How to File for Guardianship in Texas: Steps, Costs, and Bond

To file for guardianship in Texas, you submit a sworn application to the probate court in the county where the proposed ward lives, attach a physician’s certificate documenting incapacity, and go through a court process that includes notice to family, a court-appointed attorney representing the proposed ward, and a hearing before a judge. Expect the process to take several months and cost roughly $3,000 to $5,000 for a straightforward, uncontested case. Before you file anything, confirm two things: that the person actually meets Texas’s legal definition of incapacity, and that no less restrictive arrangement would work instead.

Confirm the Person Is Legally Incapacitated

Texas law defines an “incapacitated person” as a minor, an adult who because of a physical or mental condition cannot adequately provide food, clothing, or shelter for themselves, care for their physical health, or manage their finances, or a person who needs a guardian appointed specifically to receive government benefits.¹ The incapacity has to be substantial. Occasional forgetfulness, poor judgment, or choices the family disagrees with will not clear the bar.

Medical evidence carries the case. Unless the proposed ward is a minor or someone who only needs a guardian to receive government funds, you must present a letter or certificate from a licensed physician for physical or mental conditions, or a licensed psychologist for mental conditions. The examination and resulting certificate must be dated no more than 120 days before you file the application.² Miss that window and the court will reject the certificate. Coordinate with the doctor so a fresh evaluation is ready close to your filing date.

Rule Out Alternatives Before You File

The application itself must state whether you considered alternatives to guardianship and whether any of them would be feasible enough to avoid guardianship entirely.³ Skip this analysis and the court sends you back. If a less restrictive option genuinely works, the judge can deny the guardianship.

The main alternatives to think through:

A statutory durable power of attorney, if the person still has capacity to sign it. This handles property and finances without any court involvement. Once capacity is gone, this option is off the table.⁴
A supported decision-making agreement, in which an adult with a disability keeps their legal decision-making authority but has a trusted supporter help them understand information and communicate preferences.
A representative payee through the Social Security Administration, if the only concern is managing Social Security benefits. SSA appoints payees independently and does not recognize court-appointed guardians for that purpose.
A medical power of attorney or advance directive for healthcare decisions, which can cover that specific gap without a guardianship of the person.

Document what you looked at and why it wouldn’t work. That analysis strengthens the application and satisfies what the court is going to ask about anyway.

Decide What Kind of Guardianship to Request

Texas separates guardianship of the person from guardianship of the estate. Guardianship of the person covers where someone lives, what medical treatment they receive, and day-to-day care. Guardianship of the estate covers bank accounts, bills, property, and investments. One person can hold both roles, or the court can split them.⁵

Texas law strongly prefers limited guardianship, restricting the guardian’s authority to areas where the ward truly cannot function.⁶ Someone who can make medical decisions but not financial ones may only need an estate guardianship. The application must specify which rights you’re asking the court to limit or remove, including voting, driving, and choice of residence. Ask for the narrowest authority that actually protects the person.

Generally only one person serves as guardian of the person or of the estate. Married couples, joint managing conservators, and both parents of an incapacitated adult can serve together.⁵ The proposed guardian must be a Texas resident, an adult, free of any conflict of interest with the ward, and not disqualified by a felony conviction or their own incapacity. A criminal background check is required for anyone who will have care and custody of the ward or estate.³

Prepare and File the Application

The Application for Appointment of Guardian must be sworn and filed with the county clerk in the county where the proposed ward lives.⁷ Forms are usually available from the county clerk or on the Texas Courts website. Gather the following before you sit down to complete it:

Proposed ward’s full name, sex, date of birth, and address.
The nature and degree of the alleged incapacity, the specific areas of protection you’re requesting, and each right you’re asking to limit (voting, driver’s license, choice of residence, and any others).³
Your name, any former names, relationship to the ward, and address.
Approximate value and description of the ward’s property, broken into liquid assets (cash, pensions, insurance, government benefits) and non-liquid assets (real estate and other property).
Name and address of anyone holding a power of attorney signed by the proposed ward, and the type of power of attorney.
Your written statement on whether alternatives and available supports were considered, and whether any of those would make guardianship unnecessary.

File the physician’s or psychologist’s certificate along with the application, keeping in mind the 120-day rule on the examination date.²

What Happens After You File

Once the application is filed, notice must be served on interested parties, including family members. The proposed ward must receive personal service of citation. Everyone with a stake in the outcome gets a chance to appear or object.

The court then appoints an attorney ad litem to represent the proposed ward, including the ward’s own wishes.⁸ This appointment is mandatory. The ad litem meets with the proposed ward, investigates, and reports findings to the judge. If they conclude the person doesn’t need a guardian, or that a less restrictive option exists, they will say so. You typically pay the ad litem’s fee, ranging from several hundred to over a thousand dollars depending on the case.

At the hearing, you present the physician’s certificate and any supporting testimony from family or caregivers. The proposed ward has the right to attend and participate. The judge decides whether to grant the guardianship, and if so, exactly what powers the guardian will have. Those powers are spelled out in the court’s order.

What It Costs

Court filing fees run roughly $250 to $400 depending on the county. Attorney fees for the applicant’s own lawyer typically fall between $1,500 and $3,000 for a straightforward, uncontested case, and can exceed $5,000 when the case is contested or the finances are complex. Add the attorney ad litem’s fee on top of that. A typical uncontested case with modest assets lands in the $3,000 to $5,000 range for the first year. Contested cases run considerably higher.

Costs continue after appointment. Guardians of the estate pay an annual bond premium, prepare annual accountings that may require professional help, and sometimes pay for appraisals. If the proposed ward has limited resources, ask the court about fee waivers or whether a county guardianship program is available.

After Appointment: Oath, Bond, Letters, and Reports

Appointment is not the finish line. Before you can act as guardian, you take an oath committing to carry out your duties according to law, and you post a bond in an amount the court sets based on the value of the estate. Corporate fiduciaries and county guardianship programs are exempt from the bond requirement.⁹ Once the oath and bond are approved, the county clerk issues Letters of Guardianship. Banks, hospitals, and government agencies will ask to see certified copies before dealing with you on the ward’s behalf.

Within 30 days of qualifying, a guardian of the estate must file a verified inventory of all the ward’s property, including Texas real estate and personal property regardless of location, distinguishing separate from community property and setting the guardian’s appraisal of fair market value as of the date the letters were granted.¹⁰ Extensions are possible for good cause, but the deadline is firm.

After that, annual accounts of all financial activity go to the county clerk each year.¹¹ Each account includes an affidavit confirming you’ve filed required tax returns, paid taxes owed, and paid the next bond premium.¹² The court must approve each account. If the judge finds problems, you’ll be ordered to file a corrected account within 30 days. Guardians of the person file annual reports on the ward’s physical condition, living situation, and overall well-being. The court uses those reports to check whether the guardianship is still needed and whether the guardian is acting appropriately.

A guardianship is not necessarily permanent. If the ward’s condition improves, the ward or anyone interested in their welfare can ask the court to narrow the guardian’s powers or restore capacity entirely.¹³ Guardianship also ends automatically when a minor ward turns 18 without a separate adult incapacity finding, or when the ward dies. At that point the guardian files a final accounting and distributes any remaining estate assets as the court directs.

1
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1002-017 – Incapacitated Person
2
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1101-103 – Determination of Incapacity of Certain Adults
3
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1101-001 – Application for Appointment of Guardian; Contents
4
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 752-001 – Use, Meaning, and Effect of Statutory Durable Power of Attorney
5
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1104-001 – Guardian of the Person or Estate
6
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1001-001 – Policy; Purpose of Guardianship
7
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1052-051 – Filing Procedures
8
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1054-001 – Appointment of Attorney Ad Litem in Proceeding for Appointment of Guardian
9
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1105-101 – Bond Generally Required; Exceptions
10
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1154-051 – Inventory and Appraisement
11
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1163-051 – Filing and Consideration of Annual Account
12
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1163-005 – Verification of Account and Statement Regarding Taxes and Status as Guardian
13
State of Texas. Texas Estates Code 1202-051 – Application Authorized