Guardian ad Litem work
When a court questions whether an adult can still manage their own life, that person stands to lose the right to decide where they live, how they spend their money, who is allowed to see them.
Someone has to sit with that person, listen past the diagnosis, and tell the court the truth about what they actually need.
The role
I am appointed by the court as Guardian ad Litem in North Carolina incompetency and guardianship proceedings under Chapter 35A of the General Statutes. This is active casework, carried alongside my other work — not a credential from an earlier chapter.
As of August 2026, I am appointed in four active matters across Alamance and Orange Counties.
What the work involves
- Meeting the respondent — more than once, and somewhere they can actually speak.
- Reading the medical record without letting it do the thinking for me.
- Talking to the people around them, including the ones who disagree with each other.
- Looking at what capacity the respondent does have, domain by domain, rather than treating the question as all or nothing.
- Reporting to the court on what the respondent needs, and on the least restrictive way to meet it.
The respondent’s own wishes are evidence. Not a formality, and not something to be summarized away because someone else finds them inconvenient.
The rules I work under
None of this is discretionary, and you don’t have to take my word for any of it.
The role itself is statutory. A respondent’s entitlement to a guardian ad litem comes from N.C.G.S. § 35A-1107(a), within Chapter 35A, Incompetency and Guardianship. That chapter sets out what the court must find, what a guardian may and may not do, and what a respondent keeps.
Everything I do as a lawyer is separately governed by the North Carolina Rules of Professional Conduct, adopted by the State Bar Council and approved by the Supreme Court of North Carolina.
Both are public. If you want to know what I am required to do in your family member’s case, read them.
What this page is not
Appointments come from the court, not from this website. Nothing here is legal advice, and reading it does not make me your lawyer or your family member’s.
Connect
If you’re an attorney or a clerk working in this area, I’m always glad to be in touch — about a matter, a referral, or a question you’re turning over.
Or email me at RuthPearce@allellc.org.