Sub. H.B. 53

127th General Assembly

(As Passed by the House)

 

Reps.     Peterson, Yuko, Skindell, Ujvagi, Setzer, Dodd, Bacon, Collier, Fende, Chandler, Strahorn, White, R. Hagan, Wachtmann, B. Williams, Boyd, Brown, DeBose, Flowers, Goodwin, Hottinger, Huffman, Jones, Oelslager, Raussen, Uecker, Webster, Adams, Aslanides, Batchelder, Beatty, Bolon, Book, Brady, Bubp, Budish, Carano, Celeste, Combs, DeGeeter, Distel, Dolan, Domenick, Driehaus, Dyer, Evans, Foley, Garrison, Gibbs, Goyal, Harwood, Heard, Hite, Hughes, Latta, Letson, Luckie, Lundy, Mallory, Mandel, R. McGregor, Miller, Okey, Patton, Sayre, Schindel, Schneider, Stebelton, D. Stewart, J. Stewart, Sykes, Wagoner, S. Williams, Yates

BILL SUMMARY

·        Replaces certain terms in the Revised Code that refer to persons with certain conditions.

CONTENT AND OPERATION

Background

The Revised Code uses a number of terms to refer to persons with certain conditions.  These terms include "lunatic," "idiot," "imbecile," "drunkard," "deaf and dumb," and "insane."  Many of the sections that contain these words have not been amended since the Code was reorganized in 1953.

The bill

The bill eliminates the majority of terms described above in current law and, in most (though not all) cases, replaces them with the term, "incompetent person."[1]  The bill defines this term to mean "a person who is so mentally impaired as a result of a mental or physical illness or disability, mental retardation, or as a result of chronic substance abuse, that the person is incapable of taking proper care of the person's self or property or fails to provide for the person's family or other persons for whom the person is charged by law to provide."  This definition is the same definition of "incompetent" in R.C. 2111.01 (the law governing guardianships), except that it excludes "any person confined to a correctional institution within this state."

The table, below, compares the terms in current law with the terms used in the bill.  In a few sections, no replacement terms were added because the current language is unnecessary or repetitive and was, therefore, eliminated.

Comparison table--current law vs. the bill

Sections with terms referring to persons with certain conditions

Current law

The bill

701.01 Definitions for Revised Code Title VII

Insane

Lunatic

Language stricken[2]

Language stricken

711.23 Plats--application for vacation and assessment of damages

Persons of insane mind

Incompetent person (new definition)[3]

1775.31 Dissolution of a partnership by court decree

Lunatic

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

2111.37 Guardian for nonresident--property rights

Incompetent[4]

Habitual drunkard

Idiot

Imbecile

Lunatic

Same as current law

Language stricken

Language stricken

Language stricken

Language stricken

2111.47 Termination of guardianship

Insane person



Restored to sanity

Incompetent person (see footnote regarding R.C. 2111.01(D) below)

Competent

2307.14 Civil actions‑‑compensation and grounds for replacement of guardian ad litem or trustee

Insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

2317.021 "Client" defined; application of attorney-client privilege to dissolved corporation or association

Incompetent

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)[5]

2317.03 Limitations on testimony against a guardian or trustee

Deaf and dumb or insane person

Insane person

Incompetent person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)
Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

2317.06 Proving testimony of absent witness

Insane

Because of any physical or mental infirmity is unable to testify

Language stricken

Reword current law: Unable to testify because of any physical or mental infirmity

2721.05 Determination of rights or legal relations

Lunatic

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

3763.06 Gaming--liability of property for losses occurring thereon

Insane person or idiot

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

4303.272 Safekeeping of liquor permits

Insane

Incompetent

Language stricken

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

4399.05 Liability of owner of premises used for the sale of intoxicating liquors

Insane person or idiot

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

4971.16 Reorganization of railroads

Insane

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5301.22 Effect of agreement with guardian

Idiot, lunatic, or insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5305.17 Real property--guardian may elect for surviving spouse

Adjudged insane

Adjudged to be an incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5305.18 Real property--dower of incompetent person

Insane person


Insanity

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

Grounds for the incompetency

5305.19 Real property--inquest of incompetence

Permanently insane

A permanently incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5305.20 Real property--proceedings on report of inquest of incompetence

Insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5305.21 Real property--dower of an incompetent person may be barred

Insane person


The insanity of the insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

Grounds for incompetency of the incompetent person

5305.22 Real estate--conveyed free of dower if spouse is incompetent

Insane


Inmate of a hospital for the insane in this state, or confined in the insane department of any epileptic hospital of this state, or any other state of the United States, or is an inmate of a hospital for the insane, or confined in the insane department of any hospital of the United States

Inmate

Insane spouse


Spouse is an insane inmate

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

Admitted to either a hospital for persons with mental illness in this state or any other state of the United States or the psychiatric department of any hospital of the United States





Patient

Spouse who is an incompetent person

Spouse is an incompetent person

5307.19 Power of guardian to act for ward in partition

Idiot, imbecile, or insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5307.20 Power of foreign guardian

Idiot or insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5310.12 Registration of land titles--limitation of actions

Insane

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5711.05 Returns of taxable property; fiduciary returns

Idiot or insane person

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5711.07 Proper taxing district for listing property

Insane

Incompetent person (new definition--see footnote 3)

5907.06 Veterans home--person who cannot be admitted

Insane person

Person with a mental illness that causes the person to be dangerous to the community

5907.08 Veterans home--proceedings

Becomes insane



Resident's insanity

Becomes dangerous to the community due to a mental illness

Resident's mental illness

5907.09 Veterans--hearing by probate judge

Determine the sanity of the resident


State hospital for the insane

Determine the competence of the resident

State hospital for persons with mental illness

 

COMMENT

The terms, "lunatic," "idiot," "imbecile," "drunkard," "deaf and dumb," and "insane," that appear in the sections of current law that the bill amends are not defined for purposes of those sections.  It is therefore unknown who exactly the General Assembly intended to encompass with these terms when these sections were enacted.  As a result, it is possible that a court could find that the replacement of these terms with the term, "incompetent person" (as it is defined in the bill), constitutes a substantive change.  This means that a court could find that the new term expands, diminishes, or changes in some other way the populations of persons described by the terms in current law.

HISTORY

ACTION

DATE

 

 

Introduced

02-21-07

Reported, H. Health

03-15-07

Passed House (98-0)

03-27-07

 

 

H0053-ph-127.doc/ejs


[1] The bill does not change the definition of "incompetent" used in R.C. 2111.37 and 2111.47 because R.C. 2111.01(D) currently defines "incompetent" for purposes of R.C. Chapters 2111. through 2131. to mean "any person who is so mentally impaired as a result of a mental or physical illness or disability, or mental retardation, or as a result of chronic substance abuse, that the person is incapable of taking proper care of the person's self or property or fails to provide for the person's family or other persons for whom the person is charged by law to provide, or any person confined to a correctional institution within this state."

[2] The terms, "insane" and "lunatic," are not used in Title VII.  Therefore, there is no need for them to be defined in R.C. 701.01.

[3] The bill defines "incompetent person" as "a person who is so mentally impaired as a result of a mental or physical illness or disability, mental retardation, or as a result of chronic substance abuse, that the person is incapable of taking proper care of the person's self or property or fails to provide for the person's family or other persons for whom the person is charged by law to provide."  As stated above, this definition is the same as the definition of "incompetent" in R.C. 2111.01 (law governing guardianships), except that it excludes "any person confined to a correctional institution within this state."

[4] R.C. 2111.01(D) defines "incompetent" in current law for purposes of R.C. Chapters 2111. through 2131. to mean "any person who is so mentally impaired as a result of a mental or physical illness or disability, or mental retardation, or as a result of chronic substance abuse, that the person is incapable of taking proper care of the person's self or property or fails to provide for the person's family or other persons for whom the person is charged by law to provide, or any person confined to a correctional institution within this state."

[5] R.C. 2317.021 also defines "incompetent" as used in R.C. 2317.02 (law governing privileged communications) and R.C. 2317.03 (law governing the limitations on testimony against a guardian or trustee) to have the same meaning as "incompetent person" described in the footnote above.