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Abstract: 

The American Bar Association’s Commission on Law and Aging calls the authority of a guardian to make health-care decisions “perhaps one of the most controversial or ‘hottest’ topics in the guardianship arena.” While there are many significant health-care issues which may confront a guardian, such as involuntary commitment, involuntary medication with psychotropic drugs, and organ donation, end-of-life treatment is of particular importance for guardians when the incapacitated individual has neither appointed a health-care proxy who can speak for the individual nor prepared a living will, which can give direction to health-care providers.

Keywords: Commission on Law and Aging; New York law regarding the guardian’s authority to make end-of-life decisions; authority of third party; Family Health Care Decision-Making

Affiliations:  1: New York State Law Revision Commission .