Born to a single mother struggling with addiction, and growing up in and out of foster care, Michael Oher later went on to star as a University of Mississippi football player. The NFL drafted him in the first round in 2009. And he played eight seasons in the NFL. He also won a Super Bowl in 2016. And is the subject of a book that inspired an Oscar-winning movie, The Blind Side. Not included in the movie is Oher’s conservatorship.
The court appointed Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, the Tennessee couple that took Oher into their home when he was in high school as conservators of his estate. Their story features prominently in The Blind Side. But Oher alleges that, contrary to the movie’s portrayal of events, the Tuohys failed to adopt him. Oher alleges that the Tuohy’s, instead, tricked him into agreeing to conservatorship and unjustly profited from his trust in them. While the accusations will play out in court, they raise questions about the conservatorship.
What Is a Conservatorship?
A conservatorship is a court-ordered arrangement that gives one person (or multiple people), called a conservator, legal authority to manage the affairs of another person, known as a conservatee or ward. Conservatees are often children. Incapacitated adults and those with developmental or age-related disabilities often enter conservatorship.
Michael Oher’s Conservatorship
In 2004, shortly after Oher turned 18 and about two months before he signed on to play football at Ole Miss, a Tennessee judge entered an order establishing a conservatorship over Oher with the Tuohys as conservators. At the time, the court set up the conservatorship with the permission of Oher as well as his biological mother. According to the conservatorship filing, a judge rules that the Tuohys “have all powers of attorney to act on his behalf and further that Oher shall not be allowed to enter into any contracts or bind himself without the direct approval of his conservators.”
Legal experts say the 2004 filing for a conservatorship of the person is unusual because Oher had “no known physical or psychological disabilities.” The petition notes that he was a good student and made the dean’s list his sophomore year.
Adoption versus Conservatorship
Adopting Oher would have made him a member of the Tuohy family, no different in the eyes of the law than the Tuohys’ two birth children. Adoption would also have allowed Oher to retain power over his own financial affairs—a power that he surrendered under the conservatorship.
The Tuohys say Oher’s accusations blindsided them. Their version of events portrays the conservatorship as necessary to help Oher with a driver’s license, health insurance, and the college admissions process. Sean Tuohy said lawyers advised him that adoption was not an option because Oher was 18 and a legal adult.
Conservatorships and Estate Planning
The Tennessee judge overseeing the case signed an order ending the conservatorship. However, Oher’s accusations against the Tuohys will play out in court. Among the legal questions to be answered are whether the Tuohys filed an annual report with an accounting of Oher’s finances with the probate court and if they have received money on Oher’s behalf and properly disbursed it to him.
Conservatorships, illustrated by the Michael Oher and Britney Spears cases, can sometimes lead to family feuds about the intentions of a conservator toward a ward. Taking away somebody’s legal rights to make decisions—and giving those rights to somebody else—is often reserved only for extreme situations, such as when somebody is brain injured, suffers a stroke, is in a coma, or develops dementia.
Plan Early and Often to Avoid Difficult Choices Later
Failure to plan for all possibilities—even those we would rather not think about—can have unintended consequences. If you neglect estate planning considerations now, you could limit your future options around issues like conservatorships, probate, and inheritance.
About Skvarna Law Firm in Glendora and Upland, California
Let a skilled attorney assist with your estate plan. So, contact us today to learn about your options (909) 608-7671. We operate offices in Glendora and Upland, California. Therefore, we provide legal services for individuals living in San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties. This includes the cities of Upland, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, Colton, Rialto, Chino, Chino Hills, Glendora, Claremont, Montclair, Pomona, La Verne, San Dimas, Azusa, Covina, West Covina, Diamond Bar, Walnut, La Puente, Corona, Norco & Mira Loma. Visit SkvarnaLaw.com to learn more.
