The Curateur public is an agency tasked with ensuring that incapable persons are protected. In the case of private tutorships, one of its duties is to make sure that tutors properly manage the represented person’s assets. An investigation by the Protecteur du citoyen showed that oversight by the Curateur public could be tighter.
What’s private tutorship?
Private tutorship is a measure for protecting people declared incompetent. Someone close to the incapable person is appointed tutor by the court. Tutors can be entrusted with the protected person’s well-being or with administering their assets, or both.
Investigative findings
In its report titled Under tutorship but vulnerable nonetheless, the Protecteur du citoyen draws attention to the following problems:
1. Non-compliance with several processing deadlines which the Curateur public gave itself.
This delays detection of certain abuse and of the actions that would end the abuse.
2. Unreliable detection methods in cases of financial mismanagement or abuse.
3. Work tools that can be ill-adapted to staff tasks, which makes follow-up on files difficult.
4. Lack of staff supervision and practices unequally applied.
The outcome is that interventions and follow-up are inconsistent.
Recommendations
Wanting incapable people’s assets to be better protected, the Protecteur du citoyen made 17 recommendations to the Curateur public aimed at:
- Facilitating and hastening file follow-up;
- Reducing the time it takes to establish patrimonial protection;
- Making the detection of mismanagement by tutors more effective;
- Harmonizing file handling.
For more information
Read the full report (in French): download Under tutorship but vulnerable nonetheless.
Understand incapacity and available protection measures: see Quebec.ca and this article.
Report abuse of a person under protection: complete this form.
To complain about Curateur public services: contact the Protecteur du citoyen.
