South Dakota Guardianship Laws: Minors, Adults and Conservators (2026)

In South Dakota, a court may appoint a guardian, who is responsible for the personal affairs of a minor or a protected person, a conservator, who handles the estate and financial affairs, or both. One statute covers children and adults alike: the South Dakota Guardianship and Conservatorship Act, SDCL chapter 29A-5. For an adult, a guardian may be appointed only if clear and convincing evidence shows that the person's ability to respond to people, events and environments is impaired to the point that the person lacks the capacity to meet essential requirements for health, care, safety, habilitation or therapeutic needs without a guardian's help (SDCL 29A-5-302, 29A-5-312).

During the case, South Dakota's statute calls the adult the "person alleged to need protection." After an appointment made for any reason other than age, the adult is a "protected person" (SDCL 29A-5-102). The act is South Dakota's own law, enacted in 1993 (SL 1993, ch. 213), and a separate chapter, 29A-5A, governs cases that cross state lines. For how other states handle these questions, see our guardianship laws by state overview.

Information last verified on October 20, 2026. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers South Dakota state law on guardianship and conservatorship of minors and adults in SDCL chapter 29A-5, interstate cases under chapter 29A-5A, and the family health-care consent statute in SDCL 34-12C-3. It does not cover custody disputes between parents (see South Dakota child custody laws), grandparent visitation (see South Dakota grandparents' rights), adoption, emancipation, what happens to a person's estate after death (see South Dakota probate), juvenile-court abuse, neglect and delinquency cases, which are a separate track, or civil commitment and mental-health holds.

South Dakota guardianship terms and where the law lives

The South Dakota Guardianship and Conservatorship Act, SDCL chapter 29A-5, is organized in parts: Part 2 deals with minors, Part 3 with adults (protected persons), Part 4 with the duties of guardians and conservators, and Part 5 with ending or changing an appointment. Cases that involve more than one state fall under chapter 29A-5A, which "may be cited as the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act" (SDCL 29A-5A-101).

The definitions section sets the vocabulary used throughout the chapter:

"Guardian," one appointed by the court to be responsible for the personal affairs of a minor or protected person, but excludes one who is merely a guardian ad litem; ... "Limited guardian," one appointed by the court who has only those responsibilities for the personal affairs of a minor or protected person as are specified in the order of appointment; "Minor," any individual under eighteen years of age; ... "Protected person," any individual for whom a guardian or conservator has been appointed other than for reasons of minority.

SDCL 29A-5-102

In 2026 the legislature reworded the closing sentences of the definitions section, removing the qualifiers "unless the context otherwise requires" and "as the context requires," so that a "person" in the chapter means an interested person, a person alleged to need protection or a protected person, but not a "person" as defined in SDCL 2-14-2 (SL 2026, ch. 19, § 8). The numbered definitions, including guardian and conservator, did not change, and the definitions quoted above are from the section's current text.

How to get guardianship of a child in South Dakota

A petition for a guardian or conservator of a minor may be filed by the minor, a relative, the person who has assumed the minor's care, or any interested person, including the Department of Human Services or the Department of Social Services (SDCL 29A-5-201 to 29A-5-204). The petition is accompanied by a financial statement, the court sets a hearing within 60 days, and a minor who is 10 or older must be personally served:

At least fourteen days prior to the hearing, the minor, if age ten or older, shall be personally served with a copy of the notice and petition

SDCL 29A-5-204

The petition must list the minor's parents and brothers and sisters, among others, and the petitioner mails the notice and petition at least 14 days before the hearing to everyone age 10 or older named in it. The court may order that no notice be given only if everyone entitled to notice waives it and proceeding without notice is in the best interests of the minor and the minor's estate (SDCL 29A-5-203, 29A-5-204).

The standard is the child's best interests. Section 29A-5-208 leaves the decision to the judge and lists what the judge must weigh:

The determination as to whether a guardian or conservator will be appointed is for the court alone to decide and may only be ordered if in the minor's best interests. In making that determination, the court shall consider the suitability of the proposed guardian or conservator, the minor's current or proposed living arrangements, the extent to which the minor has money or other property requiring management or protection, the availability of less restrictive alternatives, the extent to which it is necessary to protect the minor from neglect, exploitation, or abuse, and if applicable, the minor's need for habilitation or therapeutic treatment.

SDCL 29A-5-208

A lawyer for the child is up to the court. The court "may appoint an attorney for the minor" if it concludes an appointment is necessary to protect the minor's interests, and it may appoint a court representative to investigate if that is necessary for a reasonably informed decision on the petition (SDCL 29A-5-205). Unlike the adult process, the statute does not make a lawyer mandatory for a minor on request.

When a guardianship petition cannot be used for custody. A relative or other non-parent may seek custody of a child under chapter 29A-5 together with South Dakota's custody law, with one important limit:

A person other than the parent may not use this chapter to seek custody if a proceeding is pending pursuant to chapter 25-3, 25-4, 25-5A, 25-6, 25-8, 26-7A, 26-8A, 26-8B, or 26-8C, or if the child is subject to the continuing jurisdiction of another court.

SDCL 29A-5-106

Those chapters include divorce and custody cases and the juvenile-court chapters. A companion section, SDCL 29A-5-106.1, makes chapter 25-5 on custody disputes between a parent and a non-parent apply to guardianship cases involving such a dispute. Under that chapter, it is presumed to be in a child's best interest to be in the parent's custody. The presumption may be rebutted only by proof that the parent abandoned or persistently neglected the child, forfeited or surrendered parental rights to someone other than a parent, abdicated parental rights and responsibilities, or that other extraordinary circumstances exist which would result in serious detriment to the child if custody went to the parent (SDCL 25-5-29, 25-5-30). A custody award to a non-parent does not require terminating either parent's rights; the court may award the parent visitation and may set child support or waive the parent's support duty (SDCL 25-5-32, 25-5-33). Disputes between parents are covered on our South Dakota child custody laws page, and visitation by grandparents on our South Dakota grandparents' rights page.

Juvenile-court guardianships are a separate track. A guardian appointed for a child in an abuse, neglect or juvenile case under chapters 26-7A, 26-8A, 26-8B or 26-8C is governed by those chapters, which control if they conflict with chapter 29A-5, and a guardian appointed under chapter 29A-5 has no authority over the powers given to a juvenile-court guardian (SDCL 29A-5-401).

What a minor's guardian decides. A guardian of a minor makes decisions about the child's support, care, health and education, takes custody of the child and determines where the child lives (SDCL 29A-5-401).

Temporary guardian for a minor. Part 2 permits a temporary appointment, but "in no event may a temporary guardian or conservator be appointed for more than six months" (SDCL 29A-5-210).

When a minor's guardianship ends.

A guardianship or conservatorship of a minor shall terminate upon the minor's death or attainment of majority, if jurisdiction is transferred to another state, or if ordered by the court following a hearing thereon. A guardianship, but not a conservatorship, shall also terminate upon the minor's adoption or emancipation, and the court may elect to continue a guardianship until the minor's attainment of age twenty-one if the guardian was appointed pursuant to the provisions of chapters 26-7A, 26-8A, 26-8B, and 26-8C.

SDCL 29A-5-505

The court may also end a minor's guardianship after a hearing if the minor no longer needs it or no suitable guardian can be found (SDCL 29A-5-506). Emancipation is covered on our South Dakota emancipation laws page.

Can a parent name a guardian in a will in South Dakota?

Yes, but the nomination has a narrow effect. Section 29A-5-202 gives the first say to an older child and limits when a parent's choice can be used:

A minor, age fourteen or older, may nominate any individual or entity to act as his guardian or conservator. ... A parent of an unmarried minor may nominate a guardian or conservator of the minor by will or other signed writing. Absent an effective nomination by the minor, the court may appoint a parental nominee if both parents are dead and the nominee is otherwise eligible to act and would serve in the minor's best interests.

SDCL 29A-5-202

Three conditions follow from that text:

• The nomination may be made by will or by any other signed writing.
• A nomination by a minor who is 14 or older comes first.
• The court may use a parent's nominee only if both parents are dead, the nominee is eligible, and the appointment would serve the minor's best interests. A nomination therefore does not let one parent displace the other parent while that parent is alive.

Without an effective nomination, the court appoints the person who will act in the minor's best interests, considering geography, the person's relationship with the minor, ability to serve, conflicts of interest, the recommendations of the parents and relatives, and the minor's wishes (SDCL 29A-5-202). Wills generally are covered on our South Dakota wills and trusts page.

Letting a relative care for a child without going to court

The Guardianship and Conservatorship Act contains no standby-guardian procedure and no provision that lets a parent delegate parental powers to a relative or friend by power of attorney. Its parental-nomination section, quoted above, operates only after both parents have died. Rules elsewhere in the South Dakota Codified Laws, such as Title 25 (domestic relations), Title 26 (minors) or school-enrollment law, are outside this page.

How to become guardian of an adult in South Dakota

Who may petition. A petition may be filed by the person alleged to need protection, a relative, the person's care provider, the person nominated to serve, or any interested person, including the Department of Human Services (SDCL 29A-5-305). Among other contents, the petition must name the person's relatives and any agents under durable powers of attorney (attaching the power of attorney), state the type of guardianship or conservatorship requested, and, for a limited guardian or conservator, list the specific areas in which the person needs help (SDCL 29A-5-305).

The evaluation report is filed with the petition. South Dakota front-loads the medical evidence. The petition must include a report evaluating the person's condition, signed by a physician, psychiatrist or licensed psychologist, with the date of each assessment or examination it relies on (SDCL 29A-5-306). If any assessment was done more than three months before the petition is filed, the report must include a statement by a physician, psychiatrist or licensed psychologist "that there has been no material change" (SDCL 29A-5-306). For good cause, the court may allow the petition to be filed without the report and then order the assessments and a report itself (SDCL 29A-5-306).

Notice cannot be waived. The court sets a hearing within 60 days, and:

The person alleged to need protection shall be personally served with the notice, a copy of the petition, and the evaluation report not less than fourteen days before the hearing. The person alleged to need protection may not waive notice, and a failure to properly notify the person alleged to need protection shall be jurisdictional.

SDCL 29A-5-308

Relatives listed in the petition are mailed notice at least 14 days before the hearing, and the notice must explain the legal effect of an appointment and the right to appear and object (SDCL 29A-5-308).

A lawyer for the adult. The appointment of counsel turns on three triggers:

The court shall appoint an attorney for the person alleged to need protection, either upon the filing of the petition or at any time thereafter, if requested by the person alleged to need protection, if the person expresses a desire to contest the petition, or if the court determines that an appointment is otherwise needed to protect the person's interests.

SDCL 29A-5-309

If the person has no attorney, the court appoints a court representative to investigate or orders the person to attend the hearing (SDCL 29A-5-309, 29A-5-310). Since a 2023 amendment, a person who is contesting a petition "may obtain an evaluation at the person's own expense to be completed by a licensed healthcare professional of the person's choice," and that evaluation must be included in the file and considered by the court (SDCL 29A-5-309; SL 2023, ch. 95, § 2).

Hearing rights, jury and burden of proof.

The person alleged to need protection is entitled to attend the hearing, to oppose the petition, to be represented by an attorney of his own choice, to demand a jury trial, to present evidence, to compel the attendance of witnesses and to confront and cross-examine all witnesses. ... The standard of proof to be applied in determining whether the person alleged to need protection is a person for whom a guardian or conservator may be appointed shall be that of clear and convincing evidence.

SDCL 29A-5-312

The hearing may be closed on request. If a jury is demanded, its only role is to decide whether the person is one for whom a guardian or conservator may be appointed; the court alone decides the type and scope of any appointment, considering the person's "maximum feasible self-reliance and independence" and the availability of less restrictive alternatives (SDCL 29A-5-312).

Limited or full. South Dakota provides for limited guardians and limited conservators whose responsibilities are only those specified in the order of appointment (SDCL 29A-5-102), and a guardian must exercise authority only to the extent the person's limitations require (SDCL 29A-5-402).

Who may serve. The statute sets an order of preference and several eligibility rules (SDCL 29A-5-304, 29A-5-110, 29A-5-119):

• A nominee chosen by the person alleged to need protection, if the person has sufficient capacity to make the choice, must be appointed if eligible and if the appointment is in the person's best interests (SDCL 29A-5-304).
• If the court does not appoint someone the person designated in a power of attorney, it must issue written findings (SDCL 29A-5-304, as amended by SL 2023, ch. 95, § 1).
• An adult individual may serve, but an employee of an agency providing substantial services to the person is ineligible unless the court waives that bar; a public agency, a nonprofit, or a bank or trust company (as conservator) may also serve, and the Department of Human Services only as a last resort. Creditors of the person are ineligible (SDCL 29A-5-110).
• A person convicted of a felony is ineligible unless the court finds the appointment to be in the best interests of the person who needs protection (SDCL 29A-5-110).

Before appointment, a nominee must file criminal history record checks (FBI and state) and a check of state civil judgments for abuse, neglect or exploitation at least 10 days before the hearing, and must complete a training curriculum issued through the State Bar of South Dakota:

The judge may not sign an order appointing a guardian or conservator until the record check results have been filed with the court and reviewed by the judge, and a certificate of completion of the training curricula required under 29A-5-119 has been issued by the State Bar of South Dakota

SDCL 29A-5-110

The record checks have been required since 2016 (SL 2016, ch. 120). The training requirement applies to appointments on or after July 1, 2021 (SDCL 29A-5-119; SL 2021, ch. 121). The court may not require either for a temporary appointment, and it may waive either for good cause shown (SDCL 29A-5-110).

What a South Dakota guardian can decide, and the rights the protected person keeps

South Dakota builds retained rights into the statute rather than leaving them to the order:

The appointment of a guardian or conservator of a protected person does not constitute a general finding of legal incompetence unless the court so orders, and the protected person shall otherwise retain all rights which have not been granted to the guardian or conservator, with the exception of the ability to create an agency ... Unless prior authorization of the court is first obtained, a guardian or conservator may not change the residence of the minor or protected person to another state, terminate or consent to a termination of the minor's or protected person's parental rights, initiate a change in the minor's or protected person's marital status, or revoke or amend a durable power of attorney of which the protected person is the principal, except as provided in § 59-7-11.

SDCL 29A-5-118

In practice, that means four acts need a court's prior authorization: moving the person to another state, ending the person's parental rights, starting a change in marital status, and revoking or amending the person's durable power of attorney (except as SDCL 59-7-11 provides).

Contact with family. Since 2016, a guardian or conservator "may not restrict a protected person's right of communication, visitation, or interaction with other persons, including the right to receive visitors, telephone calls, or personal mail, unless the restriction is authorized by a court order," and for those sections "other persons" means only the protected person's parents, children and siblings (SDCL 29A-5-421). When a court considers a restriction, it works through the options in order: limits on time and place, then supervision, then denial (SDCL 29A-5-425). If the protected person cannot express consent or refusal, the guardian may presume it from the person's prior relationship with the visitor (SDCL 29A-5-422).

Annual reports. A guardian of a protected person must report to the court:

A guardian of a protected person shall file a report with the court within sixty days following the first anniversary of the appointment and: (1) At least annually thereafter; (2) When the court orders additional reports to be filed; (3) When the guardian resigns or is removed; and (4) When the guardianship is terminated unless the court determines that there is then no need therefor.

SDCL 29A-5-403

The report describes the person's condition, living arrangements, services and visits, and recommends whether the guardianship should continue. A guardian may instead report on a calendar-year basis, due April 15. Copies go to the persons the statute names within 14 days, and any interested person may request a hearing on the report within 60 days (SDCL 29A-5-403).

Conservators in South Dakota: bond, inventory and accounts

A conservator may be appointed for an adult who lacks the capacity to manage property or financial affairs, or to provide for the support of legal dependents, without a conservator (SDCL 29A-5-303). The same notice, counsel, jury and clear-and-convincing rules apply to the adult conservatorship hearing (SDCL 29A-5-308, 29A-5-309, 29A-5-312).

• Bond. "The court may not require the filing of a bond by a guardian except for good cause shown. The court shall determine whether the filing of a bond by a conservator is necessary" (SDCL 29A-5-111).
• Inventory. A conservator files an inventory within 90 days of appointment (SDCL 29A-5-407).
• Accountings. A conservator files an accounting within 60 days after the first anniversary of the appointment and at least annually after that (SDCL 29A-5-408, as amended by SL 2023, ch. 95, § 4). On petition, the court may waive accountings or allow them less often than annually (SDCL 29A-5-409).
• Court approval for self-dealing. Without prior court approval (unless the relationship existed before the appointment and was disclosed in the petition), a conservator may not buy, sell or lease property to or from the person or the estate, borrow from or lend to it (other than reasonable interest-free advances to protect the estate), compromise a debt the conservator owes it, or deal with an entity in which the conservator or a relative is an officer, director, shareholder or owner of a significant financial interest (SDCL 29A-5-413).
• Powers that need a court order. Making gifts, amending or creating trusts, and making, amending or revoking the person's will are among the powers a conservator may exercise only if the court authorizes them after notice of hearing (SDCL 29A-5-420).
• Sales. At least 14 days before closing a sale of estate property whose fair market value is not readily ascertainable, the conservator must give written notice of the intended sale to the persons the statute lists (SDCL 29A-5-412).

Temporary guardianship in an emergency

For an adult, a temporary guardian or conservator may be appointed on a showing that an immediate need exists, that following the regular procedures may result in significant harm, and that no other person has authority to act or the person with authority is unwilling or ineffective (SDCL 29A-5-315). Reasonable notice is required unless delay would cause significant harm. The appointment is short and must be explained to the person:

The appointment of a temporary guardian or conservator shall expire within ninety days unless extended by the court for up to an additional ninety days for good cause shown. ... Within five days following an appointment, a temporary guardian or conservator shall mail a copy of the order of appointment, together with a brief statement of rights to seek termination or modification, to the protected person

SDCL 29A-5-315

For a minor, the separate Part 2 limit applies: no temporary guardian or conservator may be appointed for more than six months (SDCL 29A-5-210).

How a South Dakota guardianship ends or rights are restored

The protected person, the guardian or conservator, any interested person, or the court itself may seek to end or change an appointment if the person no longer needs it, if its scope is too broad or too narrow, if the person's capacity has changed, or if no suitable guardian or conservator is available (SDCL 29A-5-508). The person keeps the protections of the original case:

A hearing on a petition to terminate, revoke, or modify shall be conducted in the same manner and the protected person shall have the same rights as would obtain at a hearing on a petition for the appointment of a guardian or conservator. ... The sole function of the jury, if requested, shall be to determine whether the protected person is no longer a person for whom a guardian or conservator may be appointed.

SDCL 29A-5-509

The court may appoint an attorney for the protected person in a termination proceeding if it determines an appointment is necessary to protect the person's interests (SDCL 29A-5-508). The court may deny a jury if one was empaneled on an earlier petition to terminate, revoke or modify and it is reasonably satisfied there has been no substantial change of circumstances (SDCL 29A-5-509). An adult guardianship also ends on the protected person's death (SDCL 29A-5-507).

Alternatives to guardianship in South Dakota

The act requires less restrictive options to be weighed at both ends of the age range: for a minor, the court must consider "the availability of less restrictive alternatives" (SDCL 29A-5-208), and for an adult, the court decides the type and scope of any appointment considering the person's maximum feasible self-reliance and independence and the availability of less restrictive alternatives (SDCL 29A-5-312). Chapter 29A-5 contains no supported decision-making agreement statute.

Powers of attorney. A durable power of attorney signed while a person has capacity carries weight in a later guardianship case. The petition must list any agents under durable powers of attorney and attach the document (SDCL 29A-5-305), the court must make written findings if it passes over a person the adult designated in a power of attorney (SDCL 29A-5-304), and, except as SDCL 59-7-11 provides, a guardian or conservator may not revoke or amend the person's durable power of attorney without prior court authorization (SDCL 29A-5-118). Signing rules are on our South Dakota power of attorney laws page. Free drafting tools are available for a South Dakota power of attorney and a South Dakota advance directive; a tool is not legal advice, and any document must be signed under the South Dakota rules on the power of attorney page.

Family health-care decisions without a guardian. South Dakota lets family members make a health-care decision for an incapacitated person who has no health-care agent or guardian:

In the absence of a durable power of attorney for health care or the appointment of a guardian of the person, or if neither the attorney in fact nor guardian is available to consent, a health care decision for an incapacitated person may be made by the following persons or members of the incapacitated person's family who are available to consent, in the order stated: (1) The spouse, if not legally separated; (2) An adult child; (3) A parent; ...

SDCL 34-12C-3

The list continues with an adult sibling, a grandparent or adult grandchild, an adult aunt, uncle, cousin, niece or nephew, and a close friend. A person may disqualify family members from deciding in a signed document, and a family member may delegate the decision in a signed writing (SDCL 34-12C-3).

Federal benefits. Federal programs make their own appointments: the Social Security Administration decides whether representative payment is in a beneficiary's interest and appoints its own payee, and a legal guardian is one person it may choose rather than an automatic payee (20 C.F.R. § 404.2001); the guardianship hub covers the federal layer.

Moving to or from South Dakota with a guardianship

South Dakota adopted the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act as chapter 29A-5A in 2011 (SL 2011, ch. 135). It lets an out-of-state guardian register an existing order:

If a guardian has been appointed in another state and a petition for the appointment of a guardian is not pending in this state, the guardian appointed in the other state, after giving notice to the appointing court of an intent to register, may register the guardianship order in this state by filing as a foreign judgment in a court, in any appropriate county of this state, certified copies of the order and letters of office.

SDCL 29A-5A-401

A South Dakota guardian or conservator may petition the court to transfer the case to another state, with notice to the persons who would be entitled to notice of an original petition, and a guardian or conservator whose case another state has provisionally transferred may petition a South Dakota court to accept it (SDCL 29A-5A-301, 29A-5A-302).

Separately, a guardian appointed in another state may petition a South Dakota court for appointment on 14 days' notice, and the court appoints that guardian unless doing so would be contrary to the person's best interest (SDCL 29A-5-114).

Recent changes to South Dakota guardianship law

• 2021: completion of State Bar training became a prerequisite to appointment on or after July 1, 2021 (SL 2021, ch. 121; SDCL 29A-5-110, 29A-5-119). The record checks date from 2016 (SL 2016, ch. 120).
• 2023: the court must make written findings if it does not appoint a person designated under a power of attorney (SDCL 29A-5-304); a contesting respondent may obtain an independent evaluation at the person's own expense (SDCL 29A-5-309); and the report and accounting sections were revised (SDCL 29A-5-403, 29A-5-408) (SL 2023, ch. 95).
• 2026: the legislature reworded the closing sentences of the definitions section, removing "as the context requires" so that a "person" in the chapter means an interested person, a person alleged to need protection or a protected person, but not a "person" as defined in SDCL 2-14-2; the numbered definitions did not change (SDCL 29A-5-102; SL 2026, ch. 19, § 8).

South Dakota guardianship at a glance

Related South Dakota pages

• Guardianship laws by state
• South Dakota power of attorney laws
• South Dakota child custody laws
• South Dakota grandparents' rights
• South Dakota probate
• North Dakota guardianship laws
• Nebraska guardianship laws

This article provides general legal information about South Dakota guardianship and conservatorship law, not legal advice. Guardianship cases turn on their facts and on local court practice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in South Dakota or the court that would hear the case.

Last updated: October 20, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I get guardianship of my grandchild in South Dakota?

A relative, the person caring for the child, or any interested person may petition under SDCL chapter 29A-5, and the court may appoint a guardian only if it is in the child's best interests (SDCL 29A-5-208). If a parent contests custody, the parent is presumed entitled to custody unless one of the grounds in SDCL 25-5-29 is proved. A non-parent may not use the chapter to seek custody while a divorce, custody or juvenile case is pending or while another court has continuing jurisdiction over the child (SDCL 29A-5-106).

Can a parent name a guardian for their children in a South Dakota will?

Yes. A parent of an unmarried minor may nominate a guardian by will or other signed writing, but absent an effective nomination by a minor 14 or older, the court may appoint the parent's nominee only if both parents are dead and the nominee is eligible and would serve the child's best interests (SDCL 29A-5-202).

What must be proved to get guardianship of an adult in South Dakota?

Clear and convincing evidence that the person's ability to respond to people, events and environments is impaired so that the person lacks the capacity to meet essential requirements for health, care, safety, habilitation or therapeutic needs without a guardian's help (SDCL 29A-5-302, 29A-5-312).

Does the adult get a lawyer in a South Dakota guardianship case?

The court shall appoint an attorney if the person requests one, expresses a desire to contest the petition, or the court decides one is otherwise needed to protect the person's interests (SDCL 29A-5-309). The person may also hire an attorney of the person's own choice (SDCL 29A-5-312).

Is there a jury in a South Dakota guardianship case?

The person alleged to need protection may demand one. The jury decides only whether the person is someone for whom a guardian or conservator may be appointed; the court decides the type and scope of the appointment (SDCL 29A-5-312).

How long does a temporary guardianship last in South Dakota?

For an adult, the appointment expires within 90 days unless the court extends it by up to 90 more days for good cause (SDCL 29A-5-315). For a minor, no temporary guardian or conservator may be appointed for more than six months (SDCL 29A-5-210).

Does a South Dakota guardianship take away all of a person's rights?

No. Unless the court so orders, appointment is not a general finding of legal incompetence, and the protected person keeps all rights not granted to the guardian or conservator, except the ability to create an agency (SDCL 29A-5-118).

Can a South Dakota guardian stop family members from visiting?

For the protected person's parents, children and siblings, only with a court order: a guardian or conservator may not restrict the person's communication, visitation or interaction with them unless a court order authorizes the restriction (SDCL 29A-5-421).

How can a South Dakota guardianship be ended?

The protected person, the guardian, any interested person or the court may petition to terminate or modify it, for example if the person no longer needs it or the person's capacity has changed (SDCL 29A-5-508). The person has the same rights as at the original hearing, including a jury, though the court may deny a repeat jury if circumstances have not substantially changed since an earlier termination petition (SDCL 29A-5-509).