Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Indiana
Grandmother incompetent, no one has power of attorney
My grandmother has been deemed incompetent by her physician. My mother has been living with her for four years and giving her round the clock care for the last year. My grandmother has refused to create a will or appoint a power of attorney. As soon as a doctor diagnosed her as terminally ill, my aunt tried to get power of attorney. However, my grandmother was deemed incompetent by her physician. What is my mother's next step to assure her interest is considered. Can she get power of attorney now? Can she charge the estate for the care she has given at the expense of her own career? They are already fighting over who gets what and trying to get things now, though my grandmother is still alive. We would appreciate a referral to an attorney near her.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Grandmother incompetent, no one has power of attorney
Once an elderly person is determined to be incompetent by the physician, the only way his or her finances can be handled is by a guardianship established in the local probate court. If your county seat has a bar association, call there for a referral or check your yellow pages for an attorney. The family has no right to divide up her assets prior to her death, nor even after her death until an estate is opened and someone appointed as the administrator. Your mother would have a right to file a claim against that estate for her services to grandmother during her lifetime.
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