To start a conservatorship, you file a petition in probate court asking a judge to appoint someone to manage an incapacitated adult’s personal care, finances, or both. You’ll need medical evidence of incapacity, formal notice to close relatives, and a court investigation before a hearing. An uncontested case takes roughly 60 days from filing to appointment. Filing fees run a few hundred dollars, and attorney fees for an uncontested matter typically fall between $3,000 and $5,000.
One quick note on vocabulary before you start pulling forms: states don’t use the same words. Some call this a guardianship, some use conservatorship only for finances, and a few (like California) use conservatorship as the umbrella term for adults. Search your county court’s site under both terms.
Try a Less Restrictive Alternative First
A conservatorship takes away legal rights, and courts treat it as a last resort. Several states have adopted the Uniform Guardianship, Conservatorship and Other Protective Arrangements Act, which bars judges from appointing a conservator when a less restrictive option would work. Even in states that haven’t adopted it, judges routinely ask what else was tried. Skip this step and you risk a denial.
The main alternatives:
- A durable power of attorney lets a trusted person handle financial decisions and stays effective after the person loses capacity, if it was signed while they still had capacity.
- A health care proxy or advance directive names someone to make medical decisions without any court involvement.
- Supported decision-making is a voluntary agreement in which the adult picks people to help them decide while keeping their own legal rights.
- A representative payee, appointed by the Social Security Administration, can receive and manage benefits for someone who can’t handle them; the VA has a similar fiduciary program. This authority covers only the benefit payments.
These options don’t require a court to declare anyone incapacitated, and most can be set up without a lawyer. The limitation is that the person generally has to have enough capacity to sign the documents voluntarily. If they’re already too impaired to sign a power of attorney, or if they’re being exploited and won’t cooperate, a conservatorship may be the only path forward.1Elder Justice Initiative (EJI). Guardianship: Less Restrictive Options
Decide What Kind of Conservatorship to Request
A judge looks at two categories of the person’s life: personal care and finances. The trigger for court intervention is usually a significant cognitive impairment such as advanced dementia or a severe brain injury that leaves the person unable to make or communicate responsible decisions.
Most states recognize two types, and you can petition for one or both:
- Conservatorship of the person gives authority over personal and medical decisions, including where the conservatee lives and what healthcare they receive.
- Conservatorship of the estate gives authority over financial matters: paying bills, managing investments, handling property, and filing taxes.
Some states also allow a limited conservatorship, in which the court grants authority only over specific areas where help is needed and preserves the person’s rights everywhere else. If someone can manage their own medical care but not their finances, a limited conservatorship of the estate may be all that’s warranted. Asking for broader authority than the situation requires is one of the fastest ways to draw skepticism from the judge.
Who Can File
The pool is wide. A spouse, adult child, parent, sibling, or other relative can petition. So can a close friend, a state or local agency such as the county public guardian, or essentially anyone with a genuine interest in the proposed conservatee’s welfare. Occasionally the person who needs the conservatorship files on their own behalf. The proposed conservator doesn’t have to be the same person who files, though the two are often the same.
Documents to Gather Before You File
You’ll be compiling information about the proposed conservatee’s life into a court packet. Form names vary by state, but the pieces are consistent.
Start with names, addresses, and contact details for yourself, the proposed conservatee, and close relatives (typically spouse, children, parents, and siblings). The court needs this because those relatives have to be notified of the proceedings.
The core documents in most states include:
- The petition itself, formally asking the court to appoint a conservator, explaining why one is needed, and naming who you propose to serve.
- Medical evidence, usually a declaration or affidavit from a licensed physician, psychologist, or other qualified professional describing the person’s condition, cognitive ability, and functional limitations. This is the backbone of the case.
- A financial disclosure listing the proposed conservatee’s assets, debts, income, and expenses, particularly if you’re seeking conservatorship of the estate.
- Background screening forms. Some jurisdictions require the proposed conservator to submit to a criminal background check, a credit report, or both.
Your local probate or superior court will have the specific forms, usually posted on the court’s website or available from the clerk. Some courts publish self-help packets that walk you through each form.
File the Petition and Serve Notice
File the completed packet with the clerk of the probate or superior court in the county where the proposed conservatee lives. Filing triggers a fee that varies by jurisdiction, typically a few hundred dollars, with fee waivers available for petitioners who can’t afford to pay.
After filing, the proposed conservatee and their close relatives have to receive formal notice of the petition and the hearing date. In most states, the proposed conservatee must be served personally, meaning someone physically hands them the documents. Relatives can usually be notified by mail. The person delivering the papers cannot be you; it has to be a neutral third party such as a process server or another uninvolved adult. That person completes a proof of service form confirming delivery, which then gets filed with the court. Notice typically has to go out at least 15 days before the hearing, though the exact timeframe depends on your state.
This is where petitions most often stumble. Miss a relative who should have been notified, or fail to properly document service, and the judge will likely postpone the hearing. Check your state’s notice requirements against every name on your petition.
The Investigation and the Hearing
After you file, the court appoints an investigator to look at the situation independently. The investigator visits the proposed conservatee, interviews them and often the family, and files a written report with the judge. The report addresses whether the conservatorship is appropriate, whether the proposed conservator is suitable, and whether less restrictive alternatives exist. The investigation usually takes several weeks, which is much of why the whole process runs about 60 days.
At the hearing, the judge reviews the petition, the medical evidence, the investigator’s report, and any objections. The proposed conservatee has the right to attend and to object. They also have the right to a lawyer. Most states require the court to appoint one if they don’t have their own, and at least half the states extend that mandatory appointment to all adversarial guardianship or conservatorship proceedings. If the conservatee can’t afford counsel, the cost typically comes from their estate, or from the county if the estate has no funds.
If nobody contests the petition and the evidence supports it, the hearing can be brief. Contested cases are different, sometimes involving witness testimony, cross-examination, and multiple court dates spread over months.
When 60 Days Is Too Long: Emergency Conservatorships
If there’s an immediate risk of serious physical harm, a medical emergency requiring consent, or someone is actively draining the person’s finances, you can petition for an emergency or temporary conservatorship. Courts can grant these within days rather than weeks.
Emergency conservatorships are short by design, generally 30 to 60 days. They give just enough authority to handle the crisis while a full petition works through the normal process. The standard is higher than for a regular petition: you have to show an immediate, clear risk of death, serious injury, or irreparable loss of assets. Notice requirements are reduced because of the compressed timeline, but the proposed conservatee still has the right to be heard. You’ll still need to file for a permanent conservatorship before the temporary one expires.
What It Costs
The court filing fee is the smallest piece. Initial filing fees typically fall around $200 to $400, with waivers for petitioners who qualify by income.
Attorney fees are the real expense. An uncontested conservatorship handled by a lawyer typically runs $3,000 to $5,000 for drafting the petition, preparing for the hearing, and attending court. Contested cases, where the proposed conservatee or a family member objects, can exceed $10,000 and climb from there if the dispute goes to trial. Some courts also charge a fee for the court-appointed investigator’s time, adding several hundred dollars more.
You can file without an attorney, and many courts offer self-help resources. But conservatorship law is procedurally dense, and a single mistake in the paperwork or notice requirements can set you back weeks. For straightforward cases with cooperative families, self-filing is realistic. For anything involving family conflict, significant assets, or a conservatee who might object, hiring an attorney is worth the cost.
Most of these expenses can be paid from the conservatee’s estate once the conservatorship is established, if the court approves. But the petitioner usually has to front the costs in the meantime.
What You Take On If You’re Appointed
Once the judge signs the order, your legal obligations begin. Get certified copies of your letters of conservatorship from the court clerk right away. Banks, doctors, and government agencies will want to see them as proof of your authority.
Posting a Bond
For a conservatorship of the estate, the court will likely require a surety bond. About 20 states mandate a bond in every case, another 19 require one but give the judge some discretion, and the rest leave it entirely to the court. The bond protects the conservatee’s assets if the conservator mishandles them. The standard amount equals the conservatee’s liquid assets plus one year of their income, though judges can adjust it. The annual premium can be paid from the estate.
Inventory and Annual Accountings
A conservator of the estate files a detailed inventory of everything the conservatee owns (bank accounts, real property, investments, personal property, debts) usually within 90 days of appointment. Real property and valuable personal items often need a formal appraisal. After that, you file periodic accountings with the court, typically annually, detailing every dollar in and out during the reporting period. Judges have little patience for missed deadlines or sloppy accountings.
Limits on Your Authority
Appointment is not a blank check. Certain actions require you to go back to the court for specific approval, and the list varies by state. Commonly restricted actions include selling or mortgaging real estate, making gifts from the estate, disposing of personal property, and in some states changing the conservatee’s residence. The underlying principle is that a conservator preserves the estate rather than redistributing it.
You have a fiduciary duty to act in the conservatee’s best interest at all times. No self-dealing, no borrowing from the estate, no commingling their money with your own. Consequences for fiduciary violations range from removal and surcharge to criminal prosecution.
How a Conservatorship Ends
A conservatorship isn’t necessarily permanent. It can end if the conservatee regains capacity, if they die, or if the court decides it’s no longer needed. The conservatee, or anyone with an interest in their welfare, can petition for termination and restoration of rights at any time.
Ending one requires proving to the court, typically by a preponderance of the evidence, that the conservatee can now make responsible decisions about their health, safety, and finances. Recent medical evidence is key; most courts require a physician’s affidavit or a court-ordered evaluation conducted shortly before the petition is filed. If the judge agrees, the court issues an order restoring full rights, and the former conservator files a final accounting and turns over all property.