Brian's family filed for conservatorship after the news that his wife, Melinda, had died.

"My heart is broken. Melinda, my beloved wife of 28 years, passed away this morning, Our five children and I are just in tears," he wrote in his announcement. "We are lost. Melinda was more than my wife. She was my savior. She gave me the emotional security I needed to have a career."

The family filed for conservatorship just days after Melinda's passing. According to the court documents, Brian is suffering from a neurocognitive disorder that keeps him from taking good care of himself. It seems like Melinda's death, and her inability to continue taking care of Brian, was the ultimate trigger for the conservatorship to go into place.

"Following the passing of Brian's beloved wife Melinda, after careful consideration and consultation among Brian, his seven children, Gloria Ramos, and Brian's doctors (and consistent with family processes put in place by Brian and Melinda), we are confirming that longtime Wilson family representatives LeeAnn Hard and Jean Sievers will serve as Brian's co-conservators of the person," the family announced on Instagram.

While conservatorship has been in the news in recent years because of the one that was placed on Britney Spears, there are some circumstances where the framework is appropriate. It's always possible for someone to abuse the system, but in this case, and given Brian's long and documented struggle with mental illness, there may not be any foul play.