(1) The following may petition for the appointment of a conservator:

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Terms Used In Washington Code 11.130.365

  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • person: may be construed to include the United States, this state, or any state or territory, or any public or private corporation or limited liability company, as well as an individual. See Washington Code 1.16.080
  • Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
(a) The individual for whom the order is sought;
(b) A person interested in the estate, financial affairs, or welfare of the individual, including a person that would be adversely affected by lack of effective management of property or financial affairs of the individual; or
(c) The guardian for the individual.
(2) A petition under subsection (1) of this section must state the petitioner’s name, principal residence, current street address, if different, relationship to the respondent, interest in the appointment, the name and address of any attorney representing the petitioner, and, to the extent known, the following:
(a) The respondent’s name, age, principal residence, current street address, if different, and, if different, address of the dwelling in which it is proposed the respondent will reside if the petition is granted;
(b) The name and address of the respondent’s:
(i) Spouse or domestic partner or, if the respondent has none, an adult with whom the respondent has shared household responsibilities for more than six months in the twelve-month period before the filing of the petition;
(ii) Adult children or, if none, each parent and adult sibling of the respondent, or, if none, at least one adult nearest in kinship to the respondent who can be found with reasonable diligence; and
(iii) Adult stepchildren whom the respondent actively parented during the stepchildren’s minor years and with whom the respondent had an ongoing relationship during the two years immediately before the filing of the petition;
(c) The name and current address of each of the following, if applicable:
(i) A person responsible for the care or custody of the respondent;
(ii) Any attorney currently representing the respondent;
(iii) The representative payee appointed by the social security administration for the respondent;
(iv) A guardian or conservator acting for the respondent in this state or another jurisdiction;
(v) A trustee or custodian of a trust or custodianship of which the respondent is a beneficiary;
(vi) The fiduciary appointed for the respondent by the department of veterans affairs;
(vii) An agent designated under a power of attorney for health care in which the respondent is identified as the principal;
(viii) An agent designated under a power of attorney for finances in which the respondent is identified as the principal;
(ix) A person known to have routinely assisted the respondent with decision making in the six-month period immediately before the filing of the petition;
(x) Any proposed conservator, including a person nominated by the respondent, if the respondent is twelve years of age or older; and
(xi) If the individual for whom a conservator is sought is a minor:
(A) An adult not otherwise listed with whom the minor resides; and
(B) Each person not otherwise listed that had primary care or custody of the minor for at least sixty days during the two years immediately before the filing of the petition or for at least seven hundred thirty days during the five years immediately before the filing of the petition;
(d) A general statement of the respondent’s property with an estimate of its value, including any insurance or pension, and the source and amount of other anticipated income or receipts;
(e) The reason conservatorship is necessary, including a brief description of:
(i) The nature and extent of the respondent’s alleged need;
(ii) If the petition alleges the respondent is missing, detained, or unable to return to the United States, the relevant circumstances, including the time and nature of the disappearance or detention and any search or inquiry concerning the respondent’s whereabouts;
(iii) Any protective arrangement instead of conservatorship or other less restrictive alternative for meeting the respondent’s alleged need which has been considered or implemented;
(iv) If no protective arrangement or other less restrictive alternatives have been considered or implemented, the reason it has not been considered or implemented; and
(v) The reason a protective arrangement or other less restrictive alternative is insufficient to meet the respondent’s need;
(f) Whether the petitioner seeks a limited conservatorship or a full conservatorship;
(g) If the petitioner seeks a full conservatorship, the reason a limited conservatorship or protective arrangement instead of conservatorship is not appropriate;
(h) If the petition includes the name of a proposed conservator, the reason the proposed conservator should be appointed;
(i) If the petition is for a limited conservatorship, a description of the property to be placed under the conservator’s control and any requested limitation on the authority of the conservator;
(j) Whether the respondent needs an interpreter, translator, or other form of support to communicate effectively with the court or understand court proceedings; and
(k) The name and address of an attorney representing the petitioner, if any.