If you are caring for an elderly parent or a child with disabilities, you may need to obtain legal authority to make decisions on their behalf. Taking on this responsibility requires that you be appointed guardian and/or conservator by a court. Here are the differences between the roles:
Guardianship
Requesting guardianship of an elderly or disabled individual means that you are ready to make household, financial, and medical decisions for that person. A guardian can make decisions about where the incapacitated individual will reside and the medical care that they receive.
Conservator
A conservator controls the financial affairs of people who are not capable of handling their finances. Conservators must file an annual report with the court to show how they are managing the estate. A conservator does not have the authority to make any non-financial decisions on behalf of the individual.
The individual does not need to be elderly or disabled for a conservator to be appointed. If a minor inherits money or a property a probate court may find it necessary for a conservator to manage the inheritance until the minor is of age.
Can I only take on one role?
If you would like to take on the full responsibility of making financial, household, and medical decisions for an individual, you may file to become the guardian and conservator. However, if you would only like to make the financial decisions on their behalf, you would file to become the conservator. The guardian and the conservator are not always the same person; the court can split the roles between multiple individuals.
How to obtain guardianship or conservatorship
In Georgia, the court system requires a petition to be filed; there are many rules, steps, and processes to go through. The petitioner is essentially asking the court to take away an individual’s right to make decisions and give that right to them, so the court takes this process very seriously. You must go through a detailed process before the court will invest powers in you.
If you have a loved one that is no longer able to care for themselves or a disabled child that is almost of legal age, an experienced attorney can assist you in deciding whether a guardianship or conservatorship is appropriate.
Contact our firm today for a consultation.
Gaslowitz Frankel LLC is Georgia’s premier fiduciary litigation law firm. The firm has earned a reputation for excellence across Georgia and the Southeast in providing representation to individuals, executors, trustees, investors, shareholders, and financial institutions in complex fiduciary disputes involving wills, estates, trusts, guardianships, conservatorships, businesses, and securities.
