Polish legal experts are dispelling the myth that court-ordered guardianship automatically allows families to restrict a senior’s freedom or control their lives.
Guardianship of Seniors – Myths About Control and Restriction of Freedom
Guardianship for seniors is a last resort that evokes strong emotions and controversy. Many families believe a court decision will give them full control over the fate of a loved one with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. However, does guardianship grant the right to limit a senior’s physical freedom?
It’s important to understand the rights retained by a person under guardianship in 2026.
When Can a Senior Be Placed Under Guardianship? Medical and Legal Grounds
People naturally change with age—an inevitable process that affects everyone. This includes not only the body but also the way of thinking, reacting, and perceiving the world. Clear differences exist between seniors and younger generations in their approach to life, daily decisions, and relationships with others.
Seniors often rely on experience accumulated throughout their lives, valuing stability, predictability, and proven patterns of behavior. Younger generations, however, operate in a reality of rapid change, new technologies, and greater openness to risk, influencing their life choices and communication styles.
Age-related changes also have a health dimension. Declining memory, difficulty concentrating, and slower information processing can affect daily functioning. In some cases, neurodegenerative diseases develop, significantly limiting the ability to make independent decisions. Many families then face a dilemma: should they seek guardianship for the senior?
Legal Basis for Guardianship
From a legal perspective, old age alone is not grounds for guardianship. Neither is a difficult personality or family conflicts. The law allows guardianship only in strictly defined situations—when a person is unable to manage their affairs due to mental disorders, illness, or addiction. Age is therefore irrelevant, although guardianship often concerns seniors.
In practice, this most often involves individuals with advanced dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. These conditions can lead to situations where a senior makes decisions that endanger themselves or others, such as signing unfavorable contracts or neglecting basic obligations.
Total vs. Partial Guardianship – Key Differences
Polish law provides for two forms of guardianship.
Who Can File for Guardianship? List of Eligible Individuals
Not every family member can file for guardianship. The regulations in this area are strict, indicating a closed circle of relatives authorized to file a guardianship application.
This means that relatives outside those listed in Article 545 of the Civil Procedure Code cannot apply to the court for guardianship of a grandmother or other close relative. According to the law, only the following can do so:
Can a Guardian Restrict a Senior’s Freedom? Rights of a Person Under Guardianship
The most important change concerns the legal sphere—a person under total guardianship cannot independently enter into legally binding agreements or make financial decisions. A guardian acts on their behalf. However, this does not mean physical restriction of freedom.
“Guardianship means that a person who is completely incapacitated cannot validly perform legal acts, i.e., enter into binding contracts. However, guardianship does not create physical barriers to prevent such a person from leaving the house. Placing such a person in a social welfare home or a nursing facility also cannot occur without the consent of the guardianship court, which examines whether there are grounds for such a stay,” says Julia Jurczuk-Macek, an attorney running her own law firm.
Placement of a Senior in a Nursing Home Without Their Consent – The Role of the Guardianship Court
Even a senior’s consent to limit their freedom carries little weight. For example, even if a person under guardianship agrees to reside in a nursing home, the court procedure remains mandatory.
“Obtaining the consent of the guardianship court is necessary even when the incapacitated person expresses consent to be referred to a nursing home. The court may hear them, take their position into account if the person is able to express their observations, but this does not allow skipping the court stage,” says Julia Jurczuk.