Office of Public & Professional Guardians (OPPG)

The Office of Public & Professional Guardians (OPPG), housed within the Department of Elder Affairs, appoints local public guardians to provide guardianship services to persons who do not have adequate income or assets to afford a private guardian and there are no willing family or friends to serve. The OPPG, which contracts with 16 local Offices of Public Guardianship throughout Florida, is also responsible for the registration and education of professional guardians. Since 2016, the OPPG has expanded its responsibilities to include oversight and regulation of approximately 550 or more professional guardians statewide, which includes investigating, and if appropriate, disciplining the guardians in violation of law.

The OPPG can be reached by calling (850) 414-2381 or by email at OPPGinfo@elderaffairs.org.

Programs/Services:

• Professional Guardians must meet certain requirements to register with the state of Florida. For more information and a complete guide to the Professional Guardian Registration, please click here.
• The OPPG established a statewide toll-free hotline to receive complaints made against registered professional guardians. The hotline number is: 1-855-305-3030. In addition, complaints can be submitted via email or mail.
• The Department contracts with 16 public guardianship offices statewide, providing public guardianship services to vulnerable adults that meet the following criteria:
  • The person (referred to as a “ward”) must be indigent;
  • The ward may not have any friends or family that are willing or able to serve; and
  • The person must be adjudicated incapacitated under Chapter 744, Florida Statutes, or eligible for a Guardian Advocate under s. 393.12, Florida Statutes.
  • For more details on the 16 public guardians, please go to: Florida Public Guardian Programs

  Other Resources:

  Florida Law Related to Guardianship

  • Chapter 744, Florida Statutes – Florida’s guardianship law
  • Section 393.12, Florida Statutes – Guardian advocacy for persons with developmental disabilities
  • Section 394.4598, Florida Statutes – Guardian advocacy for persons with mental health issues
  • 58M-2 Florida Administrative Code – Regulations and requirements of professional guardians
  • The Florida Probate Rules of Court –Rules governing guardianship proceedings

  Florida Resources

  • Florida 8-Hour Family Guardianship Course Providers
  • Alternatives to Guardianship
  • What is Guardianship – The Florida Bar
  • Developing Abilities & Restoring Rights – User Guide
  • Developing Abilities – Legal Manual
  • Florida Courts Guardianship web page
  • The Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys
  • Guardianship Fraud & Financial Exploitation – 25 Red Flags
  • Lighting the Way to Guardianship and Other Decision-Making Alternatives: A Manual for Individuals and Families
  • Managing Someone Else’s Money: Help for court-appointed guardians of the property in Florida
  • Managing Someone Else’s Money: Help for representative payees and VA fiduciaries in Florida
  • Working Interdisciplinary Network of Guardianship Stakeholders Resource
  • Florida State Guardianship Association
  • Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative
  • Home Care for the Elderly Program under Dept. of Elder Affairs