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| | | An Act To Improve the Guardian ad Litem System |
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| | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: |
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| | | Sec. 1. 18-A MRSA §1-112 is enacted to read: |
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| | | §1-112.__Guardian ad litem |
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| | | (a)__In any proceeding under this Title for which the court | | may appoint a guardian ad litem for a child involved in the | | proceeding, at the time of the appointment, the court shall | | specify the guardian ad litem's length of appointment, duties and | | fee arrangements. |
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| | | (b)__A guardian ad litem appointed on or after October 1, 2005 | | must meet the qualifications established by the Supreme Judicial | | Court. |
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| | | (c)__If, in order to perform the guardian ad litem's duties, | | the guardian ad litem needs information concerning the child or | | parents, the court may order the parents to sign an authorization | | form allowing the release of the necessary information.__The | | guardian ad litem must be allowed access to the child by | | caretakers of the child, whether the caretakers are individuals, | | authorized agencies or child care providers. |
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| | | (d)__The guardian ad litem shall use the standard of the best | | interest of the child as set forth in Title 19-A, section 1653, | | subsection 3.__The guardian ad litem shall make the wishes of the | | child known to the court if the child has expressed them, | | regardless of the recommendation of the guardian ad litem. |
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