How to Manage an Ongoing California Conservatorship
Rights of a Conservatee
Unless the court orders otherwise, a conservatee retains the right to vote, marry, make or change their will, control personal spending money that the court orders to be given to them as an allowance, and make their own health-care decisions. All conservatees have the right to be treated with understanding and respect, and to be well cared for.
Duties of Conservator of the Person
If you are appointed to be a conservator of the person, you are required to:
1. Obtain and pay an annual fee for a surety bond to guarantee faithful performance of all your duties.
2. Decide where the conservatee will live, choosing the living situation that will give the conservatee as much independence as possible while still being safe and comfortable. You can't move the conservatee out of state or put them in a mental health treatment facility. You must obtain court approval to move the conservatee into a fenced residential care facility for dementia.
3. Keep the court informed of the conservatee's address.
4. Arrange for the conservatee's food, clothes, personal care, housekeeping, transportation, and recreation.
5. Make sure the conservatee obtains all needed health care. You must obtain court approval to provide or withhold medical treatment over the conservatee's objection, unless the court has granted you the exclusive right to authorize medical care.
6. Obtain approval, preferably in advance, for the cost of all the care from the conservator of the estate. Unapproved expenses for care you've arranged may become your responsibility.
If you have been appointed a conservator of the person, you may find it helpful to have the experienced attorneys of San Diego Law Firm available to advise you on your responsibilities and on how to handle any difficult situations that arise. We are available to provide legal advice and assistance on all aspects of California conservatorship management, including court filings and appearances; please just call us at 619-337-2950 to arrange a consultation.
Duties of Conservator of the Estate
If you are appointed to be a conservator of the estate, you are required to:
1. Obtain and pay an annual fee for a surety bond to guarantee faithful performance of all your duties.
2. Keep complete and accurate records of the conservatee's finances, income, and expenses.
2. File with the court an initial inventory of the conservatee's property and its value within 90 days, and file an accounting of all funds received and spent every two years after that.
3. Manage the conservatee's assets prudently. You must keep their funds and assets in a separate, interest-bearing account or in other separate, productive investments.
4. Obtain court approval before buying or selling assets.
5. Keep adequate insurance for the conservatee's assets and risks.
6. File other needed legal documents and attend court hearings. Notice must be given to various interested persons listed by law so that they can attend the hearings.
If you have been appointed a conservator of the estate, the experienced attorneys of San Diego Law Firm can provide legal advice and assistance to you on all aspects of California conservatorship management, including court filings and appearances. Please just call us at 619-337-2950 to arrange a consultation.
Payment of Conservator's Fees
A conservator's fees are paid by the estate once legal documents requesting them have been filed, and the court has approved them at a hearing. Approval depends on whether the court finds that the fees are just and reasonable. The court must also approve the compensation paid to attorneys of the conservator of estate, person or both. Probate courts in some counties have set limits on the amounts they will approve for conservatorship fees.
Complaints about Conservator
There are various ways for conservatees and interested parties to address complaints about conservators:
1. File written objections with the court to items in the conservator's accountings.
2. Appeal court orders authorizing a conservator's actions, for example, to buy or sell property, or pay expenses or attorney fees.
3. Petition to have the conservator removed.
4. Petition the court to give the conservatee more control or decision-making authority over parts of their life where the conservatee is able to handle the responsibility.
San Diego Law Firm can also assist you if you are a conservatee, family member of a conservatee, or other interested person (as defined by the law) to evaluate whether a conservator is acting appropriately, to prepare and file necessary legal documents if the conservator appears to have acted improperly, and to appear at any court hearings to represent you concerning the conduct of, decisions by, or need to remove a conservator. Please just call us at 619-337-2950 to arrange a consultation.
How San Diego Law Firm Can Help You with a Conservatorship
San Diego Law Firm provides skilled, caring legal services for families and individuals considering a California conservatorship. We can advise and assist you with all aspects of creating and managing a conservatorship, and appear on your behalf in court.
Once a conservatorship is established, we can prepare and file the periodic conservator's reports the court requires under conservatorship law, assist you in making legal decisions for the protected person (conservatee), including Medi-Cal planning where needed to protect the conservatee's assets, and assist you in evaluating and handling any disputes with others over the care of the protected person and their assets.
We can refer you to and work in tandem with other professionals you may need to successfully manage the conservatorship, including accountants, home health care agencies, professional money managers, and others. We can also advise you on other California conservatorship law relevant to your particular situation.
If you are considering a California conservatorship, we can help you. We are available to represent conservators, protected persons (conservatees), or interested family members. We can help you with general and limited conservatorships in Probate Court, as well as with LPS conservatorships in the Mental Health Court. Please just call San Diego Law Firm for more information or an appointment; our contact information is at the end of this page.
How to Contact San Diego Law Firm
We handle matters throughout California, and new clients are always welcome. For more information or to make an appointment, please contact us either by:
Telephone: (619) 794-0243
E-mail: contactus@SanDiegoLawFirm.com
We can be reached by telephone Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You may also use the
form below to contact us. This form is answered Monday through Friday during
the work day. Please remember that for us to become your attorneys, we must first have a written attorney-client agreement signed by both of us, so please do not email any confidential information at this point. After we have reached an agreement with you, we can then exchange information freely. We look forward to helping you.