Baden , Bruck an der Leitha , Gmünd in Lower Austria , Horn , Krems an der Donau , Lilienfeld , Melk , Mödling , Neulengbach , Neunkirchen , Scheibbs , Schwechat , St. Pölten , Waidhofen an der Thaya , Wiener Neustadt and Zwettl ,
• Aid Agency Salzburg for guardianship and resident representation in the districts of the Hallein , Saalfelden , St. Johann im Pongau , Tamsweg and Zell am See district courts ,
• Institute for Social Services (ifs) for guardianship, residents' representatives and patient advocacy in Vorarlberg

These four trustee associations can be appointed as trustees. The association must inform the court of the person who will perform the tasks of guardianship for the specific case. These are usually social workers or lawyers .

The Federal Minister of Justice has to determine by ordinance whether an association is suitable to act as an administrator .

Trustee associations employ full-time and honorary club administrators.

clearing

With an appointment by the competent courts, they can clarify before the appointment of an administrator whether and which alternatives there might be in a specific case ( clearing - until July 1, 2018 - only possible to a limited extent with a few district courts in Austria).

The legal basis for clearing is § 4 VSPBG. According to this, the associations have to inform persons and bodies that suggest the appointment of a guardian about the nature of the guardianship and possible alternatives, in advance or as part of a guardian appointment process (in particular at the request of the court) to clarify which matters are to be worried about Alternatives to the appointment of trustees exist and whether related persons are possible as trustees, as well as to advise related persons appointed as trustee in the exercise of the guardianship .

financing

In order to carry out these tasks in the public interest effectively and efficiently, the administrators' associations are financed by the state . In 2007 Austria supported the four administrators' associations with a total of EUR 23,820,000. In 2008 already with EURO 27,882,000 and in 2009 with EURO 29,218,000. The funding contribution fell slightly in 2010 to EUR 28,572,000. With special guidelines, the Federal Ministry of Justice, as the funding agency within the meaning of Section 5 of the General Framework Guidelines for the Granting of Funding from Federal Funds, regulates the objectives and framework conditions for funding the administrators' associations.

Due to the funding of the Sachwalterverein by the Federal Ministry of Justice , the Court of Auditors is called to assess the processing and use of the funds by the association in terms of correctness, expediency and economic efficiency.

Club administrator

Association trustees are the trustees who work within the framework of trustee associations. A distinction is made between full-time and voluntary club administrators. Full-time club administrators are usually responsible for procedural administratorships and the time-consuming or technically difficult administratorships. Voluntary association guardians are responsible for those guardianships that are primarily concerned with a long-term personal relationship with the person concerned. Volunteer club administrators are trained by the administrator associations. Volunteers can receive an expense allowance from the association. You are usually insured against liability and accidents.

The trustees, patient advocates and other persons working within the associations are, apart from the guardianship or placement court, obliged to maintain secrecy towards everyone about the perceptions made in the exercise of their activities, insofar as the confidentiality is necessary in the interests of the persons concerned and they themselves do not have an obligation to provide information meets. The violation of the duty of confidentiality is to be punished as well as a prohibited publication (§ 301 StGB).

Trustees appointed by the associations have no claim to reimbursement of cash outlays and rewards from the persons in charge of care. The association is entitled to these claims and the custodial court decides on the amount at the request of the association.

In addition to trustee associations, related persons, lawyers, notaries or other suitable persons can be commissioned as trustees by the competent court.

Legal basis

The legal basis for the guardians 'associations and guardianship is the federal law on associations for the naming of guardians, patient advocates and residents' representatives as well as the related ordinances and guidelines. On July 1, 2018, this law becomes the federal law on adult protection associations. With the entry into force of the new law, the adult protection associations will take the place of the guardian associations that existed until then.

Web links

• Guardianship - useful information for those affected, relatives and interested parties , publication by the Federal Ministry of Justice
• 1420 of Beilagen XXII. GP - Government Bill - Materials
• Federal law of February 2, 1983 on guardianship for disabled people
• Federal law of March 1, 1990 on associations for the naming of trustees and patient advocates
• Federal Act on Adult Protection Associations (from July 1, 2018)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Disability regulation of June 28, 1916, RGBl. No. 207.
2. ↑ See: Federal Act of February 2, 1983 on guardianship for disabled people, Federal Law Gazette 136/1983.
3. ↑ With the UbG, the civil law placement in a closed department by the guardianship court was inadmissible and the trustee was deprived of the compulsory powers based on the ABGB .
4. ↑ Special guidelines for association guardianship, patient advocacy, residents' council 2015 to 2019, Federal Ministry of Justice , July 2015, p. 2.
5. ↑ Federal Act on Adult Protection Associations (Adult Protection Association Act - ErwSchVG, Federal Law Gazette No. 156/1990).
6. ↑ See: Ordinance of the Federal Minister of Justice on the determination of the suitability of associations to be appointed trustee and to name patient advocates and residents' representatives, Federal Law Gazette II No. 117/2007.
7. ↑ Homepage of the agency network .
8. ↑ Homepage of the Lower Austrian Regional Association for Guardianship and Resident Representation .
9. ↑ Homepage aid organization Salzburg .
10. ^ Homepage Institute for Social Services .
11. ↑ Section 1, Paragraph 1 of the Federal Act of March 1, 1990 on Associations for the Naming of Guardians and Patient Advocates (Association Guardians and Patient Attorneys Act - VSPAG), Federal Law Gazette No. 156/1990.
12. ↑ Special guidelines for association guardianship, patient advocacy, residents' council 2015 to 2019, Federal Ministry of Justice , July 2015, p. 4.
13. ↑ Source: Report of the Court of Auditors , Bund 2011/9, p. 158.
14. ↑ Ordinance of the Federal Minister of Finance on General Framework Guidelines for Granting Funding from Federal Funds (ARR 2014), Federal Law Gazette II No. 208/2014
15. ↑ Special guidelines for association guardianship, patient advocacy, residents' council 2015 to 2019, Federal Ministry of Justice , July 2015.
16. ↑ § 6 VSPAG
17. ↑ § 10 VSPAG
18. ↑ Vereinssachwalter-, Patientenanwalts- and residents representatives Act -. VSPBG, Federal Law Gazette No. 156/1990..
19. ↑ Adult Protection Association Act - ErwSchVG.