Guardianship / Conservatorship of Vulnerable Adults
If you have a son or daughter who will become eighteen years of age and who is unable to make necessary decisions on his or her own behalf, you will need to become either their guardian or conservator. In doing so, the court makes a finding of incapacity due to the fact that the person cannot take care of themselves in one or more ways.
As a parent of two substantially handicapped children, I have gone through this process for each of my handicapped children and fully appreciate the issues and feelings involved. Additionally, in most cases the county of residence will pay my legal fees for representing you.
What does incapacity mean? Incapacity is proven when the petitioner, the person who is asking the court to appoint a conservator/guardian, can provide evidence to the court that the proposed ward/protected person is unable to make responsible personal decisions, and is also unable to meet his or her needs.
Guardianship
Guardianship is a legal arrangement under which one person, a guardian who is appointed by a court, has the legal right and duty to care for another, the ward, because of the ward’s inability to legally act on his or her own behalf due to minority or mental or physical incapacity. Black’s Law Dictionary 707 (6th ed. 1990). A guardian has the powers and duties over the ward’s person. MS 524.5-313
Conservatorship
A conservatorship is similar to a guardianship except that the conservator who has been appointed by the court has powers and duties over the incapacitated person’s estate. MS 524.5-418
Conservatorship Or Guardianship?
What is the difference between Conservatorship and Guardianship? A guardian is appointed to make the personal decisions for the ward. The guardian has decision making authority for matters such as choice of place to live, medical decisions, training and education, etc. A conservator is appointed to make financial decisions for the protected person. The conservator typically has the power to contract, to pay bills, invest assets, and perform other financial functions for the protected person.
