You should also encourage her to make a Will. If she were to die while intestate, the legal process of handling her estate could be slow and expensive. A properly drafted Will creates certainty about her wishes, simplifying the whole legal process. I also recommend that she consider signing papers to eliminate your brother's legal ability to grab control via an involuntary Guardianship. This ability to legally disqualify people from becoming Guardian makes the Declaration of Guardian especially powerful.
Guardianship is never a voluntary legal procedure.
You and your sister cannot control your brother, but a Declaration of Guardian can state that he cannot ever become your mother's Guardian. He would gain nothing by starting Guardianship proceedings. If he does make an attempt, the court would appoint the person named in the Declaration of Guardian, so he would not gain any control. Both Durable Powers of Attorney and Declarations of Guardian can be prepared using our Online Forms Store. T his column answers a specific legal question offered by an individual in the South Texas area.