http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Elder-Law-Family/Federal/index.html LawInfo - Legal Resource Center offers free Elder Law legal forms and free Elder Law legal documents that is designed to help consumers and businesses resolve their legal issues http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Elder-Law-Family/Federal/guarding-the-interests-of-our-parents.html <p><font face="Arial">Most people are familiar with naming a legal guardian for a child when the parents are unavailable or unable to care for the child. As the population matures, more people are also becoming aware of the reverse situation, naming a guardian for an adult parent.&nbsp; As we grow older and our lives become more complicated many of our elderly cannot adequately make decisions in their best interests.&nbsp; A guardian makes those decisions for them.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> <strong>Conservatorship</strong><br /> <br /> Guardians for adults are a growing area in elder law and <a href="http://www.lawinfo.com/estate-planning.html">estate planning</a>. Every state has a statute regarding the procedure to name a guardian, sometimes called a conservator, for an adult. The incapacitated adult is the &ldquo;conservatee&rdquo; and the guardian is the &ldquo;conservator&rdquo;. Most states require a judge to approve the appointment and also require the adult to undergo a medical examination.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Unlike a child&rsquo;s guardian who, like a parent, has complete control of the child an adult conservator&rsquo;s powers may be limited.&nbsp; An incapacitated adult may only need help with specific needs. A conservator may be appointed with general powers or the court may only grant a limited conservatorship.&nbsp; A limited conservatorship may be created to solely control an incapacitated adult&rsquo;s finances, health care decisions, or any other singular aspect of their lives that the adult can not adequately manage on their own.&nbsp; In a limited conservatorship the conservatee will still retain decision making ability over every other aspect of his/her life.</font></p> <p><font face="Arial"><strong>Power of Attorney</strong><br /> <br /> A <a href="http://www.lawinfo.com/power-of-attorney.html">power of attorney</a> is another legal tool that allows a person to make decisions on someone&rsquo;s behalf, creating a principal and agent relationship. Even though both the agent and conservator must act in the best interests of the other party there are significant differences between a power of attorney and a legal guardian/conservator.&nbsp; A guardianship is a court order while a power of attorney is an agreement between only the principal and the agent.</font></p> <p><font face="Arial">A power of attorney is voluntarily entered into by the parties, allows for both parties to make decisions concurrently and can be revoked at any time by either party.&nbsp;&nbsp; A guardian/conservator is only established by a court order and strips the conservatee of some rights. In some cases the proposed conservatee can also voluntarily petition the court to appoint a conservator for them.&nbsp; Once the conservator is appointed the court transfers certain rights from the conservatee to the conservator. A conservatorship cannot be revoked by the parties; the only way to end it is by another court order.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> <strong>Best Interests</strong><br /> <br /> Like an attorney, a conservator is required to act in the best interest of their conservatee. A conservator cannot profit from decisions made on behalf of the conservatee and must not have a conflict of interest between their interests and their conservatee&rsquo;s. </font></p> <p><font face="Arial">If you cannot find a family member or close friend to act as a conservator there are many professionals who specialize in being professional conservators.&nbsp; If you have questions or need a conservator there are probably attorneys near you that can help.&nbsp; There are many lawyers and law firms who specialize in Elder Law who can assist in establishing a conservatorship for adults.</font></p> <p><font face="Arial">For more information on conservatorship,&nbsp; contact an <a href="http://www.lawinfo.com/fuseaction/Client.lawarea/categoryid/61">estate planning attorney today</a>.<br /> </font></p> Elder Law Articles Fri, 25 Apr 2008 19:15:08 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Adoption-Law-Family/Federal/index.html Free Adoption Law Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Child-Abuse/Federal/index.html Free Child Abuse Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Child-Abuse-Law/Federal/index.html Free Child Abuse Law Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Child-Custody-Visitation/Federal/index.html Free Child Custody and Visitation Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Child-Support/Federal/index.html Free Child Support Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Fathers-and-Child-Support/Federal/index.html Free Child Support Father Right Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Custody-and-Child-Support/Federal/index.html Free Custody and Child Support Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Domestic-Law/Federal/index.html Free Domestic Violence Law Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Emancipation/Federal/index.html Free Emancipation Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Attorney/Federal/index.html Free Family Attorney Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Court/Federal/index.html Free Family Court Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Law-Attorney/Federal/index.html Free Family Law Attorney Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Law-Lawyer/Federal/index.html Free Family Law Lawyer Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Family-Lawyer/Federal/index.html Free Family Lawyer Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Foster-Care/Federal/index.html Free Foster Care Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Juvenile-Law-Family/Federal/index.html Free Juvenile Law Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Marriage-License/Federal/index.html Free Marriage License Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Paternity/Federal/index.html Free Paternity Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Articles/Separation-and-Divorce/Federal/index.html Free Separation and Divorce Articles Family Law Sub-categories Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:01:49 GMT