Legal Question in Elder Law in New York

You can obtain a guardianship of an elderly person by filing an Article 81 petition and an order to show cause. You will have to demonstrate at a hearing, and in the papers you file, that the person is incapacitated. This means that the person is in need of a guardian because he or she is unable to take care of their daily needs, and unable to provide for those needs without aid, also that the person is unaware of their inability to provide for their needs. The person can also consent to the appointment, but a hearing would still have to take place.

Usually a court evaluator, a person who investigates the need for the appointment of a guardian, is assigned. However, the judge could also appoint an attorney for the alleged incapacitated person (the elderly person).

You can consult an attorney like myself to file this for you, or you can file it on your own with the aid of the guardianship clerk in your county. Either way, this is a serious legal matter that should be handled with care. Good Luck!

Follow the instructions in Article 81 of the New York Mental Hygiene Law, available via the Cornell Legal Information Institute (the link is on my website at RickBryan.com).

Good luck.

Rick Bryan

New York, NY