Guardianship, wage garnishment part of judiciary and civil law modification law

A new law makes changes to four sections of statutes regarding guardianship and conservatorship laws, the Minnesota Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, the Minnesota Common Interest Ownership Act and wage garnishment laws.

Sponsored by Rep. John Lesch (DFL-St. Paul) and Sen. Warren Limmer (R-Maple Grove), the law takes effect Aug. 1, 2020, unless otherwise noted.

Modernizing guardianship and conservatorship laws

Guardianship occurs when the court gives an individual or organization legal authority to make personal decisions for an individual whom the court deems unable to provide for their own basic needs.

The law requires courts to consider and make specific findings related to less restrictive means of assisting a person subject to guardianship or conservatorship, like supported decision-making, before appointing a guardian or conservator.

It updates the Bill of Rights for Protected Persons to include the right to communicate and see friends and family.

The law also makes these other changes to the state’s guardian statutes:

• creates a new form, “a bill of particulars,” that contains confidential information related to a person’s health and finances;

• requires notice to interested persons when the person subject to guardianship experiences a significant medical or public safety event or dies;

• authorizes the establishment and administration of an Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) account;

• authorizes a conservator to institute cases for civil court actions;

• authorizes a person subject to conservatorship to control their own wages;

• authorizes a guardian or conservator to seek a restraining order on behalf of a victim who is a person subject to guardianship or conservatorship;

• requires durational limits on guardianships when the person subject to guardianship is under the age of 30, but authorizes a petition for an unlimited guardianship if the person is 29 and currently under a limited guardianship;

• places durational limits on emergency guardianships and conservatorships; and

• authorizes interested persons to waive notice requirements.

The law also makes technical changes to guardianship and conservatorship laws, most notably changing the term “ward” to “protected person.”

Changes to the Minnesota Uniform Transfers to Minors Act

The Minnesota Uniform Transfers to Minors Act sets out, among other things, how assets are transferred to minors in the absence of a will, which usually involve designating a custodian to manage the minor’s assets.

The law changes the custodial standard of care from the “prudent person” standard to a “prudent investor” standard consistent with how trusts must be managed under existing Minnesota laws on trusts.

Under current Minnesota UTMA statutes, a minor must receive full control over their assets at age 18 or 21 depending on how the asset was given to the child. This law changes the termination age of all Minnesota UTMA accounts to 21, effective May 17, 2020.

Additionally, this law authorizes a custodian to transfer, with or without a court order, all or part of custodial assets to a trust that satisfies the requirements of a minor’s trust described in the Internal Revenue Code.

Changes to the Minnesota Common Interest Ownership Act

The Minnesota Common Interest Ownership Act governs the operation of condominium associations and other common interest communities.

The law states that unit owners are deemed to have consented or voted in the affirmative for approval of amendments to governing documents if an association sends a notice to a unit owner by certified mail and: (1) if there is a vote, the unit owner does not vote against the amendment; or (2) the unit owner does not object to the amendment within 60 days after the notice is mailed.

The law will also authorize an association to petition the court for an order reducing the percentage of affirmative votes or consents necessary to at least 67% for an amendment to declarations, bylaw, and articles of incorporation.

Wage garnishment

Wage garnishment statutes outline the legal processes to be followed when a creditor has obtained a judgment against a debtor.

One provision in the new law will allow creditors to garnish earnings for 90 days instead of the current 70 days.

The exemption for wages — the amount a debtor can keep away from a creditor during a garnishment — is also changed. Under current law, a debtor can exempt income that is the greater of 40 times the federal minimum wage or 25% of the debtor’s net income.

This law adds an additional category, allowing a debtor to maintain up to 40 times $9.50.

HF3517/SF3357*/CH86

SF3357* / HF3517 / CH86