Protection of vulnerable person in matters of property: the role of the guardian and guarantees of judicial oversight

Abstract

The text deals with the guardianship of vulnerable adults, understood as such, under the regime of supported adults established in Portuguese law by Law No. 49/2018, of August 14, an adult who is unable, for reasons of health, disability, or their behavior, to fully, personally and consciously exercise their rights or, in the same terms, fulfill their duties, and who, for that reason, benefits from support measures. The approach, which begins with initial considerations about the aforementioned regime and the changes it introduced in the area of ​​legal protection for vulnerable adults, focuses on the patrimonial aspect. Therefore, the function (or functions) of the person appointed by the court as guardian is analyzed with regard to acts of a patrimonial nature in the life of the person being supervised, bearing in mind the fundamental principle that the court, in order to safeguard the greatest possible autonomy of the adult being supervised, should only order the support measures that the person is truly in need of. The study continues with the enunciation and analysis of mechanisms provided by law for judicial supervision of the guardian's performance, highlighting the importance of such mechanisms for the protection of the adult being supervised in relation to their guardian. It should be noted that, according to the dictates of the law, the guardian must act in accordance with the interests of the adult being supervised, rendering accounts of their management, and may be removed if they fail to fulfill any of the duties inherent to their position or if they prove unfit to perform it.