Legal Help with Guardianship and Conservatorship in Kansas

Kansas City Family Law Attorney

Guardianships and conservatorships are two of the ways families provide care for minor children, frail elders, and disabled adults who cannot manage their own financial affairs. These legal tools give a family member or trustee the authority to make decisions for people who are not competent to make their own decisions.

If you are seeking guardianship of a child, or have questions about the best way to care for an elder relative, contact us, Lenexa family lawyers Vinton | Moore Attorneys at Law, LLC. We can advise you on the least intrusive, most effective steps to take to protect your family members.

Guardianship for Children

For children under 18, a family member (or unrelated person) may seek guardianship of a child if that child’s parents are not able to properly care for them. Grandparents, aunts and uncles are typical relatives who seek custody of a child in order to enroll the child in school and make health care and educational decisions for them.

Conservatorship for Children

Guardians for children typically have control over what little financial assets the child has, but a child might need a conservator if he or she has inherited money or receives an annuity. A conservator will ensure that the money is used and accounted for properly. A conservatorship is specifically needed to handle finances of a minor if the funds are greater than $10,000.

Guardianship and Conservatorship for Adults

If an adult (anyone over 18) has a mental or physical incapacity that makes it impossible for him or her to manage their money and make responsible decisions, a guardian and conservator will be appointed to manage daily affairs. It is much more difficult to obtain guardianship over an adult, even in cases involving mental illness. It requires the help of an experienced family law attorney.

If you have advanced warning that your family member may need help in the future, as is the case, for example, with Alzheimer’s or dementia, you can avoid the hassle of a guardianship proceeding by using a Durable Power of Attorney and a Living Will instead. But your family member must be healthy and have sufficient mental capacity to give permission at the time.

If two siblings wish to share guardianship, they can do so with a co-guardianship or a successor guardianship. Contact us if you would like to know more about which of these options might work best for your situation.

The information on this website is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Nothing in this website establishes an attorney-client relationship between Valerie L. Moore or Amy Vinton and the viewer.