Cost of Guardianship Nevada

Upfront Costs: What You'll Pay to Get Appointed

The cost of establishing guardianship in Nevada varies sharply depending on one factor: whether anyone objects.

Uncontested Guardianship

When all family members agree on who should serve as guardian and the parent doesn't (or can't) oppose the petition, an uncontested guardianship typically costs:

• Attorney fees: $3,000–$6,000 flat fee for standard uncontested proceedings. This covers petition preparation, court appearance, and document filing.
• Court filing fee: $0 for guardianship of the person only. $5 for guardianship of the estate when assets exceed $2,500. E-filing transaction fees add $3–$10.
• Process server: $50–$100 per party served. You'll need to serve the proposed ward and all relatives within the second degree of consanguinity (spouse, adult children, parents, siblings). For a family with four adult children and two surviving parents, that's seven service charges.
• Background check: $52.50–$85 total for Livescan fingerprinting ($15–$35 vendor fee) plus Nevada DPS and FBI processing ($37.50–$50).
• Physician's assessment: Varies. Some physicians include the capacity assessment in a regular office visit. Others charge $200–$500 for a detailed written evaluation. Geriatric specialists and neurologists typically charge more for comprehensive assessments.

Total for a typical uncontested case: $3,500–$7,000

Contested Guardianship

When a sibling objects to your appointment, the parent hires their own attorney to fight the petition, or multiple family members petition for guardianship simultaneously:

• Attorney fees: $10,000–$15,000 or significantly more. Contested proceedings involve discovery, depositions, expert witnesses, and potentially multi-day hearings. Nevada elder law attorneys bill $250–$450 per hour for litigation.
• Guardian Ad Litem fees: The court may appoint an attorney to represent the parent's interests. The GAL's fees are typically paid from the parent's estate — $2,000–$5,000 depending on the complexity.
• Expert witness fees: If capacity is disputed, both sides may retain geriatric psychiatrists or neuropsychologists. Expert evaluations and testimony run $3,000–$8,000 per expert.

Total for a contested case: $15,000–$30,000+

Ongoing Annual Costs

Here's what catches families off guard: guardianship doesn't end when you're appointed. The court supervises your decisions indefinitely, and that supervision has its own costs.

Fiduciary bond (estate guardianship): The court typically requires a surety bond to protect the parent's assets. The annual premium runs 1–3% of the estate value. For a parent with $200,000 in assets, that's $2,000–$6,000 per year.

Annual accounting preparation: If you're guardian of the estate, you must file a detailed financial accounting with the court every year. If you prepare it yourself, the cost is your time. If you hire an accountant or your attorney, expect $500–$2,000 per year.

Annual care report: The person guardianship requires an annual report on the parent's condition — health, living situation, activities, medical treatments. This is less expensive to prepare but still requires time and documentation.

Court hearing fees: Some judicial districts schedule periodic review hearings. While there's typically no additional filing fee, attending may require your attorney's time.

Asset appraisal costs: The initial inventory requires listing all assets at fair market value. Real property may need a formal appraisal ($300–$500). Subsequent accountings may require updated valuations.

The Pro Se Option

You can petition for guardianship without an attorney. The Nevada Courts Self-Help Center and the Family Law Self-Help Center in Clark County provide forms, packets, and procedural guidance for self-represented (pro se) petitioners.

Going pro se eliminates the $3,000–$6,000 attorney fee, bringing total costs for an uncontested case down to a few hundred dollars. But there are real risks:

• Procedural mistakes that delay the hearing or result in the petition being returned for correction
• Service errors that require re-serving and restarting the timeline
• Incomplete physician's certificates that the judge sends back for additional detail
• Difficulty handling objections if the case becomes contested

Pro se petitioning works best for straightforward cases where the parent clearly lacks capacity, the family is unified, and the estate is simple. If there's any prospect of a contest, hire an attorney.

Comparing Against the Alternative

The cost comparison that matters: if your parent still has the capacity to sign a power of attorney, the entire legal authority framework — financial POA, healthcare POA, advance directive — can be established for under $500 with an attorney, or far less with a DIY approach.

A power of attorney requires no court filing, no background check, no ongoing reporting, no fiduciary bond, and no annual accountings. It's a private document executed in an afternoon.

Every month you wait to get a POA in place is a month closer to the point where your parent can no longer sign one — and the guardianship cost clock starts.

The Nevada Power of Attorney & Guardianship Kit covers both tracks: the POA process for parents who still have capacity, and the complete guardianship filing package for parents who don't.

See more Nevada guides →