Classes and Community Events

Your Child With Disabilities Is Turning 18 (On-Demand Virtual Class)

For Parents, Caregivers and Youth Nearing Adulthood

Class Description

This on-demand virtual class is for parents and caregivers of youth in their late teens who will need ongoing support as adults or help with legal decision-making. Attorneys from the Washington Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP) present information about:

Supported decision-making: This allows someone with a disability to make choices about their own life with help from someone they choose.
Durable power of attorney (DPOA): A legal document that gives someone else authority to make medical decisions or manage finances on the signer’s behalf.
Legal guardianship: The court appoints a legal guardian to make certain types of decisions about health and safety on behalf of a person with disabilities when there is significant risk of harm unless a guardian is appointed.
Conservatorship: The court appoints a conservator to make decisions about money and property on behalf of a person with disabilities when there is significant risk of harm unless a conservator is appointed.

To view this on-demand class, please watch the video below. There is also a copy of the presentation (PDF) that you can follow along with.

After you have watched the class, please provide feedback by taking our class survey (this should take just a few minutes to complete). You can also email your feedback directly to us at [email protected].

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I need help filing for guardianship?

Very few resources are available for this type of help. In a few Washington counties, volunteer attorney programs provide limited assistance to low-income families.

The King County Law Library offers the Family Law Forms Lab where a volunteer attorney helps with filling out family law forms.

What if I want to find an attorney?

Visit the Washington Medical-Legal Partnership website to find legal help.

Where can I get more information on guardianship and alternatives?

See resources below from Washington Courts, the King County Law Library, and Northwest Justice Project.

Resources

Webinars and information sessions

King County Law Library

Watch the webinar, An Introduction to Adult Guardianships, presented with the King County Superior Court Clerk’s Office.

Washington Courts

Washington Courts holds free, monthly, 90-minute virtual Information Sessions for Lay Guardians.

No registration is required.
Offered in English only.
If you cannot attend an Information Session live, you can watch a recording or read the text from the Washington Courts session.

Handouts, fact sheets and sample forms

Northwest Justice Project

Adult Guardianship, Conservatorship and Other Protective Arrangements, Northwest Justice Project
Alternatives to Guardianship: Practical Considerations, Washington Medical-Legal Partnership
Alternatives to Guardianship: Supported Decision Making Agreements (available in Russian and Spanish), Northwest Justice Project
Durable Power of Attorney Documents (available in Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese), Northwest Justice Project
Quick Facts: Alternatives to Guardianship (available in Spanish), Northwest Justice Project
Your Child With Disabilities Is Turning 18 (available in Spanish), Northwest Justice Project

Public benefits as youth with disabilities turn 18

Federal benefits

SSI (Supplemental Security Income)
Sample Rental Agreement to Avoid Reduction in SSI (available in Spanish), Washington Medical-Legal Partnership

State benefits

DDA (Developmental Disabilities Administration) – Washington State agency providing support and services to Washingtonians with developmental disabilities
Apple Health – Washington State medical assistance programs, including Medicaid

Organizations that support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities