Frequently Asked Questions About Being a Caregiver

Do I need any legal documents?

Probably.  If you will be assisting an incapacitated adult with medical care, housing, and other day-to-day decisions, you will probably need to become the person’s legal guardian, which will allow you to make decisions on the person’s behalf.  If you are managing the person’s money and other assets, you will need to become the person’s conservator.

Will I need to go to court to become a guardian or conservator?

Yes

Do I need a lawyer to become a guardian or conservator?

Yes, several complex legal documents must be prepared and filed with the court to become a guardian or a conservator. 

What if there are two of us who want to be a person’s guardian and or conservator?

Your attorney will prepare and file a petition to appoint you and the other person as co-guardians and or co-conservators.

What if there are two of us who want to be a person’s guardian or conservator, but we can’t agree on who it should be?

At that point, you have a contested guardianship and or conservatorship.  Your attorney will help you prepare for a hearing, and a judge will decide who will be appointed as the guardian or the conservator.

What if the incapacitated person recovers and no longer needs a guardian or conservator?

The person can hire a lawyer to terminate the guardianship or conservatorship, or the person can send a letter to the court and ask the judge to terminate the guardianship and or conservatorship.

Wendy Williams, Britney Spears, and Michael Oher have stated that they have been taken advantage of when they were subject to conservatorships or guardianships.  Does that happen in Virginia?

In Virginia, there are many safeguards in place to protect people who are incapacitated or who are alleged to be incapacitated.   The judge will appoint a GAL (guardian ad litem) to investigate the allegations made in the petition for guardianship and or conservatorship and prepare a report for the court.

The attorney who files the petition for guardianship and  or conservatorship, must notify all immediate family members about the hearing including adult children, the spouse, adult siblings and parents. The alleged incapacitated person is also entitled to a court appointed attorney and a jury trial to determine if he or she is incapacitated. 

If a judge rules that a person is incapacitated, the judge can require periodic reports and hearings to determine if the person is still incapacitated and if the conservatorship or guardianship should be dissolved.