Conservatorships & Guardianships

Sometimes, a disability, illness, or injury can make it difficult or impossible for a person to make decisions about his or her health care, financial matters or living situation.  If the person does not have a power of attorney in place to delegate those tasks, the person’s loved one may decide to petition the Court for a guardianship or conservatorship over that person.

First, the Court must decide that the person is legally incapacitated, which means that he or she cannot understand his or her financial situation, health care situation, or living situation well enough to make decisions on those matters or cannot early communicate his or her wishes about those matters.  If this is the case, a guardian and/or conservator may be appointed.

A guardian is a person appointed by the Court to take care of healthcare and other personal, non-monetary decisions of an incapacitated person.  A conservator is a person appointed by the Court to take care of the financial decisions of an incapacitated person.  Depending on the case, sometimes both a guardian and conservator are appointed and sometimes only one is appointed.

Our attorneys know the legal requirements for both guardianships and conservatorships in the state of Tennessee and have experience guiding our clients through the process. If you believe that your loved one may be incapacitated and in need of a guardian or conservator to help manage their health care, finances or living situation, contact one of our attorneys today.