- Jay Leno files for conservatorship over his wife, Mavis Leno, who has been diagnosed with dementia.
- The court documents include a doctor’s report describing Mavis’s condition and lack of capacity to participate in legal proceedings.
- Mavis Leno is a prominent advocate for women’s rights and Jay Leno has faced health issues in recent years.
Additional Coverage:
Comedian Jay Leno has filed for a conservatorship over his wife, Mavis Leno, after she was diagnosed with dementia. The 77-year-old Mavis has been progressively losing capacity and orientation to space and time for several years, rendering her incapable of executing the estate plan. Leno, who has always handled the couple’s finances, seeks to create a trust for their joint estate that will provide for Mavis’s care in the event of his death. The couple does not have children, but Leno’s estate plan will also provide for Mavis’s brother, her sole living heir. A hearing on the matter is scheduled for April 9.
The court documents include a doctor’s report dated November 28, 2023, which describes Mavis’s dementia diagnosis and her symptoms. According to the doctor, Mavis is unable to participate meaningfully in the hearing or understand its nature, force, or effect due to her condition. The doctor also states that Mavis lacks the capacity to give informed consent to any form of medical treatment.
Mavis Leno, a long-time board member of the Feminist Majority Foundation, is known for her work in women’s rights advocacy and the Campaign for Afghan Women and Girls.
Jay Leno, 73, has had multiple health scares in recent years, including serious burns from a gasoline fire in 2022 and multiple broken bones from a motorcycle crash shortly after. He hosted “The Tonight Show” from 1992 to 2009 and again from 2010 to 2014. In a 2014 interview, Mavis defended Jay against accusations that he gave up the show to Conan O’Brien and then took it back, clarifying that it was not what had happened.