After the Order: Your First 90 Days as Guardian in Queens

The order is the visible part. The first ninety days are the part that determines whether the guardianship goes well, and they are more administrative than anyone expects.

Weeks one to two: secure everything

• Change the locks if there is any doubt about who has access, and keep the keys accounted for
• Locate and secure all property, deeds, vehicle titles, insurance policies and safe deposit boxes
• Obtain the court-specific identification number, which institutions will ask for before they will speak to you
• Take out property and casualty insurance if the person is not covered, including for vehicles
• Preserve anything digital — accounts, email, photographs — before passwords and accounts are lost

Get the identification number early. Banks, insurers, investment companies and benefit agencies will not act without it, and it gates almost everything else.

Weeks two to six: institutions and money

• Inventory every account, with statements going forward — the inventory the court requires has to be filed
• Notify banks and request that the accounts be re-titled or restricted to reflect the guardianship
• Collect benefits the person is entitled to but not receiving, which is commonly the case
• Check every automatic payment and subscription, and cancel or redirect what no longer makes sense
• Deal with the immediate bills, and keep receipts for all of it
• Get tax returns filed, including any that were missed
• Obtain valuations for the property the court will need

Insurance and health care

Health, disability, long-term care and home insurance all need to be reviewed against what is actually happening. Missed premiums during a period of confusion are common, and a lapse can be difficult to reinstate. The person’s doctors should be told about the guardianship, since consent for treatment may now require the guardian’s agreement.

Housing

A lease or mortgage needs to be reviewed — is the lease in the person’s name, what are the terms, is there a co-op or condominium board with its own financial requirements. If the person is not able to stay where they are, plans should be made deliberately rather than under pressure from a discharge date. If care at home is arranged, that is usually the cheapest and least disruptive outcome, and the practicalities of it deserve attention early.

Keeping the first ninety days organised

• One file for everything, with receipts. The accounting the court requires is easier to assemble as you go than to reconstruct.
• A running list of every asset and every account opened, closed or transferred.
• A written record of significant decisions and why they were made. If anyone later questions the guardianship, this is what answers it.
• One person in the family designated to coordinate, so nobody is giving the hospital or the bank different instructions.

The first accounting

Guardianship accounts are not annual tax returns. They are filed with the court, usually on a schedule set at the outset, and they have to show what came in, what went out, and what remains — supported by documentation. Filing accurately and on time is the main thing that keeps a guardian out of trouble. The court can remove a guardian who fails to account.

The part people forget

The person is still a person. Guardianship removes decision-making authority, not dignity. The person’s own preferences should be sought and recorded wherever capacity allows, and the guardian’s job includes giving the court an accounting of how the person is actually doing — not only of the money.