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A court may appoint a guardian of the person to take care of an individual’s personal needs. The guardian of the person does not have authority to access resources of the individual. 4. General Guardian A general guardian is a guardian of both the estate and the person. He can access the individual’s assets. 5. Interim Guardian An interim guardian is appointed only to handle an immediate crisis or need before an incompetence hearing process is completed. Interim guardianship may be of the person, the estate, or a general guardian. He may be able to access the individual’s assets if the court so orders. Examine the order appointing the interim guardian to determine his authority. 6. Durable Power of Attorney a. A durable power of attorney is a document by which an individual grants authority to (an) other individual(s) to serve as his attorney-in-fact to act on his behalf in legal matters. b. It must be executed when the individual granting the POA is fully competent, and it remains valid after incompetence occurs. c. It must be registered with the Register of Deeds with a copy provided for the Clerk of the Court for accounting purposes. d. The date of execution of the document must predate the onset of incompetence. e. If the power of attorney does not meet these criteria or is otherwise determined by the court to be invalid, the resources of an incompetent person are not available until a guardian is appointed and, for real property, until the court approves the sale. (See VI.D.6.b.) 7. General or Limited Power of Attorney a. A general or limited power of attorney authorizes one or more persons to act in the absence of the person granting it. b. It ends if the individual becomes incompetent. The resources become unavailable at this point until a guardian is appointed and, for real property, until the court approves the sale. C. Policy Rules 1. Otherwise countable and available/accessible resources, held solely or jointly by an allegedly incompetent a/b, are exempt prior to a formal declaration of 23