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How Much Does It Cost to Get a Guardian and/or Conservator Appointed?

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OCTOBER 22, 2012 VOLUME 19 NUMBER 39
We are frequently asked how much it will cost to get a guardian and/or conservator appointed for a parent or other relative. It is hard to answer with precision, but it is a fair question. Let us see if we can give you some guidance.

First, a few important assumptions. We need to be clear about this: we can’t tell you very much about what it will cost in Ohio, or California, or … you get the point. In fact, we can’t tell you with too much precision how much it will cost in Phoenix, Arizona. We practice in Tucson, and we frequently file proceedings in most of the other counties in Arizona. We do not do much in Maricopa County (Phoenix), partly because the costs and procedures are so difficult to predict there, and partly because there are plenty of lawyers who know how to do this kind of work in the big city.

Second important assumption: this is 2012. Like all our newsletters, this information will remain available on our website indefinitely. We don’t know how things might change next year, much less in a decade.

Third important assumption: that there is no wild peculiarity. If you file a guardianship petition as to your mother and she responds by filing a federal court action alleging that you are part of a conspiracy to violate her civil rights, the cost is going to go higher. Things like that don’t happen very often, but we can’t tell you that everyone will agree, that the evidence will be clear, or that the process will be smooth. So we are assuming here that there are not significant bumps in the road toward guardianship or conservatorship.

And our last assumption: we are only talking about the cost of getting you (or someone) appointed as guardian and/or conservator. You may need legal assistance after the appointment, as well (in fact, you probably will). That will depend on the complexity of your family member’s guardianship and conservatorship — and that can increase for a variety of reasons.

Enough disclaimers. How much will it cost to get a guardianship and conservatorship established?

The costs and fees are broken into several pieces. The breakdown is important, because some will be paid out of your family member’s estate, some can be waived if there is little or no money, and some will be your responsibility even if there are no assets or income from they can be paid. Here is a quick rundown:

  1. Court filing fees, certified copies and service of process (the petition and notice have to be handed to your family member by an authorized process server). Assume about $300-40o here. Most of that is the filing fee itself, which has to be paid before things get underway. It can be waived, but based on your inability to pay (in addition to your family member’s lack of resources or income).
  2. Your lawyer’s fees. If you hire a firm like us to represent you, your legal fees are likely to be $1500-2000 for an uncontested guardianship/conservatorship. This fee will be your responsibility regardless of how the proceeding turns out. It can be reimbursed from your family member’s resources if you are successful, but most lawyers will expect to be paid up front, or soon after proceedings are initiated, and not wait until you have been appointed and can get access to funds.
  3. The court-appointed lawyer’s fees. Unless your family member already has a lawyer (and you can’t select one for him or her — it would have to be someone they already had a relationship with or they hired after the proceeding began) the court will appoint an attorney to represent them. The lawyers who accept these appointments come from a rotating list, and they mostly charge their regular hourly rates. Some do more extensive investigations and pursue different lines of inquiry. The bottom line: don’t be at all surprised if the court-appointed lawyer’s bill exceeds $1,000, but that’s a pretty good maximum figure for a rule-of-thumb approximation. This one can be paid by the court itself if your family member has no resources.
  4. The court-appointed investigator. Another list of court appointees yields someone who has a social work, medical or legal background, and who is appointed to report to the court about your family member’s circumstances. The cost for that investigation and report is frequently in the range of $500-1000. As with the court-appointed attorney, these charges can be collected from the court if there are no assets available.
  5. In addition to the investigator, the court reviews a report from a medical provider. That is usually your family member’s primary care physician, but there are others who can qualify. Still, that is likely to add another $100-200 to the cost. In the real world, you will have to pay this up front to get the doctor’s opinion letter, though sometimes it might be included in a general check-up under Medicare or private insurance.
  6. Bond premiums are due if you (or someone else) are appointed conservator (of the estate). The premium for this insurance policy can be paid from your family member’s assets, and if they have no assets then it is unlikely that they need a conservator in the first place. The cost of the bond varies by the size of the estate being managed. Surety bonds can be difficult to purchase at any price, and the availability of bonding companies is often limited.

Add all that up and you can see that the cost of getting a guardian and conservator appointed will probably exceed $3,000, and can quickly grow to more like $5,000. And remember: that only gets you to the starting point. Additional costs for lawyers, accountants and court proceedings will add more to that figure over the years after your appointment. You need to be able to clearly articulate what benefit you will get from the guardianship or conservatorship to incur that kind of expense.

4 Responses

  1. Do you have to be bonded in the state of Memphis Tenn.to have conservatorship. If you do what the bonding company do the court to Tinton country use?

    1. Talk to a Tennessee lawyer about what they require in Memphis. If a bond is required, the court probably does not maintain a list of approved bonding companies — but any insurance agent should be able to find out which companies write surety bonds for the local courts.

      Good luck.

  2. Can a bond be waived if the ward has no assets and only SSI retirement? Keep in mind “memory care” provided in a group home setting will cost more then monthly income received therefore guardian will cover needed experiences for ward. Ward does not qualify for state assistance.

    1. Elizabeth:

      The answer will be different for every state, and sometimes different from county to county. You should find an attorney in your community and consult with him or her.

      Good luck.

      Robert Fleming
      Fleming & Curti, PLC
      Tucson, Arizona

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Robert B. Fleming

Attorney

Robert Fleming is a Fellow of both the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. He has been certified as a Specialist in Estate and Trust Law by the State Bar of Arizona‘s Board of Legal Specialization, and he is also a Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation. Robert has a long history of involvement in local, state and national organizations. He is most proud of his instrumental involvement in the Special Needs Alliance, the premier national organization for lawyers dealing with special needs trusts and planning.

Robert has two adult children, two young grandchildren and a wife of over fifty years. He is devoted to all of them. He is also very fond of Rosalind Franklin (his office companion corgi), and his homebound cat Muninn. He just likes people, their pets and their stories.

Elizabeth N.R. Friman

Attorney

Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman is a principal and licensed fiduciary at Fleming & Curti, PLC. Elizabeth enjoys estate planning and helping families navigate trust and probate administrations. She is passionate about the fiduciary work that she performs as a trustee, personal representative, guardian, and conservator. Elizabeth works with CPAs, financial professionals, case managers, and medical providers to tailor solutions to complex family challenges. Elizabeth is often called upon to serve as a neutral party so that families can avoid protracted legal conflict. Elizabeth relies on the expertise of her team at Fleming & Curti, and as the Firm approaches its third decade, she is proud of the culture of care and consideration that the Firm embodies. Finding workable solutions to sensitive and complex family challenges is something that Elizabeth and the Fleming & Curti team do well.

Amy F. Matheson

Attorney

Amy Farrell Matheson has worked as an attorney at Fleming & Curti since 2006. A member of the Southern Arizona Estate Planning Council, she is primarily responsible for estate planning and probate matters.

Amy graduated from Wellesley College with a double major in political science and English. She is an honors graduate of Suffolk University Law School and has been admitted to practice in Arizona, Massachusetts, New York, and the District of Columbia.

Prior to joining Fleming & Curti, Amy worked for American Public Television in Boston, and with the international trade group at White & Case, LLP, in Washington, D.C.

Amy’s husband, Tom, is an astronomer at NOIRLab and the Head of Time Domain Services, whose main project is ANTARES. Sadly, this does not involve actual time travel. Amy’s twin daughters are high school students; Finn, her Irish Red and White Setter, remains a puppy at heart.

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Matthew M. Mansour

Attorney

Matthew is a law clerk who recently earned his law degree from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. His undergraduate degree is in psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Matthew has had a passion for advocacy in the Tucson community since his time as a law student representative in the Workers’ Rights Clinic. He also has worked in both the Pima County Attorney’s Office and the Pima County Public Defender’s Office. He enjoys playing basketball, caring for his cat, and listening to audiobooks narrated by the authors.