2012 New Hampshire Revised Statutes
Title LI - COURTS
Chapter 490-C - GUARDIAN AD LITEM BOARD
Section 490-C:4 - Duties of the Board.

    490-C:4 Duties of the Board. –
    I. The board shall:
       (a) Compile and maintain a list of those guardians ad litem statewide who are certified and in good standing and make such list available to the general public online through the official Internet site for the state of New Hampshire. The board may further make available to the general public, online or through other means, additional information relative to other activities and functions of the board, including but not limited to information concerning guardians ad litem, whether or not presently certified or in good standing, who have been subject to sanction by the board.
       (b) Investigate the current cost and fee structure established under New Hampshire supreme court rules 48 and 48-A, and make recommendations to the legislature and the supreme court for appropriate action as necessary.
       (c) Establish requirements, criteria, and fees for the certification, recertification, reinstatement, and renewal of certification of guardians ad litem.
       (d) Establish educational requirements and continuing educational requirements.
       (e) Adopt ethical standards and standards of practice for certified guardians ad litem. Standards established by the board may be applied to presently certified guardians ad litem and to formerly certified guardians ad litem alleged to have engaged in acts or omissions prohibited when certified.
       (f) Establish disciplinary procedures, penalties, and sanctions for certified guardians ad litem, which penalties, sanctions, and procedures may include revocation of certification, suspension of certification, the imposition of supplemental training requirements or supervised training requirements, supplemental education, fines, written reprimand, and treatment and counseling, including but not limited to treatment and counseling for alcohol and substance abuse. Disciplinary procedures, penalties, and sanctions may be established for and applied to formerly certified guardians ad litem claimed to have engaged in acts or omissions prohibited when certified.
       (g) Investigate and resolve complaints against certified guardians ad litem, and against formerly certified guardians ad litem who are claimed to have engaged in acts or omissions prohibited when certified. The board may, upon the submission of a written allegation or complaint against a presently or formerly certified guardian ad litem who holds, held, or may hold an appointment in a case under the authority of a court, refer that matter to the appropriate court for investigation, resolution, or other action. Such referral may be made regardless of whether the allegation or complaint relates to a case which is then pending in court and may be made in lieu of or in addition to any investigatory or disciplinary procedures that the board may itself be authorized to pursue. The board may further informally resolve complaints by agreement. A complaint relating to a trial or judicial proceeding in progress shall be dismissed without prejudice, unless the board for good cause votes to proceed immediately with such complaint.
    II. The board may:
       (a) Commission the participation of Franklin Pierce Law Center, the community college system of New Hampshire, or other appropriate in-state educational institutions to provide training for guardians ad litem on a tuition basis and itself provide training on a tuition basis.
       (b) Disclose to and communicate with any courts that appoint guardians ad litem or oversee individuals serving as guardians ad litem, or any other entity or group which possesses oversight authority over any type of professional activity of persons who may serve as a guardian ad litem, about any discipline imposed upon guardians ad litem, grants and denials of certification, the content of any of the board's files or records on guardians ad litem, whether or not presently certified, or applicants for certification, and other activities of, or information held by, the board. In assessing whether or not to make a disclosure or engage in a communication under this subparagraph, consideration shall be given to whether or not it is likely that information conveyed will be further disseminated in a manner contrary to New Hampshire law.
       (c) Establish requirements, criteria, and fees for the conditional certification or temporary certification of guardians ad litem or both, including procedures and requirements regarding the circumstances and manner in which individuals may be temporarily or conditionally certified, the term and duration of conditional or temporary certification, and the ethical standards and standards of practice applicable to persons so certified.
       (d) Establish fees for the filing of requests for information, for the filing of complaints or petitions, for the processing of changes to information of record, for the provision of training, and for the provision of course material.
       (e) Establish procedures by which guardians ad litem appointed in New Hampshire are to report their activities to the board.
       (f) Administer oaths or affirmations, preserve testimony, and, on approval of the attorney general, issue subpoenas for witnesses and for documents relative to investigations, adjudicatory hearings, or other proceedings held by the board.
       (g) Gather such information concerning applicants for certification as will assist courts to make an informed decision on whether or not to appoint an individual as a guardian ad litem in a particular case.
       (h) Accept and expend the fees indicated in subparagraphs I(c), II(a), II(c), and II(d).
       (i) Establish procedures and requirements relating to the resignation or surrender of certification including the circumstances or conditions under which a certified guardian ad litem may resign or surrender his or her certification.
       (j) Establish disciplinary procedures, penalties, and sanctions for conditionally certified or temporarily certified guardians ad litem and persons formerly certified by the board, which penalties, sanctions, and procedures may include, but need not be limited to, those listed in subparagraph I(f).
       (k) Establish procedures and requirements relative to the maintenance or disclosure of confidential information received by, or used in investigations or in hearings, proceedings, or other activities or matters before, the board.

Source. 2002, 206:1. 2004, 189:1. 2006, 223:3. 2007, 361:29, eff. July 17, 2007.