My family has agreed it is time to have Dad declared incompetent. His physician has agreed but has no "form" to fill out. Is there a legal form available? How do we go about doing this?

Every state deals with this in a different way. Check out your county website for the forms. You may need to go to court for this so you may want to consider speaking with an attorney. You can locate one through the attorney locator on Lawinfo's home page at http://www.lawinfo.com/. Some do offer free consultations.

Legal competency is not immutable; it can change. "Incompetence can be temporary," when mental status fluctuates, for example, when delirium is a symptom.

"Official" determination of incompetency under state law almost always requires a state court proceeding to determine incompetency. There is no "form" to be filled-out by a doctor to have someone officially (legally) declared "incompetent" (and thank God there isn't) as such would certainly deprive one of Constitutionally-guaranteed due process rights.

Now if a person has executed certain estate planning documents such as a living trust which allows a person for the purposes of that document to be treated as "incapacitated" upon, for example, the written certification of two licensed physicians, then that is a private matter, and does not involve "state action."

If no documents such as a living trust drafted in the manner described above were executed by the person now believed to be incompetent prior to reaching that condition, then the family is most likely looking at bringing an incompetency, guardianship, or conservatorship proceeding in state court.

Consultation with an attorney well-versed in such proceedings is highly advisable in this situation. Anyone who tells the family that simply "getting a form filled-out" can result in a person being legally declared "incompetent" doesn't know what he or she is talking about.