District of Columbia Guardianship and Conservatorship

When an adult can no longer manage their own care or finances, a District of Columbia court can appoint someone to decide for them. This guide explains the process, the alternatives to consider first, and the costs.

Based on D.C. Code Title 21, Chapter 20 (§§ 21-2001 to 21-2077: guardianship of incapacitated individuals and protective proceedings); guardianship of minors, D.C. Code §§ 21-101 to 21-182; standby guardianship of children, D.C. Code §§ 16-4801 to 16-4810

By Settled Estate EditorialPublished: June 28, 2026Updated: October 4, 2026

What guardianship and conservatorship mean here

In the District of Columbia a guardian is a person the Superior Court appoints to make personal and health-care decisions for an adult it finds incapacitated, and a conservator is a person it appoints to manage that adult's money and property. Both are governed by D.C. Code Title 21, Chapter 20. The petitioner must prove the need by clear and convincing evidence, and the court must choose the type of guardianship that is least restrictive in duration and scope. A finding of incapacity is not a finding of legal incompetence: the person keeps every right the order does not expressly take away.

D.C. splits the two jobs. A guardian (general, limited, or temporary) handles the person: care, custody, residence and health-care consent (D.C. Code § 21-2047). A conservator handles the estate and takes title to the property as trustee (D.C. Code § 21-2066). For minors the older Chapter 1 vocabulary still applies: a guardian of the person and a guardian of the estate (D.C. Code §§ 21-103, 21-106).

Because guardianship removes legal rights, courts look first at the less-restrictive alternatives below.

On this page

Types of guardianship and conservatorship

Court-Appointed Guardian of the Person of a Minor

When a child has neither a natural guardian (a parent) nor a testamentary guardian, the court may appoint a guardian of the person on its own or on the application of a next friend of the child. A minor over 14 is entitled to select and nominate the guardian, subject to the court's approval of the person's character and competency. The guardianship ends when the child turns 18 or marries.

D.C. Code §§ 21-103, 21-104, 21-108

Conservator (Protective Proceeding)

A person or corporation the court appoints to manage the estate and affairs of an individual who is incapacitated, has disappeared, or is detained by a foreign power or held hostage, when the individual has property that will be wasted or dissipated without management, or money is needed for the support of the individual or dependents. Appointment vests title to the property in the conservator as trustee. An order that vests only part of the property creates a limited conservatorship.

D.C. Code § 21-2051(b); § 21-2066(a)

Limited Guardian

A guardian whose powers the court limits, at appointment or later, to what the person actually needs. Every limitation is endorsed on the guardian's letters, and it can later be removed or changed by the same procedure. A limited guardian may be appointed for a finite period or an indeterminate one.

D.C. Code § 21-2044(c); § 21-2011(8)(C)

More guardianship types8 additional arrangements courts use in specific situations, with statute cites

General Guardian of an Incapacitated Individual

A guardian not limited by the court in scope or time. A general guardian is responsible for the ward's care, custody and control: setting the ward's place of abode inside or outside the District, consenting to medical and psychiatric examination and treatment, receiving benefit payments for the ward's support, and applying the ward's money to current needs. The guardian must decide by substituted judgment (what the ward would have chosen) and fall back to best interests only when the ward's wishes remain unknown.

D.C. Code § 21-2047; § 21-2011(8)(B)

Emergency Guardian (temporary)

A temporary guardian whose authority may not extend beyond 21 days, appointed on petition when an incapacitated individual has no guardian, a life-threatening situation or one involving emergency care exists, and no other person with authority to act is reasonably available, mentally capable and willing to act. The emergency guardian has only the powers stated in the order.

D.C. Code § 21-2046(b)

Health-Care Guardian (temporary)

A temporary guardian appointed for up to 90 days to give substituted consent to health care for an individual certified incapacitated for health-care decisions under § 21-2204 who has no guardian and no other available decision-maker. The petition must include the two-professional certification of incapacity, and the hearing is held within 7 days. The court may extend the appointment once, for up to 90 more days.

D.C. Code § 21-2046(c)

Provisional Guardian (temporary)

If an appointed guardian is not effectively performing and the ward's welfare requires immediate action, the court may appoint a provisional guardian for a specified period of no more than 6 months, giving notice to interested parties within 14 days after the appointment. The prior guardian's authority is suspended while the provisional guardian serves.

D.C. Code § 21-2046(d)

Protective Arrangement or Single Transaction (no conservator)

Where grounds for a protective proceeding exist, the court may skip appointing a conservator and instead authorize, direct or ratify a specific transaction or arrangement, such as a sale, a trust, an annuity or a life-care contract, and may appoint a special conservator only to carry it out.

D.C. Code § 21-2056

Testamentary Guardian of a Minor

When one parent has died, the surviving parent may appoint by will a guardian of the person with the care, custody and tuition of an unmarried child. If the named guardian refuses, the court may appoint another person.

D.C. Code § 21-102

Guardian of the Estate of a Minor

The court may appoint a guardian of a child's estate when the child inherits land, takes a share of an intestate estate or a legacy, or acquires property by gift or purchase. Parents, or a spouse aged 18 or older, get preference if suitable. The guardian must give bond, file an inventory within three months, and account at least once a year. No one may collect more than $3,000 net for a child from the settlement of a lawsuit without first being appointed and qualifying as guardian of the estate.

D.C. Code §§ 21-106, 21-107, 21-115, 21-120(b), 21-142, 21-143

Standby Guardian of a Child

A custodial parent may designate in writing a standby guardian (and an alternate) whose authority begins on a triggering event: an adverse immigration action against the parent, or, after a written diagnosis of a chronic condition from which the parent may not recover (or of COVID-19), the parent's consented debilitation, incapacity determined by an attending clinician, or death. The parent keeps concurrent authority while able. The Family Court approves the designation on petition.

D.C. Code §§ 16-4802(13), 16-4803, 16-4804

The District of Columbia guardianship court process

1File a petition in the Superior CourtThe incapacitated individual or any person interested in his or her welfare may petition for a limited, temporary or general guardian.

The incapacitated individual or any person interested in his or her welfare may petition for a limited, temporary or general guardian. The petition states the petitioner's name, address and interest, the individual's name, age and residence, and the reasons for the guardianship with enough particularity for the court to choose the right class of examiner and visitor. A conservatorship petition also lists the guardian if any, the nearest relative, and a general statement of the individual's property and its estimated value.

2Serve the petition and give notice of the hearingThe petition is served on the person by first-class mail within 3 days of filing.

The petition is served on the person by first-class mail within 3 days of filing. Notice of the hearing is served personally on the person, who cannot waive it, and goes to the spouse (or, if none, adult children, or if none, parents), any current guardian, conservator or caretaker, and any others the court directs. Where mailed notice is allowed it must go out at least 17 days before the hearing, or be delivered in person at least 14 days before.

3Court appoints counsel, an examiner and a visitorUnless the person already has a lawyer, the court appoints one, whose duty is to advocate zealously for the person's expressed wishes.

Unless the person already has a lawyer, the court appoints one, whose duty is to advocate zealously for the person's expressed wishes. The court appoints a qualified examiner, who files a written report, and a separate visitor, who interviews the person, the petitioner and the proposed guardian, visits the person's home and proposed residence, and reports in writing. The court may waive the visitor, and may waive the examiner if a written report is already filed.

4HearingThe person must attend unless good cause is shown, is represented by counsel, and may present evidence and cross-examine witnesses, including the examiner and visitor.

The person must attend unless good cause is shown, is represented by counsel, and may present evidence and cross-examine witnesses, including the examiner and visitor. The hearing may be closed at the person's or counsel's request. Current evaluations and treatment plans must be presented. The petitioner must prove the case by clear and convincing evidence. There is no jury: the jury-trial section, § 21-2023, was repealed.

5Order of appointmentIf satisfied the person is incapacitated and the appointment is necessary, the court appoints the least restrictive type of guardian in duration and scope, or treats the case as a protective proceeding, enters another order, or dismisses.

If satisfied the person is incapacitated and the appointment is necessary, the court appoints the least restrictive type of guardian in duration and scope, or treats the case as a protective proceeding, enters another order, or dismisses. Any limits on the guardian's powers are endorsed on the letters. Certain decisions, such as consenting to sterilization, convulsive therapy, experimental treatment, or restricting the person's access to phone, mail and email, are off-limits unless the order expressly grants them.

6Background checks and bondBefore appointment the guardian files a sworn statement about specified criminal history.

Before appointment the guardian files a sworn statement about specified criminal history. Within 60 days after appointment the guardian files a Metropolitan Police Department criminal-history check, and within 180 days an FBI fingerprint check, each run no more than 90 days before the appointment. A conservator may be required to post a bond, which by default equals the estate's value plus a year's income (§ 21-2058).

7Reports, inventory and accountsA guardian reports in writing on the ward's condition at least every six months, and must visit at least once a month unless the court sets otherwise.

A guardian reports in writing on the ward's condition at least every six months, and must visit at least once a month unless the court sets otherwise. A conservator files an inventory and an individual conservatorship plan within 60 days after appointment and accounts to the court at least once a year on the anniversary of the appointment.

8Mandatory review every three yearsFor every guardianship appointed on or after January 1, 2015, the court appoints a licensed social worker as case reviewer within each 3-year period to investigate whether the guardianship is still needed.

For every guardianship appointed on or after January 1, 2015, the court appoints a licensed social worker as case reviewer within each 3-year period to investigate whether the guardianship is still needed. The reviewer reports within 6 months, the report is served on the ward, and within 90 days the court decides whether to continue, modify or end the guardianship, holding a hearing if the ward asks or the reviewer recommends a change.

How long it takes

Emergency guardian: authority for no more than 21 days, with a hearing within 48 hours of any request (D.C. Code § 21-2046(b)). Health-care guardian: hearing within 7 days of the petition, appointment for up to 90 days, extendable once for up to 90 more (D.C. Code § 21-2046(c)). General or limited guardianship: the statute sets no deadline for the hearing, but notice must be personally served at least 14 days (or mailed at least 17 days) before it (D.C. Code § 21-2031(b)); an uncontested case commonly takes one to three months from filing, a national estimate rather than a District figure. After appointment, a case-reviewer investigation follows in each 3-year period (D.C. Code § 21-2045.01).

Alternatives to consider before guardianship

Durable Power of Attorney

A competent adult names an agent for money and property decisions. Under D.C.'s Uniform Power of Attorney Act it is durable unless it says otherwise and must be acknowledged before a notary. It can avoid a conservatorship, and a nomination of a guardian or conservator inside it binds the court absent good cause.

D.C. Code §§ 21-2601.04, 21-2601.05

Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care

An adult designates an agent to make health-care decisions if the adult becomes unable to. It must be dated and signed by the principal and 2 adult witnesses, neither the principal's health-care provider nor its employee, and at least one unrelated and not an heir. With one in place, no health-care guardian is needed.

D.C. Code § 21-2205

If there is no health-care power of attorney and two professionals certify the person incapacitated for health-care decisions, a spouse or domestic partner, adult child, parent, adult sibling, religious superior, close friend or nearest relative, in that order, may consent to treatment for the person. A court petition is needed only when no one on the list is available and willing.

D.C. Code § 21-2210

Supported Decision-Making Agreement

An adult with a disability keeps the right to decide and names a supporter to help gather information, weigh options and communicate decisions. Signed before 2 adult witnesses or a notary, and revocable by either party at any time.

D.C. Code § 7-2132

Protective Arrangement or Single Transaction

Instead of a full conservatorship, the court can authorize one specific transaction or arrangement, such as selling a house or setting up a trust, and close the matter, appointing a special conservator only to carry it out.

D.C. Code § 21-2056

Representative Payee

The Social Security Administration can appoint a representative payee to receive and manage Social Security benefits for a beneficiary who cannot manage them. It covers only those federal benefits and needs no court case.

42 U.S.C. § 405(j)

Revocable Trust

Assets held in a trust can be managed by a successor trustee if the person becomes incapacitated, with no court involvement, under the D.C. Uniform Trust Code.

D.C. Code § 19-1301.01 et seq. (Uniform Trust Code)

Custodial Power of Attorney (for a child)

A parent can give another adult revocable authority over a child's care and custody, including school enrollment and consent to medical, psychological or dental treatment, without a guardianship. It cannot authorize marriage or adoption and does not affect the parent's custody rights.

D.C. Code § 21-2301

Planning ahead: naming a guardian in advance

Naming a guardian in advance: Title 21, Chapter 20 sets out no separate guardian self-designation document. The route the statute recognizes is a nomination inside a durable power of attorney: a principal may nominate a conservator of the estate or a guardian of the person in a power of attorney, and the court must appoint the most recent nominee unless there is good cause or the nominee is disqualified (§ 21-2601.08(a)). The court must also follow the individual's current stated wishes (§ 21-2043(b)). A spouse or domestic partner, adult child, parent or adult sibling can also pass their own priority to someone else by will or by a signed writing attested by at least 2 witnesses (§ 21-2043(c)). A durable power of attorney and a durable power of attorney for health care can avoid a guardianship altogether.

Guardianship costs

Court filing fee: Not recorded here. The Superior Court sets its own filing fees and costs (D.C. Code § 15-709), and its fee schedule is published on dccourts.gov, which we could not read. Confirm the current guardianship and conservatorship petition fee with the Probate Division before filing. A litigant who receives one of the public-benefit programs listed in D.C. Code § 15-712(a), or who otherwise qualifies, can ask the court to waive fees and costs.
Standby guardianship fee: Capped by statute: the court may not charge more for a standby guardianship petition than it charges in a legal custody proceeding (D.C. Code § 16-4806(k)). The dollar amount is on dccourts.gov, which we could not read.
Court appointed counsel examiner and visitor: The court appoints a lawyer for the person unless the person already has one, and appoints an examiner and a separate visitor, either of which it may waive (D.C. Code § 21-2041(d)). Their pay is set by court order and comes from the person's estate, or from the District's Guardianship Fund when paying would deplete the estate (D.C. Code § 21-2060(a)).
Guardianship fund: The estate is presumed depleted, and the Guardianship Fund pays the court-approved compensation and expenses, if the person qualifies for SSI, Medicaid, other means-tested assistance such as TANF, Interim Disability Assistance, Food Stamps or the D.C. Healthcare Alliance, receives federal disability benefits as the sole source of income, has been found unable to pay by any branch of the Superior Court, or shows by affidavit that paying would cause "substantial financial hardship" (D.C. Code § 21-2060(a-1)).
Attorney fees for the petitioner: Roughly $2,000 to $7,500 or more for an uncontested adult guardianship, more if contested. This is a national range, not a District figure. Fees for any lawyer, guardian or conservator paid from the person's estate need a court order (D.C. Code § 21-2060(a)).
Medical or capacity evaluation: The court-appointed examiner is paid as the court orders (D.C. Code § 21-2060(a)). A private evaluation commonly costs $300 to $2,000 (national range).
Conservator bond: When the court requires a bond, it defaults to the value of the estate in the conservator's control plus one year's estimated income, less securities held under court-restricted arrangements and land the conservator cannot sell without court approval (D.C. Code § 21-2058). Surety premiums commonly run about 0.5% to 1% of the bond amount a year (national range).
Background checks: Before appointment a guardian files a sworn criminal-history statement, then files a Metropolitan Police Department criminal-history check within 60 days and an FBI fingerprint check within 180 days of appointment (D.C. Code § 21-2043(d-1)). Emergency, health-care and provisional guardians are exempt from the two checks. The check fees are not recorded here.
Annual reporting: A guardian reports on the person at least every six months (D.C. Code § 21-2047(a)(5)); a conservator files an inventory and plan within 60 days and accounts at least once a year (D.C. Code §§ 21-2064, 21-2065). Little cost if the guardian prepares these personally; roughly $500 to $2,500 a year if professional help is hired (national range).

Costs vary by district and case. Verify current court fees with the local court.

Frequently asked questions

What is guardianship in District of Columbia?

What are the alternatives to guardianship in District of Columbia?

Less restrictive alternatives in District of Columbia include Durable Power of Attorney, Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, Substituted Consent by Family (no court), Supported Decision-Making Agreement. Courts generally must consider these options before appointing a guardian, because guardianship removes legal rights.

How long does the District of Columbia guardianship process take?

Do I need a lawyer to file for guardianship in District of Columbia?

Guardianship is a court proceeding that removes a person's legal rights, and it usually requires a medical or capacity evaluation and a formal hearing. Many families consult an elder-law or probate attorney before filing. Some District of Columbia courts publish self-help resources, but the evaluation and hearing rules make professional guidance worth discussing early, even for straightforward cases.

Guardian vs. conservator in District of Columbia: what is the difference?

Statutes and sourcesOfficial references used for this page

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Information current as of October 4, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in District of Columbia can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.