Montana Code 53-20-141. Denial of legal rights
53-20-141. Denial of legal rights. (1) Unless specifically stated in an order by the court, a person committed to a residential facility or for whom a community treatment plan has been imposed for an extended course of habilitation does not forfeit any legal right or suffer any legal disability by reason of the provisions of this part, except to the extent that it may be necessary to detain the person for habilitation, evaluation, or care.
Terms Used In Montana Code 53-20-141
- Case manager: means a person who is responsible for service coordination, planning, and crisis intervention for persons who are eligible for community-based developmental disabilities services from the department of public health and human services. See Montana Code 53-20-102
- Community treatment plan: means a comprehensive, individualized plan of care that addresses the habilitation needs of and the risks posed by the behaviors of a respondent who is found to be seriously developmentally disabled. See Montana Code 53-20-102
- Court: means a district court of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 53-20-102
- facility: means :
(a)the Montana developmental center; or
(b)a private, community-based facility approved by the department of public health and human services as a facility able to meet the needs of individuals committed to a residential facility pursuant to this chapter or placed in a residential facility pursuant to Title 46, chapter 14. See Montana Code 53-20-102
- Habilitation: means the process by which a person who has a developmental disability is assisted in acquiring and maintaining those life skills that enable the person to cope more effectively with personal needs and the demands of the environment and in raising the level of the person's physical, mental, and social efficiency. See Montana Code 53-20-102
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
- Qualified intellectual disability professional: means a professional program staff person for the residential facility who the department of public health and human services determines meets the professional requirements necessary for federal certification of the facility. See Montana Code 53-20-102
- Respondent: means a person alleged in a petition filed pursuant to this part to be seriously developmentally disabled and for whom the petition requests commitment to a residential facility or imposition of a community treatment plan. See Montana Code 53-20-102
(2)Whenever a person is admitted to a residential facility or a community treatment plan is imposed for the person for a period of more than 30 days, the court ordering the commitment or imposing the community treatment plan may make an order stating specifically any legal rights that are denied and any legal disabilities that are imposed on the respondent. As part of its order, the court may appoint a person to act as conservator of the respondent’s property. Any conservatorship created pursuant to this section terminates upon the conclusion of the commitment or expiration of the order imposing the community treatment plan if not previously terminated by the court. A conservatorship or guardianship extending beyond the period of the commitment or order imposing a community treatment plan may not be created except according to the procedures set forth under Montana law for the appointment of conservators and guardians generally.
(3)A person who has been committed to a residential facility or for whom a community treatment plan has been imposed pursuant to this part is, upon the termination of the commitment or expiration of the order imposing the community treatment plan, automatically restored to all of the person’s civil and legal rights that may have been lost when the person was committed or the community treatment plan was imposed. However, this subsection does not affect any guardianship or conservatorship created independently of the proceedings according to the provisions of Montana law relating to the appointment of conservators and guardians generally. Upon termination of any commitment or order imposing a community treatment plan under this part, the qualified intellectual disability professional or case manager in charge of the person’s care shall give the person a written statement setting forth the substance of this subsection.