A conservator is a person who has the power and responsibility over your financial assets and property because you cannot manage your property and financial affairs effectively because of certain reasons and: 1) you have property that will be wasted or used up; or 2) funds are needed for the support, care, and welfare of you and your dependents.
Some of the reasons that might prevent you from being able to manage your property and financial affairs are: mental illness or deficiency; physical illness or disability; chronic use of alcohol/other intoxicants; confinement; detention by a foreign power; or disappearance.
If you do not have a Durable Power of Attorney, then court proceedings will be held so that a judge can appoint a conservator for you. This process takes time and it is costly.
You can avoid have a conservator, if you have a properly drafted Durable Power of Attorney. In your Durable Power of Attorney, you appoint someone, called an Agent, to handle your financial affairs.
You can only execute a Durable Power of Attorney if you are competent, and if you understand what you are signing. You can revoke your Durable Power of Attorney, and it expires upon your death.