Tennessee Guardianship and Conservatorship Laws (2026 Guide)

Tennessee uses two different words for its two kinds of protective case. A guardian is appointed for a minor, under Title 34, chapter 2 of the Tennessee Code Annotated. An adult 18 or older who needs help gets a conservator, appointed in a conservatorship under chapter 3 for a "person with a disability," and chapter 1 holds the definitions and procedures the two share (T.C.A. §§ 34-1-101, 34-2-101, 34-3-101). Before any guardian or conservator is appointed for an adult, the court must find by clear and convincing evidence that the respondent is fully or partially disabled and needs the court's assistance (T.C.A. § 34-1-126).

So in Tennessee, the person who manages an adult's care or money is a conservator, not a guardian, and a conservator may be given authority over the person, the property or both, but only in the areas the court's order lists. Tennessee's conservatorship law is the state's own statute rather than a uniform act, although chapter 8 adopts the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act for cases that cross state lines (T.C.A. § 34-8-101). 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 Tennessee state law on guardianship of minors and conservatorship of adults in Title 34 of the Tennessee Code Annotated, the power of attorney for care of a minor child (T.C.A. Title 34, ch. 6, part 3), interstate cases under chapter 8, and the health-care surrogate rule in T.C.A. § 68-11-1806. It does not cover custody disputes between parents (see Tennessee child custody laws), grandparent visitation (see Tennessee grandparents' rights), adoption, emancipation, what happens to a person's estate after death (see Tennessee probate), the separate veterans' guardianship law in chapter 5, child-welfare custody through the Department of Children's Services and the juvenile court, which is a separate track, or civil commitment and mental-health holds.

Tennessee guardianship and conservatorship terms

Title 34 sorts its cases by age and uses its own vocabulary (T.C.A. § 34-1-101):

Separate chapters cover the veterans' guardianship law (chapter 5), the power of attorney for care of a minor child (chapter 6, part 3), district public guardians (chapter 7) and interstate jurisdiction (chapter 8) (T.C.A. §§ 34-5-101, 34-8-101).

How to get guardianship of a child in Tennessee

Parents come first. Tennessee treats parents as the joint natural guardians of their minor children, equally charged with the children's care, nurture, welfare, education and support, and if one parent dies or cannot act, guardianship passes to the other parent (T.C.A. § 34-1-102). A court-appointed guardian is needed when neither parent can serve that role.

Where to file and who may file. A petition for a guardian of the person only may be brought in juvenile court; a petition for a guardian of the person, the property or both goes to a court exercising probate jurisdiction or any other court of record. Either may be filed in the county where the minor lives, where the minor's parents live or, if the parents live apart, where the custodial parent lives (T.C.A. § 34-2-101). A person with knowledge of the minor's circumstances may petition (T.C.A. § 34-2-102). The petition must be sworn and should set out, among other things, the minor's name, date of birth and address, the petitioner and proposed guardian, the minor's closest relatives and present custodian, and the reason a guardian is sought, plus details of any property to be managed; a proposed guardian who is not the petitioner signs an acknowledgment (T.C.A. § 34-2-104).

Who the court considers. Subject to the court's decision about what is in the minor's best interests, the court considers candidates in this order (T.C.A. § 34-2-103):

1. The minor's parent or parents.
2. A person the parent or parents designated in a will or other written document.
3. The minor's adult siblings.
4. The minor's closest relative or relatives.
5. Other persons.

When a parent opposes a non-parent's petition, the rules on custody disputes between parents and others apply alongside this list; parent-versus-parent disputes are covered on our Tennessee child custody laws page, and grandparent visitation on our Tennessee grandparents' rights page.

Guardian ad litem. The court appoints a guardian ad litem when a petition is filed, but it may waive that appointment if a petitioner is a parent of the minor, a minor who is 14 or older, or an adult respondent (T.C.A. § 34-1-107(a)(2)).

The child's property. If the guardian will manage property, the court's order sets the bond and the approved expenditures (T.C.A. § 34-2-105). The bond generally covers the value of the personal property plus one year of anticipated income, and one of the grounds on which the court may excuse it is that the minor's non-real-estate property is worth no more than $10,000 and the court finds that saving the expense outweighs the risk of having no bond (T.C.A. § 34-1-105). For a small estate, if the minor's total property is no more than $25,000 and the court finds it in the minor's best interest, the court may order the money or property delivered to the minor's natural guardian or to the person the minor lives with, without appointing a fiduciary (T.C.A. § 34-1-104(b)).

When a minor's guardianship ends. Except as subsection (c) of the statute provides, a guardianship of the person ends when the minor turns 18 (T.C.A. § 34-2-106(a)). A guardianship of the minor's property can be continued: an interested person may petition not more than 90 days before the minor turns 18, and no later than the filing of the preliminary final accounting, to continue it for a period that may not extend beyond the person's 25th birthday, and the person asking for the continuation bears the burden (T.C.A. § 34-2-106(b)).

Child-welfare cases are separate. When a minor has no natural guardian or has been abandoned and needs services from the Department of Children's Services, the department's authorized agent in the minor's county may act as custodian of the minor's person until a guardian is appointed (T.C.A. § 34-1-103). Abuse, neglect and foster-care cases run through the juvenile court and are not covered here.

Can a parent name a guardian in a will in Tennessee?

Yes. A person a parent designates in a will or other written document is second in line for appointment, behind only the parents themselves, and the court's appointment remains subject to its decision about the minor's best interests (T.C.A. § 34-2-103). A designation therefore does not bind the court, and it does not displace a living parent who is first in the order.

Tennessee also lets a custodial parent arrange a backup in advance. Even when there is no current need for a fiduciary, the custodial parent or parents of a minor, or a person they designate, may petition under chapter 2 for the appointment of a standby fiduciary (T.C.A. § 34-1-119(c)(1)). The regular fiduciary notifies the court when the standby needs to act, and the order sets how long the standby serves (T.C.A. § 34-1-119). Wills generally are covered on our Tennessee wills and trusts page.

Letting a relative care for a child without going to court

Power of attorney for care of a minor child. A parent may delegate temporary care-giving authority over a minor child to any adult living in Tennessee when hardship prevents the parent from caring for the child, without court approval, by signing a written power of attorney on a form provided by the Department of Children's Services (T.C.A. § 34-6-302(a)(1)). The hardships the statute describes include a parent's serious illness or incarceration, the physical or mental condition of the parent or child, and the loss of the family home to a disaster (T.C.A. § 34-6-302). A school district is not required to enroll a child under a power of attorney that states a hardship other than those three, though it may do so case by case (T.C.A. § 34-6-302). The rules on the document:

• Signing. The parent signs, and the signature is acknowledged before a notary public or before two witnesses who sign and date their signatures at the same time, in each other's presence (T.C.A. § 34-6-302(b)).
• Both parents. If both parents are living and have legal custody, both sign. If only one has custody, the other parent must consent in writing, or the document must explain why that consent was not obtained, and a copy is sent to the other parent by certified mail (T.C.A. § 34-6-303).
• What the caregiver may do. The caregiver may enroll the child in school and activities, obtain medical, dental and mental health treatment, and provide food, lodging and travel (T.C.A. § 34-6-304).
• No custody. The power of attorney does not give the caregiver legal custody. A parent who disagrees with a caregiver's decision, or who wants to make health-care or educational decisions, must revoke the power of attorney and give the health-care provider and school either written documentation of the revocation or a court order appointing a legal guardian or legal custodian (T.C.A. § 34-6-305).
• Ending it. Either parent with legal custody may end the power of attorney by a signed writing (T.C.A. § 34-6-306), and a court order appointing a legal guardian or legal custodian also ends it (T.C.A. § 34-6-306).
• Reliance and misuse. Schools and providers that rely on the document in good faith are protected, and a caregiver and parent who use it to enroll a child in a school fraudulently are exposed to restitution (T.C.A. § 34-6-308).

The statute calls the authority temporary, and part 3 of chapter 6 does not state a maximum number of months for which it may last.

Health-care affidavit for a relative. When no parent, legal guardian or holder of a power of attorney for the child is reasonably available, a noncustodial parent, grandparent, adult sibling, stepparent or other adult family member may stand in loco parentis for the child's health care by signing an affidavit under penalty of perjury. The affidavit expires 60 days after it is signed and may be extended for another 60 days (T.C.A. § 34-6-402(a)(2)).

How to become conservator of an adult in Tennessee

Who may file, and where. Any person with knowledge of the circumstances may petition for a conservator, in the county where the respondent lives, in a court with probate jurisdiction or another court of record (T.C.A. §§ 34-3-101, 34-3-102).

What the petition must say. The sworn petition should describe the respondent's disability and list the specific rights to be removed from the respondent and transferred to the conservator, such as the right to vote, to dispose of property, to make contracts, to hold a Tennessee driver license or to consent to medical treatment (T.C.A. § 34-3-104). It names the respondent's physician or psychologist and includes a sworn examination report, a statement that the report will be filed before the hearing, or a statement that the respondent refuses to be examined with a request that the court order an examination (T.C.A. § 34-3-104(7)). It also discloses any felony or misdemeanor convictions of the petitioner and the proposed conservator, and since January 1, 2022 it must include current searches of the Department of Health's registry of persons who have abused, neglected or misappropriated the property of vulnerable persons and of the national sex offender registry for the proposed conservator (T.C.A. § 34-3-104(4), as amended by Pub. Ch. 84 (2021)). If the respondent was examined not more than 90 days before the petition was filed and the examination is pertinent, the sworn examination report must be submitted with the petition; otherwise the court orders an examination by a physician, psychologist or senior psychological examiner identified in the petition or selected by the court (T.C.A. § 34-3-105(a), (g), as amended by Pub. Ch. 630 (2024)). Examination reports are confidential and not open for public inspection, though the respondent and the respondent's agent or attorney may see them (T.C.A. § 34-3-105(f), added by Pub. Ch. 305 (2021)).

Notice and timing. The petition is served on the respondent under the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure, and the guardian ad litem may serve it. The petitioner must give notice, by certified mail or personal service, to the respondent's closest relative named in the petition and to any person, institution or residential provider caring for the respondent. If a postal address cannot be found after reasonable effort, notice may be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or, if there is none, posted at the county courthouse, except for certain petitions by or for state mental health institutes and the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (T.C.A. § 34-1-106(b), as amended by Pub. Ch. 305 (2021)). The hearing must be held not less than 7 nor more than 60 days after the later of service on the respondent or the guardian ad litem's appointment, and the court may extend the date on a motion showing good cause or shorten it when the situation is life-threatening (T.C.A. § 34-1-108).

Two different court appointees. Tennessee separates the court's investigator from the respondent's advocate:

• Guardian ad litem. The court appoints a guardian ad litem when the petition is filed, unless the appointment is waived in the cases § 34-1-107 lists. The guardian ad litem is a lawyer who owes a duty to the court to investigate the facts impartially, including an in-person interview with the respondent and a review of the examination report, and to make a report and recommendations. The guardian ad litem acts as an agent of the court and is not an advocate for the respondent or any other party (T.C.A. § 34-1-107).
• Attorney ad litem. The court appoints an attorney ad litem to represent the respondent on the respondent's request, on the guardian ad litem's recommendation, or when the court finds it necessary to protect the respondent's rights or interests. The attorney ad litem advocates for the respondent in resisting the relief sought, and the cost is charged against the respondent's assets, except that the court may charge it to the petitioner if it dismisses a conservatorship petition because of fraud, bad faith or deception by the petitioner (T.C.A. § 34-1-125(b), as amended by Pub. Ch. 807 (2024)).

The respondent's rights. The respondent has the right to a hearing on the issue of disability on demand by the respondent or the guardian ad litem; to present evidence, including from a physician, psychologist or senior psychological examiner of the respondent's choosing, and to cross-examine witnesses; to attend any hearing; to appeal with the help of an attorney ad litem or adversary counsel; to have an attorney ad litem appointed; and to ask for a protective order sealing the respondent's financial information and any health information not already confidential under § 34-3-105(f) (T.C.A. § 34-3-106(6), as amended by Pub. Ch. 305 (2021)).

Burden of proof. The court must find by clear and convincing evidence that the respondent is fully or partially disabled and needs the court's assistance before a fiduciary can be appointed (T.C.A. § 34-1-126).

Least restrictive alternatives. The court has an affirmative duty to identify and impose the least restrictive alternatives consistent with adequate protection of the person and the person's property (T.C.A. § 34-1-127). Since 2018 the code defines the term:

"Least restrictive alternatives" means techniques and processes that preserve as many decision-making rights as practical under the particular circumstances for the person with a disability.

Pub. Ch. 605 (2018), § 1, adding the definition to T.C.A. § 34-1-101

Who may serve as conservator. Subject to the person's best interests, the court considers candidates in this order (T.C.A. § 34-3-103):

1. A person designated in a writing signed by the alleged person with a disability.
2. The spouse.
3. Any child of the person.
4. The person's closest relative or relatives.
5. A district public guardian.
6. Other persons.

If the court appoints someone from the last category, its order must state why it could not appoint someone from the first five (T.C.A. § 34-3-107(a)(4)). The order may also name a standby conservator (T.C.A. § 34-3-107(a)(1)). District public guardians serve as conservators for persons with disabilities who are 60 or older and have no family member or other person, bank or corporation willing and able to serve, and they have no powers beyond those of any conservator (T.C.A. § 34-7-104).

What a Tennessee conservator can decide, and the rights the person keeps

The court's order must list the powers removed from the respondent and those vested in the conservator, and to the extent a power is not specifically removed, the person keeps and may exercise all the powers of a person without a disability (T.C.A. § 34-3-107(a)(2)). The statute's list of powers a court may remove and give to a conservator includes, among others (T.C.A. § 34-3-107):

• consent to medical and mental-health treatment, and end-of-life decisions such as do-not-resuscitate orders and withholding artificial nutrition;
• admission to a hospital and residential placement;
• release of confidential information and handling of benefits;
• control of property, purchases, contracts and lawsuits, and the driver license;
• the person's communication, visitation or interaction with other persons, including receiving visitors, telephone calls or personal mail.

If the person cannot express consent to contact with someone because of a physical or mental condition, the conservator may presume consent based on the person's prior relationship history with that person (T.C.A. § 34-3-107(c)).

Accountings and the condition statement. Except as § 34-1-111(i) provides, a fiduciary files a sworn accounting with the court within 30 days after the six-month anniversary of the appointment, and then within 60 days after each anniversary of that first accounting (T.C.A. § 34-1-111(a), (b)). Since July 1, 2026, each accounting must include this statement:

The accounting must contain a statement concerning the physical or mental condition of the person with a disability and the date of the fiduciary's last contact with the person with a disability. The statement must also advise the court whether the condition of the respondent continues to require the fiduciary's services without disclosing medical information required to be kept confidential pursuant to § 34-3-105(f).

Pub. Ch. 589 (2026), § 1, amending T.C.A. § 34-1-111(d)(2)

The condition statement may not be waived or excused, even where the financial accounting is excused; the financial accounting rules do not apply to a fiduciary who has no authority over property (T.C.A. § 34-1-111). A fiduciary who fails to file can face a citation, contempt and possible revocation of authority (T.C.A. § 34-1-111).

Managing property: bond, inventory and sales

Tennessee does not have a separate property-only proceeding for adults. A conservator's authority over property comes from the same conservatorship order, and the letters recite the specific powers granted (T.C.A. § 34-1-104(a)).

• Bond. The court's order sets the bond, which the court may excuse on the grounds § 34-1-105 lists (T.C.A. § 34-1-105).
• Inventory. A fiduciary who manages property files an inventory within 60 days after appointment (T.C.A. § 34-1-110(a)).
• Sales. Except as the statute provides, no property of a minor or person with a disability may be sold without the appointing court's prior approval. Unless the fiduciary holds the item under a will, trust or other written document, the fiduciary may sell an item of tangible property worth less than $1,000, or a motor vehicle, without specific court approval (T.C.A. § 34-1-116).
• Investments. The fiduciary invests within the limits the code sets, including the investments authorized under Title 35 and a property management plan (T.C.A. § 34-1-115).
• Small estates. If the total property of a person with a disability is no more than $25,000 and the court finds it in the person's best interest, the court may order it delivered to the person or to the person the individual lives with, without appointing a fiduciary (T.C.A. § 34-1-104(b)).

Emergency guardianship and conservatorship

Tennessee's emergency procedure, in T.C.A. § 34-1-132, applies when following the normal procedure will likely result in substantial harm to the respondent's health, safety or welfare and no agent or surrogate appears able to act. Its rules:

• Duration. The emergency fiduciary's authority may not exceed 60 days (T.C.A. § 34-1-132).
• Counsel. An attorney ad litem is appointed for the respondent immediately (T.C.A. § 34-1-132).
• Attorney ad litem cost. In an emergency proceeding the court may charge the attorney ad litem's cost to the respondent's assets or to the petitioner. The charge may not exceed $1,500, adjusted for inflation each February 1 starting in 2025, unless the court dismisses the proceeding for fraud, bad faith or deception by the petitioner or finds unusually complex factual issues (T.C.A. § 34-1-132(f), added by Pub. Ch. 807 (2024)).
• Appointment without notice. The court may appoint an emergency guardian or conservator without notice to the respondent and the attorney ad litem only if it finds, on a sworn petition, that the respondent will be substantially harmed before a hearing can be held. The respondent must then receive notice within 48 hours, and the court must hold a hearing on whether the appointment is appropriate within five days (T.C.A. § 34-1-132(b)).
• Firm deadlines. The statute makes these time periods mandatory, not directory (T.C.A. § 34-1-132(e)).

Hospital discharge. For a respondent who is in a hospital when no agent, surrogate or other person appears to have the authority and willingness to act in the respondent's best interest, the court may appoint an expedited limited healthcare fiduciary. That authority is limited to consenting to discharge, transfer and admission to another healthcare facility and the related financial arrangements or medical care, and it may not exceed 60 days. An attorney ad litem is appointed immediately, the court holds a hearing on the appointment within five days, and the appointment is not a determination that the respondent is incapacitated (T.C.A. § 34-1-133). The attorney ad litem cost follows the same $1,500 rule as in an emergency proceeding (T.C.A. § 34-1-133(f), added by Pub. Ch. 807 (2024)).

How a Tennessee conservatorship ends or rights are restored

The court may discharge a conservator or modify its duties if the respondent is no longer a person with a disability, if ending the conservatorship is in the person's best interests, or if the conservator has failed to perform its duties or to act in the person's best interest (T.C.A. § 34-3-108). The person with a disability, or any interested person on the person's behalf, may petition at any time to end or change a conservatorship, and a petition from the person may reach the court by any means, including an oral communication or an informal letter (T.C.A. § 34-3-108(a), (b)). The court must hold a hearing, where the person has all the rights listed in § 34-3-106, and the court may require an examination. The court may dismiss the petition, remove the conservator, appoint a successor, modify the order or grant other relief (T.C.A. § 34-3-108). A conservatorship ends on the person's death or by court order, and where the conservator manages property, a preliminary final accounting is due within 120 days (T.C.A. § 34-3-108). Separately, a person the adult designated in a signed writing, the spouse, a child or the closest relatives may petition the court to require the conservator to allow the person's communication, visitation or interaction with others, and the prevailing party is entitled to court costs and reasonable attorney fees (T.C.A. § 34-3-108(f)).

Alternatives to conservatorship in Tennessee

The court's duty to impose the least restrictive alternatives (T.C.A. § 34-1-127), and its obligation to name in the order each power it removes (T.C.A. § 34-3-107), are the core of Tennessee's preference for narrower arrangements.

Supported decision-making. The 2018 act whose title refers to "supported decision-making agreements" (Pub. Ch. 605) enacted only the definition of least restrictive alternatives quoted above. Chapters 1 to 3 of Title 34 do not set out a supported decision-making agreement. The conservatorship task force created in 2025 includes a representative of the Tennessee Center for Decision-Making Support (Pub. Ch. 417 (2025)).

Powers of attorney. A power of attorney signed while a person has capacity is the usual private alternative, and a person designated in a writing signed by the adult is first in line if a conservator is ever needed (T.C.A. § 34-3-103). District public guardians may accept a power of attorney as a least intrusive alternative (T.C.A. § 34-7-104). Signing rules are on our Tennessee power of attorney laws page. Free drafting tools are available for a Tennessee power of attorney and a Tennessee advance directive; a tool is not legal advice, and any document must be signed under the Tennessee rules on the power of attorney page.

Health-care surrogate. An adult patient may name a surrogate for health-care decisions orally or in writing by telling the supervising health-care provider. If no surrogate has been designated and no agent or guardian is available, the provider may identify an adult who has shown special care and concern for the patient, giving consideration in descending order of preference starting with the patient's spouse, unless legally separated, and then an adult child (T.C.A. § 68-11-1806).

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 Tennessee with a conservatorship

Tennessee adopted the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act in chapter 8 (T.C.A. § 34-8-101).

• Moving out. A conservator or guardian may petition the Tennessee court to transfer the case to another state, with notice. The court issues a provisional transfer order if the person is in, or will move permanently to, the other state, no objection to the transfer succeeds, and plans for the person's care or property in the other state are adequate (T.C.A. § 34-8-301).
• Moving in. If a conservator or guardian has been appointed in another state and no petition for appointment is pending in Tennessee, that fiduciary may, after notifying the appointing court of the intent to register, register the order in Tennessee as a foreign judgment by filing certified copies of the order and letters of office in a court in any appropriate county (T.C.A. § 34-8-401).
• Moving within Tennessee. Since 2024, a guardian or conservator may ask the appointing court to transfer the case to a court in another Tennessee county, with notice to the persons entitled to notice of an original petition; the person keeps the rights listed in § 34-3-106 (Pub. Ch. 542 (2024), adding a section to T.C.A. Title 34, ch. 8, part 3).

Recent changes to Tennessee conservatorship law

• 2018: Pub. Ch. 605 added the definition of "least restrictive alternatives" to T.C.A. § 34-1-101.
• 2021: petitions must include registry and national sex offender searches on the proposed conservator, effective January 1, 2022 (Pub. Ch. 84). The petitioner, not the clerk, now gives notice to relatives and caregivers, examination reports became confidential, and the protective-order right was revised (Pub. Ch. 305).
• 2024: every fiduciary oath must include a promise to follow the court's orders and an acknowledgment that the fiduciary cannot make a decision on an authority not specifically listed in the order, effective July 1, 2024 (Pub. Ch. 582, amending T.C.A. § 34-1-109(b)). The examination-report rules were rewritten (Pub. Ch. 630), the attorney ad litem cost rules changed (Pub. Ch. 807), and a procedure was created to transfer a guardianship or conservatorship to a court in another Tennessee county (Pub. Ch. 542).
• 2025: Pub. Ch. 417 created a nine-member conservatorship management task force to review conservatorship monitoring, education, central tracking, fraud and abuse detection and public guardianship capacity, and whether to create an independent conservator panel or central oversight office. It must report to the Department of Disability and Aging and the Administrative Office of the Courts by December 31, 2025, and every year after that.
• 2026: Pub. Ch. 589, effective July 1, 2026, requires every accounting to state the person's condition and the date of the fiduciary's last contact with the person (T.C.A. § 34-1-111(d)(2)).

Tennessee guardianship and conservatorship at a glance

Related Tennessee pages

• Guardianship laws by state
• Tennessee power of attorney laws
• Tennessee child custody laws
• Tennessee grandparents' rights
• Tennessee probate
• Kentucky guardianship laws
• Georgia guardianship laws

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

Last updated: October 20, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it guardianship or conservatorship for an adult in Tennessee?

Conservatorship. Tennessee appoints a guardian only for a minor; an adult 18 or older who is found to be a person with a disability gets a conservator under Title 34, chapter 3 (T.C.A. § 34-1-101).

How do I get guardianship of my grandchild in Tennessee?

A person with knowledge of the child's circumstances may file a sworn petition, in juvenile court for a guardian of the person only or in a court with probate jurisdiction or another court of record for the person or property (T.C.A. §§ 34-2-101, 34-2-102, 34-2-104). Subject to the child's best interests, the court considers the parents first, then a parent's designee, then adult siblings and the closest relatives (T.C.A. § 34-2-103).

Can a parent let a relative care for a child in Tennessee without court?

When hardship prevents a parent from caring for the child, the parent may delegate temporary care-giving authority to an adult living in Tennessee with a notarized or two-witness power of attorney on the Department of Children's Services form; it does not give legal custody, and a parent with legal custody may end it in writing (T.C.A. §§ 34-6-302, 34-6-305, 34-6-306).

What must be proved to get a conservator for an adult in Tennessee?

The court must find by clear and convincing evidence that the respondent is fully or partially disabled and needs the court's assistance (T.C.A. § 34-1-126), and it must impose the least restrictive alternatives consistent with adequate protection (T.C.A. § 34-1-127).

Is the guardian ad litem the respondent's lawyer in Tennessee?

No. The guardian ad litem is the court's impartial investigator and is not an advocate for the respondent (T.C.A. § 34-1-107). An attorney ad litem advocates for the respondent and is appointed on the respondent's request, on the guardian ad litem's recommendation, or when the court finds it necessary (T.C.A. § 34-1-125).

How long does an emergency conservatorship last in Tennessee?

The emergency fiduciary's authority may not exceed 60 days. If the appointment is made without notice, the respondent must be told within 48 hours and the court must hold a hearing within five days (T.C.A. § 34-1-132).

Does Tennessee have supported decision-making agreements?

The 2018 act whose title refers to supported decision-making agreements enacted only a definition of least restrictive alternatives (Pub. Ch. 605 (2018)); Title 34, chapters 1 to 3, do not set out a supported decision-making agreement.

How can a Tennessee conservatorship be ended?

The person or any interested person on the person's behalf may petition at any time, and the person may do so by an oral request or an informal letter. The court must hold a hearing at which the person has the rights listed in T.C.A. § 34-3-106 (T.C.A. § 34-3-108).