Guardianship And Conservatorship Legal Questions

Termination of a conservatorship can take about 4-8 weeks, depending on the court schedule.  Your daughter needs to sign the paper work and attend the hearing.  The paperwork needs to be filed in the court that issued the orders for a conservatorship.  In Maricopa County, that will be the Maricopa County Superior Court.   You can assist your daughter with the paperwork, but she should be involved to every extent, she has to sign the paperwork, and she has to speak for herself at the court hearing, unless she has an attorney. We can assist with preparation of the initial paperwork at an initial consult in our office.  We can help your daughter determine if she wants to take care of the matter herself, with your help, or if she wants an attorney present.   Marie Zawtocki, Zawtocki Law Offices, PLLC      ... Read More

Your headline is "I don't have money to pay for a lawyer and I need to contest a will." The short answer to that is that a will is contested after a person dies. An attorney may or may not take a case like that on a contingency basis, depending on how strong they believe your case is. I'm rather troubled that your concern about your mother's care comes only at the end of your post.... Read More

I'm so sorry your daughter is in this situation. Your daughter may or may not be abused. She is definitely deeply troubled. There's nothing you can legally do. Once a person becomes an adult, they have to take steps to protect themselves, at least to the extent of asking for help. ... Read More

Forgery is definitely a crime. In most cases, we begin by doing the following (1) report this to Adult Protective Services and (2) object to her being the conservator. Hopefully, these actions will cause her to deed the house back to him. If not, it's time to file a criminal complaint. If you are qualified (no criminal history, no recent bankruptcies, etc.) nominate yourself as conservator instead of your sister. If you have any history that might make you not qualified, recommend a professional fiduciary, or if there's no money to pay one, the public guardian. You will need an attorney for all of this. It's unlikely you can succeed on your own.... Read More

My first question would be why you want to do this. She has three children close to where she is now. By implication, I'm gathering that she is still in her own home. That sounds like an ideal location. Why do you want to remove her from her home and move her away from the majority of her children, and presumably grandchildren?... Read More

If your brother filed for conservatorship, you should have received notice. You can check the court in the county where your father lives to see whether a case was filed. f your father has a living trust, and your brother was named as trustee, he simply needed to go to the bank with a doctor's note to be put on as successor trustee. If your father is truly capable of handling his affairs, most trusts provide that he can get another doctor's note saying he CAN handle his affairs and take that to the bank.... Read More

To be able to get a power of attorney, your son must be able to understand what he is signing. If his brain damage is too severe for that, you will need a conservatorship of the person to be his healthcare advocate. How is the facility being paid? More than likely the facility got your son onto Medi-Cal. If so, they're entitled to all his income, except $25 a month spending money.... Read More

You may be able to make an applicaiton to the Court for a return to capacity, or limitations on the guardinaship.  The Court wants a guardianship to be as least restrictive as is necessary, so if there are things that you can take care of for yourself, you should be able to do those things even if you need assistance with other things.  The first step would be some type of medical certification of your capacity and ability to understand what you need to do.  You would need to have a nuerologist or psychiatrist and another doctor certify to the Court that you have capacity to makre your own decisions.    Best of luck to you. ... Read More

You or your son (if he's 14 or older) must petition the court to appoint a guardian ad litem. You can request a specific attorney or ask the court to choose. You can certainly hire a lawyer to make this filing. The fees of a guardian ad litem are a fraction of what an attorney would charge.    You have no interest in your late girlfriend's estate unless she left you a bequest in her will, assuming there is a will. And unless your name is on the deed to the house or your girlfriend signed a promissory note for repayment of the money you invested in it, you have no claim against her estate to recoup that money, nor any ownership rights to the house.       ... Read More

You can file a petition for guardianship with the court and if the court feels it's warranted, it will send an investigator to the person's house to investigate and report to the court. The court may also appoint a lawyer for your relative. There will be a hearing at which you must present "clear and convincing" evidence of your relative's incompetency. If your allegations are found to be true, the court can appoint you guardian and give you authority in any or all areas, ranging from making health care and financial decisions, deciding whether the relative should be in a nursing home, applying for Medicaid on their behalf, hiring home health aides, requesting that bank accounts be frozen if they've been taken advantage of by dishonest people, etc.  If the person is under 65 and has assets, you may be able to set up a special needs trust to enable them to collect government benefits but still have use of their money.  But ultimately, there is no way to hide the fact that you are guardian and when you file your petition, all of your relatives close family members must be notified, as well. There is nothing secretive about this- just the opposite. While a court is not going to order you to personally supervise the cleaning of their apartment, if your intention is to avoid all contact with this person, you might not be the best person to file the petition.  ... Read More

You might consider attending an Alzheimer's supprot group before starting down the path of a guardianshp. If that does not give you sonme ideas, you need to file for a guardianship in the county where your mother resides.  It will be a very painful event for you, your siblings and yoru mother; but if your mother will not cooerate with you regarding her care and well-being, you have no choice but filing for guardianship.  ... Read More