Conservatorships

The Private Defender Program represents clients who, due to a mental illness or developmental disability, are alleged to be (1) gravely disabled so as to be unable to meet their own needs of food, clothing or shelter, or (2) a danger to themselves or others.  The PDP lawyers advocate for mental health patients who want to contest their involuntary treatment under the provisions of the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act and Welfare and Institutions Code sections.  This Act specifies the conditions under which a person may be involuntarily hospitalized and the rights afforded a person for whom involuntary hospitalization is being sought.  The lawyers act to safeguard due process protections and the constitutional rights of those clients facing a civil commitment. 

LPS Conservatorship is different from a probate conservatorship, which is established for the management of a person’s finances.  An LPS Conservatorship of the person is a protective relationship in which a person is appointed by the court to act in the best interest of a gravely disabled individual to ensure that the basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter are met, and if required, to provide the disabled individual with psychiatric care and treatment.