Legal Question in Elder Law in Michigan

If your father does not have a financial durable power of attorney and health care designation of patient advocate, you will need to file with the probate court to get guardianship over your father, and most likely a conservatorship as well. A guardianship will allow you to make medical decisions which will allow you to determine the best living situation for him. The conservatorship would allow you to make financial decisions. In the facts you described, I would lean toward filing both petitions to give you complete control over your father's affairs.

If he does have a financial durable power of attorney and health care designation of patient advocate, you can try to get two doctors to declare him incompetent to activate the documents. This would give you complete control over his affairs, without having the expense and hassle of court involvement. Either route you choose will require doctors to determine your father's competency. It is always best if your father's primary physician agrees that you need to step in for your father's safety.