conservator

conservator n. a guardian and protector appointed by a judge to protect and manage the financial affairs and/or the person's daily life due to physical or mental limitations or old age. The conservator may be only of the "estate" (meaning financial affairs), but may be also of the "person," when he/she takes charge of overseeing the daily activities, such as health care or living arrangements of the conservatee. The process is that a relative or friend petitions the local superior court for appointment of a specific conservator, with written notice served on the potential conservatee. The object of this concern is interviewed by a court-appointed investigator to determine need, desire and understanding of the potential conservatee as well as the suitability of the proposed conservator. An open hearing is held before the appointment is made. The conservator is required to make regular accountings which must be approved by the court. The conservator may be removed by order of the court if no longer needed, upon the petition of the conservatee or relatives, or for failure to perform his/her duties. (See: conservatee, guardian)

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See also: guardian

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CONSERVATOR. A preserver, a protector.
     2. Before the institution of the office of justices of the peace in England, the public order was maintained by officers who bore the name of conservators of the peace. All judges, justices, sheriffs and constables, are conservators of the peace, and are bound, ex officio, to be aiding and assisting in preserving older.
     3. In Connecticut, this term is applied to designate a guardian who has the care of the estate of an idiot. 5 Conn. R. 280.