Nova Scotia law to recognize independence of adults with intellectual deficits
HALIFAX — Nova Scotia is moving to give people with intellectual disabilities more autonomy.
Justice Minister Mark Furey said Monday the proposed Adult Capacity and Decision Making Act would recognize a person’s right to live their own life and make their own decisions, except in instances where that isn’t possible because of a court-proven impairment of capacity.
It replaces the former Incompetent Persons Act, which Furey says was an “all or nothing” approach that gave complete control to a guardian for all aspects of a person’s decision-making.
In June 2016, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court gave the province until the end of this year to enact a new law to conform with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It also overturned the “mentally incompetent” status of Landon Webb, who had fought a legal battle over the act, which he maintained infringed on his rights and freedoms.