What is mentorship?
Mentorship is a way of protecting someone who cannot make good decisions about their care, nursing, treatment and support. The court may appoint a mentor to manage that person's personal matters not relating to finance.
The person for whom the court appoints a mentor is called the person under mentorship. The person under mentorship remains legally competent and may, for example, draw up their own Will.
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Types of mentorship proceedings
- applying for mentorship (in Dutch)
- applying to change a mentor or appointing a second mentor (in Dutch)
- discontinuing mentorship (in Dutch)
- combining mentorship with fiduciary administration (in Dutch)
- converting mentorship into guardianship (in Dutch)
- extending temporary mentorship (in Dutch)
Private individual acting as a mentor
Person under mentorship (person for whom there is a mentor)
Professional mentor
What does a mentor do?
A mentor has the following duties and obligations, including:
- arranging care with healthcare providers and practitioners.
- maintaining personal contact with the person under mentorship so that the mentor knows how the person is doing.
- supporting or representing the person under mentorship during discussions with healthcare providers, practitioners or institutions;
- taking action if the person under mentorship does not receive the care they need;
- intervening if a situation is not good for the person under mentorship. For example, if the health of the person under mentorship declines. Or if the person under mentorship is no longer able to live independently.
- providing reports to the court on the progress of the mentorship.
A mentor is not allowed to make decisions regarding highly personal matters of the person under mentorship. When carrying out their duties, the mentor involves the person under mentorship as much as possible.
Types of mentor
- Private mentor: a relative of the person under mentorship (spouse, child) or an acquaintance.
- Professional mentor: someone who is a mentor by profession, and supervises three or more people under guardianship. A professional mentor must meet special quality requirements (overheid.nl). A foundation can also be a professional mentor.
Types of mentorship:
- Permanent mentorship: there is no end date for the mentorship.
- Temporary mentorship: mentorship for a specified period of time.
1 or 2 mentors
A person under mentorship can have either one or two mentors.
Mentorship, fiduciary administration or guardianship?
There are three ways to protect someone. Guardianship is the most stringent form.
- Mentorship: when someone cannot make decisions regarding personal matters not relating to finance, such as care, nursing, treatment and support. The judge appoints a mentor to make these decisions for them.
- Fiduciary administration (in Dutch): when someone cannot manage their financial affairs. The judge appoints a fiduciary administrator to do this for them.
- Guardianship (in Dutch): when someone cannot manage their financial and personal affairs. The judge appoints a guardian to do this for them. A person under guardianship lacks legal capacity. This means that a person under guardianship cannot have custody of children, for example. And a person under guardianship cannot just decide to get married or make a will.
It is possible to combine fiduciary administration and mentorship. For managing financial affairs, there are other forms of help available besides guardianship and fiduciary administration. Are you wondering which form best suits your situation? See the help overview (in Dutch).
Do you have a complaint about a mentor?
Please send a letter to the district court (in Dutch) supervising the mentorship. The judge will assess your complaint(s) and may invite you and the mentor to a hearing.
No register for mentorship
Mentorship is not registered in a public register.
Contact about mentorship
The district court can be contacted via its subdistrict department (afdeling kanton) or the fiduciary administration bureau (bewindsbureau) for all mentorship matters.
See also
Relevant topics
Legal advice
Would you like personal advice on your situation? Do you need assistance with drafting documents or during the hearing? You have the option at all times to engage the services of a lawyer or other legal advisor.
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