The call comes on a Tuesday. Your father had a fall, or a stroke, or a sudden decline, and now the hospital's discharge planner is on the phone telling you he's ready to leave — tomorrow, maybe the day after. Except he isn't ready. He can't safely go home. He can't manage his medications, his money, or his own care, and he can't (or won't) agree to a facility.

Families come to us certain that a loved one can no longer manage — and they're usually right. But being right isn't the same as being able to prove it. An Arizona court cannot appoint a guardian or conservator because a family is worried, exhausted, or even unanimous. It can only act on evidence — and in these cases, that evidence is overwhelmingly medical.