Difficulties of a Conservatorship And How To Avoid One

What are the difficulties of a conservatorship, and how might families avoid the need for one?

In this educational interview, California probate and estate planning attorney Jennifer F. Scharre discusses the complexities of establishing and managing a conservatorship, including the role of the Probate Court.

She also explains how advance planning, including durable powers of attorney, living trusts, and other estate planning documents, may help individuals and families avoid the need for a court-supervised conservatorship.

Although these documents can provide important protections, they do not guarantee that a conservatorship will never be necessary.

Editor’s Note — Conservatorship Responsibilities and Court Oversight – October 2026

This interview with California probate attorney Jennifer F. Scharre is preserved as originally recorded for educational purposes.

California conservatorships may involve ongoing court supervision, reporting requirements, accountings, and bonds. However, these obligations vary depending on whether the conservatorship involves the person, the estate, or both, as well as the court’s orders.

Advance health care directives, durable powers of attorney, and living trusts may help families avoid the need for a conservatorship, but these documents do not guarantee that court intervention will never be necessary.

Real estate sales during a conservatorship may require court approval or other procedures depending on the conservator’s authority and applicable California law. Not every conservatorship property sale follows the same approval process.

Difficulties of a Conservatorship

One of the most frustrating things for my clients who are acting as conservators is the sheer amount of work and money that has to go into it. They have to make regular reports to the court about care, they have to file ongoing accounting, and they have to have a bond for all of the assets.  A lot of times, these clients ask me:

What could my mom, my dad, my aunt, or my uncle have done to avoid this happening?

The answer is very simple. They could have completed some estate planning.

How to Avoid Difficulties of a Conservatorship

A durable power of attorney and an advance healthcare directive are absolutely key to staying out of a conservatorship. When most people look at these documents, which range somewhere between two and twenty pages, it is difficult for them to realize how simple it would have been to complete these documents ahead of time and how difficult this process becomes when you don’t have these documents in place.

Obtaining a Conservatorship

Whenever we actually obtain a conservatorship, my clients feel justifiably a bit victorious that they have gotten through this difficult process.  But oftentimes they don’t realize the ongoing requirements that they have to the court.

They have to be bonded for whatever the estate’s assets are.

• They have to file a care plan with the court and notify all of the family members about exactly what they are doing with respect to medical decisions.
• They have to file accounts for all the payments they’re making on the Conservatee’s behalf.
• Ultimately, they have to ask the court for permission to sell any property. Now, this can be a very onerous requirement and oftentimes harder than the actual petition for probate itself.

But remember that when we are conservators, you are a fiduciary. You are not acting for yourself; you are acting for another individual, and the court is the person exercising that oversight.

Download the Judicial Council of California Handbook for Conservators

Conservatorship vs Power of Attorney

A durable power of attorney is an estate planning document that allows an individual to authorize another person, known as an agent, to manage specified financial and legal matters on their behalf.

When properly prepared and executed, a durable power of attorney may help avoid the need for a conservatorship of the estate if the individual later becomes incapacitated.

However, a power of attorney does not automatically eliminate the need for a conservatorship. The authority granted to the agent, the individual’s circumstances, and the willingness of financial institutions or other parties to recognize the document can affect whether additional court intervention becomes necessary.

Although legal forms are available online, choosing the appropriate documents and executing them correctly is important. Consulting a qualified California estate planning attorney can help ensure the documents reflect the individual’s wishes and circumstances.

For more information about conservatorships of the person and estate, court procedures, and filing requirements, visit our comprehensive Conservatorship guide.

Conservatorship vs Trust

A living trust and a durable power of attorney serve different purposes in estate planning, but both may help reduce the need for a court-supervised conservatorship.

A properly established and funded living trust can provide for the continued management of trust assets by a successor trustee if the person who created the trust becomes incapacitated. A durable power of attorney may authorize an agent to manage financial matters involving assets held outside the trust.

Although legal forms and estate planning resources are available online, selecting and properly executing documents that meet an individual’s needs can be complicated. Errors or omissions may become especially difficult to correct after a person loses the legal capacity to execute new documents.

Neither a trust nor a power of attorney guarantees that a conservatorship will be unnecessary. Consulting a qualified California estate planning attorney can help individuals understand their options and prepare appropriate documents.

For a more detailed discussion, watch Jennifer F. Scharre’s interview on our Conservatorship vs Trust page.