How do you complete an Annual Report on Ward in Illinois?
When an Illinois guardianship estate has been open for at least a year, the local guardianship court will typically require an annual status update on how the disabled person (Ward) is doing. In order to fulfill this annual status update requirement, the Guardian of the Person for a disabled individual must file an “Annual Report on Ward” in Illinois. So, what does an Illinois Annual Report on Ward look like, and how do you complete it for filing with the court? Let’s take a look at the Annual Report process to find out.
The Illinois Annual Report on Ward Form
To get a better understanding about what kind of information the guardianship court is looking for in an Annual Report on the disabled person, let’s first see what the standard Illinois form looks like:
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE _______________ JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
____________ COUNTY, ILLINOIS
Estate of )
)
___________________, ) No.
)
A Disabled Person )
ANNUAL REPORT ON WARD
Pursuant to the Illinois Probate Act, 755 ILCS 5/11a-17(b) (1995), ______________, plenary guardian of _________________, submits his/her annual report as follows:
1. The Ward is now _________________ years of age.
The Ward’s mental diagnosis is: __________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________.
The Ward’s physical diagnosis is: _________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________.
The Ward’s social condition is: ___________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________.
The Ward’s physical condition is: ________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________.
The Ward’s mental condition is: __________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________.
2. The Ward’s current address and appropriateness of such placement:
Other residences and length of stay at each since last report:
3. Medical services given to the Ward:
Educational services given to the Ward:
Vocation and other professional services given to the Ward:
4. Dates guardian visited and significant occurrences:
5. Recommendations as to the need for continued guardianship:
6. Other information considered useful in the opinion of the guardians:
____________________________________ Guardian’s Signature and Date
Guardian’s Name:
Guardian’s Address:
City, State, & Zip:
Telephone No.:
As we can see, the information that the guardianship court will want regarding the disabled person is typically very basic. With the Annual Report, it is the Guardian’s responsibility to keep the court informed regarding the current mental, physical, and social condition of the disabled person, and the current living situation and related services for the disabled individual.
Tips for Completing the Illinois Annual Report Form
The Illinois Annual Report is meant to be a basic update to the guardianship court regarding the disabled person’s current status. Thus, the form does not usually need to have extensive information for every entry. Also, if an Annual Report form has previously been filed in the guardianship case and the information for a certain item has not changed, it is acceptable to simply duplicate the information from previous reports. It is therefore advisable to make a copy of the completed Annual Report form for your records each year.
In addition, every guardianship court in and around the Chicagoland area typically sets an annual status court date of some kind for guardianship reports. The Guardian of the Person must usually be present in court on that date, unless he/she has mailed his/her completed Annual Report on Ward to the court at least two weeks prior to the annual status date (the one notable exception being Will County). If the Annual Report has been properly mailed to the court in time, the Guardian’s presence on the annual status court date is usually excused.
County Court Forms
In several counties in the greater Chicago area, there are county-specific forms available to the general public for Annual Reports on Ward. The following is a list of links to these forms for various counties in the Chicago area:
Kane County Annual Report on Ward form
Will County Annual Report on Ward form
Cook County Annual Report on Ward form (This link will take you to the county court form page. Simply find the Annual Report form link on the page.)
McHenry County Annual Report on Ward form
For other counties in the greater Chicago area, such as Kendall County, it is common practice to use a neighboring county's form, and to edit the county information accordingly.
What if the disabled person has moved?
Under Item 2 of the Annual Report, the Guardian must give the court the current information regarding the disabled person’s living arrangements. If the disabled person has moved since the opening of the guardianship or since the last Annual Report, it is important to determine whether the guardianship case must be transferred to another court if the move was out of the county, or even out of the state. For more information on this issue, visit our page on how to transfer a guardianship case in Illinois.
If you have questions about an Annual Report or other guardianship related issues, and you would like to speak with an experienced Chicagoland area Guardianship attorney regarding your legal matter, give us a call at (630) 898-4789 to set up a free initial consultation. We currently handle Guardianship matters in Kane, DuPage, Kendall, and Will County. We will consider Guardianship cases in other Chicago area counties as well.
The Law Office of Kevin Williams, 2295 Bannister Lane, Aurora, IL 60504, (630) 898-4789
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