In intervention cases in which the ward has died, a conservator has up to 60 days to file a final receipt of distribution.
A conservator is someone who is appointed by the Court in response to the filing of a petition for a general proceeding to handle income or assets of the ward for the support, care, and welfare of the ward so that they will not be wasted or dissipated.
A guardian ad litem helps the subject determine the subject’s interests in regard to the petition for a general proceeding. If the subject is unconscious or otherwise wholly incapable of determining his or her interests even with assistance, the guardian ad litem makes that determination. The need for such an appointment depends upon the circumstances of the case, and appointment of a guardian ad litem is not requested very often.
A guardian is someone who is appointed by the Court in response to the filing of a petition for a general proceeding to make health care, quality of life, placement (housing), and legal decisions for an incapacitated individual who is eighteen or older.
The petitioner is the person who files the petition for a general proceeding seeking appointment of a guardian and/or conservator for the subject.
A subject is the person who is alleged to be incapacitated.
A ward is a person who has been found to be incapacitated by the Court.
An examiner is an individual who has training or experience in the diagnosis, care, or treatment of the causes and conditions giving rise to incapacity. Sometimes, the examiner is the physician of the subject. Superior Court, Probate Division Rule 326 states the duties of an examiner.
CON is a conservatorship case. Such cases were opened prior to September 30, 1989 for the appointment of a conservator of the property of an incapacitated adult and, sometimes, the conservator of the person of an incapacitated adult. Such cases are now opened as INT or IDD cases.
When a petition for a general proceeding is filed, the law in the District of Columbia requires that the Court appoint an attorney to represent the subject. The Court does not appoint an attorney for the petitioner, and the Court-appointed counsel does not represent the petitioner.