Most people assume a caring family and a good doctor’s note will steer a loved one through a crisis. The hard truth in North Carolina: only a judge can declare incompetence, the evidence bar is high, and family conflict can put strangers in charge of the most personal decisions. We unpack the four biggest guardianship nightmares—thin medical proof, missing powers of attorney, contested petitions, and defaulting to third-party guardians—and show how to navigate each one with strategy, clarity,...