How do you obtain a conservatorship?

A short note before you start

This guide is general information for the United States, not legal, tax, financial or medical advice. Conservatorship law, forms, fees and timeline are set separately by each state and sometimes by county, so treat the steps here as the general shape of the process and confirm specifics with your state court's self-help site or an elder law attorney. For what the term means, see Meaning of conservatorship; for how it differs from guardianship of a minor, see Guardianship versus conservatorship.

What does it mean to obtain a conservatorship?

Obtaining a conservatorship means asking a court to find that an adult can no longer safely manage their finances, their personal care, or both, and to appoint someone, called a conservator in most states and a guardian in others, to decide instead. It is a court order, not a private agreement, and takes effect only once a judge signs it. Some states split the role into two: a conservator (or guardian) of the estate, who manages money and property, and one of the person, who handles medical and day-to-day decisions. The same person can hold both.

Check the alternatives before you file

Every state requires courts to consider less restrictive tools first, and using one can mean you never need to file at all².

• Durable power of attorney. If the adult signed one while still able to understand it, an agent may already have the authority a conservatorship would grant, at far less cost and delay. See POA vs. conservatorship.
• Social Security representative payee. The Social Security Administration can appoint someone to receive a beneficiary's Social Security or SSI payments only, a narrower fix when benefit checks are the main concern³.
• Supported decision-making. The adult keeps their legal right to decide, with trusted people helping them understand information and communicate choices, rather than someone deciding for them².
• Joint accounts or trusts. A well-set-up joint bank account or revocable trust can cover routine bill-paying without a court case.

If none of these will cover the need, a conservatorship is usually the remaining option.

Who can petition, and who does the court prefer to appoint?

Almost any "interested person" can start a case: a spouse, an adult child, another relative, a close friend, or sometimes a social service agency or the county public guardian¹. Who files does not decide who is appointed. When more than one person is willing and qualified, California's statute sets a specific order of preference: the conservatee's own stated preference first, then a spouse or domestic partner, an adult child, a parent, a sibling, and finally any other eligible person or entity, with the court free to depart from that order if it is not in the person's best interest⁵.

Where no family member is suitable, courts can appoint a professional or public conservator. Washington requires paid professional guardians and conservators to be certified through its Certified Professional Guardianship and Conservatorship Board, with approved training, a background check and fingerprinting¹⁰. Their fees, like a family conservator's, come from the protected person's estate and are subject to court review for reasonableness⁷.

The steps to obtain a conservatorship

1. Rule out less restrictive options, such as a power of attorney, representative payee or supported decision-making.
2. Decide the scope of authority needed: money and property, personal care and medical decisions, or both.
3. File the petition with the probate or trial court in the county where the adult lives, stating why it is needed and who is proposed to serve¹.
4. Get medical or professional evidence of incapacity. Texas requires a doctor's Certificate of Medical Examination before the case proceeds⁸.
5. Serve notice on the proposed conservatee and close relatives, who may object or hire their own attorney.
6. Cooperate with the court's investigation. Many courts send an investigator or examining committee; Florida's has three members, including one physician, within 5 days of filing⁹.
7. Attend the hearing, where a judge decides incapacity and who should serve. Florida requires clear and convincing evidence⁹.
8. Qualify for appointment, which can mean a bond and an oath; Utah also requires a short test on duties first¹.
9. Receive letters of conservatorship, the proof of authority banks, the IRS and other agencies ask to see⁷.
10. File the first inventory, then ongoing accountings on the schedule the court sets.

What does it cost to obtain a conservatorship?

There is no single national fee, and the money almost always comes out of the protected person's own assets, not the petitioner's pocket. California's statewide fee to start a limited conservatorship case is $435, plus a separate investigation fee⁶. Beyond the filing fee, expect a medical evaluation fee, an investigator's fee, and attorney's fees if either side hires a lawyer. Many courts also require a conservator of an estate to buy a surety bond sized to the assets managed; the bond reimburses the estate if money is mismanaged, and premiums continue as long as the case is open⁷. Any fiduciary's ongoing fee must be court-approved as reasonable and paid from the estate⁷. Ask the specific court for its current fee schedule.

How this varies by state

The sequence is similar everywhere, but who can serve, what evidence is required and how fast the case moves is set state by state.

How many people are affected?

There is no complete federal count, since most states do not report this data centrally. The 1.3 million figure in Key facts above, from the handful of states that do track it, is the best available estimate, but the underlying data is dated and incomplete⁴. Treat it as a rough order of magnitude, not a precise count.

Checklist: obtaining a conservatorship, in order

• Confirmed that a power of attorney, representative payee or supported decision-making will not meet the need

• Decided whether a conservatorship of the estate, of the person, or both is needed

• Identified the correct probate or trial court for the county where the adult lives

• Obtained or scheduled the required medical or capacity evaluation

• Completed and filed the petition and any state-required forms

• Paid the filing fee, or filed for a fee waiver

• Served notice on the proposed conservatee and required relatives within the state's deadline

• Cooperated with the court investigator, visitor or examining committee

• Attended the hearing and received the court's order

• Posted any required bond and took the oath of office

• Received certified letters of conservatorship or guardianship

• Filed the first inventory and calendared the next accounting deadline

What to record in a family guide

Whether a conservatorship is already open or only being considered, this is the kind of information a family guide keeps in one place so nobody has to reconstruct it during a crisis:

• Whether a petition has been filed, in which court, and the case or docket number
• Who was appointed conservator, and their contact information
• Any attorney representing the petitioner or the conservatee, with contact information
• Where the certified letters of conservatorship and the original court order are kept
• The bond company name and policy or bond number, if a bond was required
• The date the next inventory or accounting is due
• Whether a power of attorney or advance directive was signed before incapacity, and how that affects what the conservatorship needs to cover

Common mistakes

• Filing before ruling out a less restrictive option a court may expect addressed first.
• Assuming one state's forms, fees, preference order or deadlines apply everywhere.
• Missing the notice deadline for the conservatee and close relatives, which can delay the hearing.
• Not budgeting for the investigation, medical evaluation and bond premium beyond the filing fee.
• Waiting for a crisis to start the petition, when the process itself commonly takes weeks.
• Losing track of the certified letters of conservatorship, which slows down every agency that asks for proof.
• Missing the first inventory or accounting deadline, which can trigger a court citation.

When to get professional help

Talk to a probate or elder law attorney before filing, since notice rules and local practice differ even within a state, and some states, including Texas, require the petitioner to have one. Get an attorney immediately if a family member objects, if the adult owns property in more than one state, or if a less restrictive alternative might realistically work instead. A CPA is worth involving once a conservator will manage significant investments, a business or real estate. For help finding one, see Conservatorship attorney and Lawyer for conservatorship.