• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
  • Services
    • Asset & Business Planning
    • Dental Practice Law
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Medicaid and Elder Law
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Emergency Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veteran’s Benefits
  • Resources
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Carmel, Indiana Elder Resources
        • Fishers Indiana Elder Law Resources
        • Greenfield, Indiana Elder Law Resources
        • Greenwood Elder Resources
        • Indianapolis Elder Law Resources
        • Lawrence Elder Law Resources
        • Plainfield Elder Resources
        • Zionsville Elder Law Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
        • Business Succession Planning
      • Elder Abuse
      • Elder Law
        • Medicaid
        • Medicaid Planning
        • Planning for Long-Term Care
      • Estate Planning
        • Avoiding Estate Taxes
        • Estate Planning for Parents
        • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
        • LGBTQ Estate Planning
        • Women and the Need for Estate Planning
      • Financial Planning
      • Incapacity Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • Pet Planning
      • Philanthropy in Your Estate Plan
      • Probate
      • Power of Attorney
      • Small Estate Administration
      • Trusts
        • Trust Administration
        • Trust Administration
        • Serving as Executor
      • Understanding Your Social Security Retirement Benefits
      • Wills
        • Contesting a Will
    • Newsletter
    • Pre Consultation Form
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss Of A Loved One
      • Probate Resources
        • Carmel, Indiana Probate Resources
        • Greenfield Probate
        • Greenwood Probate
        • Indianapolis Probate
        • Plainfield Probate
        • Indiana Probate
        • Zionsville Probate
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • Areas We Serve
    • Boone County
      • Lebanon
      • Zionsville
    • Hamilton County
      • Carmel
      • Fishers
    • Hancock County
      • Greenfield
    • Hendricks County
      • Brownsburg
      • Plainfield
    • Johnson County
      • Franklin, Indiana
      • Greenwood
    • Marion County
      • Central Indiana
      • Indianapolis
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law

Indianapolis Estate Planning Attorneys

CONNECT WITH US TODAY(317) 684-1100

Attend a Free Workshop
Home » What is Guardianship and When is it Necessary?

What is Guardianship and When is it Necessary?

December 10, 2010Guardianship, Incapacity Planning

Guardianship is a legal proceeding by which a person petitions the Court to allow the petitioner to assume control over the physical person or property of another person. Guardianship can occur in several circumstances:

  • Injury or illness of an adult that leaves the adult unable to care for themselves or their property
  • Minor Children who do not have a parent to care for them
  • Mentally disabled persons who are at risk of being taken advantage by designing persons
  • Older adults suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s

The need for guardianship over a younger adult will usually occur if that person has suffered illness or injury, which reduces their ability to care for their physical needs or handle their property. Guardianship is usually awarded by the court to a family member concerned about the individual subject to guardianship.

If you have young children you should consider who you would want to have guardianship over your child is something should happen to you that would prevent you from raising your child. Consider also that the person you would want to have guardianship over the person of your child, the one responsible for the child’s upbringing, may not be the same person who would have guardianship over any property or money you would leave for a child. Parents of a mentally or physically disabled child also need to consider guardianship issues in their estate planning.

Most people are familiar with the situation where an elderly parent or other family member may need guardianship because of Alzheimer’s or some other form of dementia or physical incapacity. Guardianship may be avoidable in this circumstance if a durable power of attorney is executed when the person is competent.

There are also instances in which the state has to take guardianship over a person and their property, through such agencies as the Office of the Public Guardian, or the state’s Office on Aging. Public guardianships can occur if the subject of the guardianship has no relatives to care for them or if such relatives have been removed from guardianship by abusing their position as guardian.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney
Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney
Paul Kraft is Co-Founder and the senior Principal of Frank & Kraft, one of the leading law firms in Indiana in the area of estate planning as well as business and tax planning.

Mr. Kraft assists clients primarily in the areas of estate planning and administration, Medicaid planning, federal and state taxation, real estate and corporate law, bringing the added perspective of an accounting background to his work.
Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney
Latest posts by Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney (see all)
  • What Happens to an Inheritance If No One Claims It? - March 16, 2023
  • How to Protect Your Blended Family Using a QTIP Trust - March 14, 2023
  • Estate Planning Tips to Prevent Sibling Disputes - March 9, 2023

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Indianapolis elder law attorneys
Can Someone Object to My Appointment as My Parent’s Guardian?
Indianapolis guardianship attorney
Why Should I Consider Guardianship for My Parent?
Indianapolis elder law attorney
Can I Do Anything Now to Avoid Guardianship When I Am Older?
Indianapolis elder law attorney
Indianapolis estate planning attorneys
Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law
Free Report: What is a Guardianship in Indiana?
Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law
What Is the Difference Between a Guardianship and a Power of Attorney?

Primary Sidebar

Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law

Download our free Estate Planning Worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube

Blog Subscription

Where We Are

Frank & Kraft Attorneys at Law
135 N. Pennsylvania Street Suite 1100
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2485
Phone: (317) 684-1100
Fax: (317) 684-6111

See Larger MapGet directions

Office Hours

Monday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Map

frankkraft_sidbr_map

Footer

  • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
  • About The American Academy
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap
  • Contact Us

Connect with Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube
footer-logo

Frank & Kraft Attorneys at Law
Attorney Advertisement

© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.

© 2023 · American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc. | Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Sitemap | Contact Us