How to File for Guardianship in New Jersey

Where NJ Guardianship Cases Are Filed

All adult guardianship cases in New Jersey are filed in the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Probate Part. You don't go directly to the courthouse — the filing is initiated through the County Surrogate's Office in the county where the alleged incapacitated person (AIP) currently lives. The Surrogate acts as Deputy Clerk of the Superior Court for guardianship matters.

Any interested party can petition — a parent, sibling, other family member, or even a public agency concerned with the individual's welfare. The most common scenario is a parent filing for guardianship of their adult child with a developmental disability as the child approaches their 18th birthday.

The Two Medical Evidence Tracks

Before you assemble any paperwork, you need to decide which evidentiary pathway applies to your case.

Title 3B (standard private filing) requires certifications from two practitioners — either two physicians, or one physician and one licensed psychologist. Each must have personally examined the AIP within 30 days of your filing date. This is the path when the individual isn't DDD-eligible, or when you're seeking guardianship of both person and estate.

Title 30 (DDD exception under Rule 4:86-10) applies when the AIP is eligible for or receiving Division of Developmental Disabilities services. You need only one medical certification (within six months of filing), paired with one supporting document: a recent IEP (no more than two years old), an affidavit from a DDD program administrator, or an affidavit from a licensed care professional who has treated the individual. This exception can save families $500-$1,500 in evaluation costs.

Schedule your medical evaluations before doing anything else — the clock on the 30-day or 6-month window starts at the examination date, and a missed deadline means redoing the exam.

The Court Packet: What You Need to File

The New Jersey Judiciary publishes a pro se guardianship packet (Form 10558, available on njcourts.gov) that contains the core documents. Open these files in Microsoft Word, not a PDF viewer, to avoid formatting corruption. Here's what the packet includes:

Case Information Statement (Form A) captures biographical data for the AIP — name, date of birth, Social Security number, residential history, and identifying details.

Verified Complaint (Form B) is the heart of the filing. You describe the AIP's specific functional limitations, explain why they need a guardian, and detail what less restrictive alternatives you've considered and why they're insufficient. The court takes the "least restrictive alternative" requirement seriously under N.J.S.A. 3B:12-24.1.

Certification of Assets (Form C) lists all property, bank accounts, investments, trusts, and monthly income belonging to the AIP. This form is mandatory even if you're only seeking guardianship of the person and the AIP has no assets.

Criminal and Civil Judgment History Certification is completed by the proposed guardian. Parents and spouses are exempt from the fingerprint-based background screening that non-relatives must complete, but they still need to fill out the self-disclosure form.

Order Fixing Hearing Date (Form F) is a draft order for the judge to set the hearing date and appoint independent counsel for the AIP.

You also need the medical certifications described above, formatted according to the specific court rule (4:86-2 for Title 3B, 4:86-10 for Title 30).

Filing and the $200 Fee

Submit the complete packet to the County Surrogate with the $200 filing fee. If you cannot afford the fee, file a Certification of Indigency to request a waiver — the court will evaluate your financial circumstances and may waive the fee entirely.

After filing, the court reviews your pleadings, enters the Order Fixing Hearing Date, and appoints an independent attorney to represent the AIP. This attorney is not your lawyer — they represent your child's expressed wishes as a zealous advocate.

The Court-Appointed Attorney's Process

The appointed attorney must:

• Personally interview the AIP
• Meet with the proposed guardians
• Review all medical and clinical records
• File a written report with the court at least five days before the hearing

For Title 30 person-only cases where the AIP has no assets, this attorney is typically provided through a public advocate or pro bono program at no cost. For Title 3B or estate cases, the petitioner or the AIP's estate pays the attorney's fees.

The Hearing

If the court-appointed attorney's report supports the guardianship and nobody contests the petition, the judge can resolve the case summarily — meaning no one needs to physically appear in court. This is the most common outcome for turning-18 cases filed by parents.

If the AIP or any family member contests the petition, the court schedules a plenary hearing where the petitioner must prove incapacity by clear and convincing evidence.

Either way, if the court finds guardianship warranted, the judge signs the Judgment of Incapacity and Appointment of Guardian (Form G).

Qualifying with the Surrogate

The judgment alone doesn't give you legal authority. Within 30 days of the judgment, you must appear before the County Surrogate to:

1. Execute the formal Acceptance of Guardianship
2. Acknowledge receipt of the NJ Guardian Training Materials
3. Post a surety bond if the judge ordered one (common for estate guardianships; usually waived when the ward has no assets or only SSI income)

Once qualified, the Surrogate issues Letters of Guardianship. Purchase several Short Certificates ($5 each) — these are the day-to-day proof of authority you'll present to doctors, schools, banks, and state agencies.

After Appointment: Ongoing Requirements

Guardianship isn't a one-time filing. The Guardianship Monitoring Program requires ongoing reports:

• Guardian Inventory filed within 90 days of qualification (baseline statement of the ward's assets)
• Annual Report of Well-Being documenting the ward's health, living arrangements, and social activities, plus a Certificate of Examining Professional from a clinician who evaluated the ward that year
• Annual Financial Accounting using the EZ form (for simple estates) or Comprehensive form (for complex ones); if the only income is SSI managed by a Representative Payee, the annual SS Rep Payee report may satisfy this requirement

The complete New Jersey Adult Guardianship & Alternatives Guide includes a pro se filing preparation checklist, document formatting instructions for each court form, and a month-by-month timeline for coordinating medical evaluations with your filing date.

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