BILL REQ. #:  H-0211.2 

Prefiled 12/18/2006. Read first time 01/08/2007.   Referred to Committee on Judiciary.

     AN ACT Relating to the protection of vulnerable adults; amending RCW 74.34.110 and 74.34.210; reenacting and amending RCW 74.34.130; and adding a new section to chapter 74.34 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 74.34.110 and 1999 c 176 s 12 are each amended to read as follows:
     An action known as a petition for an order for protection of a vulnerable adult in cases of abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, or neglect is created.
     (1) A vulnerable adult, or person on behalf of the vulnerable adult, may seek relief from abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, or neglect, or the threat thereof, by filing a petition for an order for protection in superior court.
     (2) A petition shall allege that the petitioner is a vulnerable adult and that the petitioner has been abandoned, abused, financially exploited, or neglected, or is threatened with abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, or neglect by respondent.
     (3) A petition shall be accompanied by affidavit made under oath stating the specific facts and circumstances which demonstrate the need for the relief sought.
     (4) A petition for an order may be made whether or not there is a pending lawsuit, complaint, petition, or other action between the parties.
     (5) Within ninety days of receipt of the master copy from the administrative office of the courts, all court clerk's offices shall make available the standardized forms and instructions required by section 2 of this act.
     (6) Any assistance or information provided by a person, including court clerks, adult protective services workers, and other court facilitators, to another to complete the form provided by the court in subsection (5) of this section does not constitute the practice of law.
     (7) A petitioner is not required to post bond to obtain relief in any proceeding under this section.
     (((6))) (8) An action under this section shall be filed in the county where the petitioner resides; except that if the petitioner has left the residence as a result of abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, or neglect, or in order to avoid abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, or neglect, the petitioner may bring an action in the county of either the previous or new residence.
     (((7) The filing fee for the petition may be waived at the discretion of the court.))
     (9) No filing fee may be charged for proceedings under this section. Forms and written instructions shall be provided free of charge.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 74.34 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The administrative office of the courts shall develop and prepare instructions required under RCW 74.34.110, standard petition and order for protection forms, and a court staff handbook on the protection order process. The standard petition and order for protection forms must be used after September 1, 2007, for all petitions filed and orders issued under this chapter. The instructions, forms, and handbook shall be prepared in consultation with interested persons, attorneys from the elder law section of the Washington state bar association, judges, the department of social and health services, and law enforcement personnel.
     (a) The instructions shall be designed to assist petitioners in completing the petition, and shall include a sample of the standard petition and order for protection forms.
     (b) The order for protection form shall include, in a conspicuous location, notice of criminal penalties resulting from violation of the order.
     (2) The administrative office of the courts shall distribute a master copy of the standard petition and order for protection forms, instructions, and court staff handbook to all court clerks and shall distribute a master copy of the standard petition and order for protection forms to all superior, district, and municipal courts.
     (3) For purposes of this section, "court clerks" means court administrators in courts of limited jurisdiction and elected court clerks.
     (4) The administrative office of the courts shall determine the significant non-English-speaking or limited-English-speaking populations in the state. The administrator shall then arrange for translation of the instructions required by this section, which shall contain a sample of the standard petition and order for protection forms, into the languages spoken by those significant non-English-speaking populations, and shall distribute a master copy of the translated instructions to all court clerks by September 1, 2007.
     (5) The administrative office of the courts shall update the instructions, standard petition and order for protection forms, and court staff handbook when changes in the law make an update necessary.

Sec. 3   RCW 74.34.130 and 2000 c 119 s 27 and 2000 c 51 s 2 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     The court may order relief as it deems necessary for the protection of the petitioner, including, but not limited to the following:
     (1) Restraining respondent from committing acts of abandonment, abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation;
     (2) Excluding the respondent from petitioner's residence for a specified period or until further order of the court;
     (3) Prohibiting contact by respondent for a specified period or until further order of the court;
     (4) Prohibiting the respondent from knowingly coming within, or knowingly remaining within, a specified distance from a specified location;
     (5) Requiring an accounting by respondent of the disposition of petitioner's income or other resources;
     (6) Restraining the transfer of property for a specified period not exceeding ninety days; and
     (7) Requiring the respondent to pay the filing fee and court costs, including service fees, and to reimburse the petitioner for costs incurred in bringing the action, including a reasonable attorney's fee.
     Any relief granted by an order for protection, other than a judgment for costs, shall be for a fixed period not to exceed ((one year)) five years. The clerk of the court shall enter any order for protection issued under this section into the judicial information system.

Sec. 4   RCW 74.34.210 and 1995 1st sp.s. c 18 s 86 are each amended to read as follows:
     A petition for an order for protection or an action for damages under this chapter may be brought by the plaintiff((,)) or, where necessary, by his or her family members ((and/or)), guardian or legal fiduciary, or ((as otherwise provided under this chapter)) other person on behalf of the plaintiff, provided that the action is brought in good faith. The death of the plaintiff shall not deprive the court of jurisdiction over a petition or claim brought under this chapter. Upon petition, after the death of the vulnerable person, the right to initiate or maintain the action shall be transferred to the executor or administrator of the deceased, for the benefit of the surviving spouse, child or children, or other heirs set forth in chapter 4.20 RCW.