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Should I Appoint a Guardian?

By Jo M Robinson

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 13Oct2010 Word count: 433 Viewed: 293 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

If a parent dies and no one else has parental responsibility, the Courts decide who should have parental responsibility for children left behind. You can appoint a guardian even when a surviving parent has parental responsibility if there are grounds for believing the surviving parent is incapable of looking after the child. This is an important step you should take before making a will.

Parental responsibility isn't always straightforward, the following should determine whether it applies to your situation (England and Wales):

The mother automatically has legal parental responsibility. The child's father also has legal parental responsibility if he was married to the mother at the time of the child's birth.

For children born after 1st December 2003, an unmarried father automatically has parental responsibility if his name is on the birth certificate.

For children born before 1st December 2003, an unmarried father at the time of the birth won't automatically have parental responsibility, even if his name's on the birth certificate.

Parental responsibility can be when the father marries the mother and has the birth re-registered as a child of marriage, a parental responsibility agreement with the mother, obtaining a court parental responsibility order, obtaining a court residence order or being granted guardianship by the court on the mother's death.

If one parent dies, the surviving parent usually has guardianship a they have acquired parental responsibility.

What is a guardian?

A guardian is someone appointed to look after your child if you should die, the guardianship continues until the child's eighteenth birthday.

Ask the guardian before appointing them, you may appoint a second or backup guardian if the first is unable to look after your child when you die.

A guardian's appointment only happens if there's nobody alive with parental responsibility.

A guardian should be over the age eighteen. It's easier to choose someone with whom your child has had a previous close relationship.

Make it clear with whom the child should live,when appointing more than one guardian, to avoid disputes. Bear this in mind when you make a will.

How can I appoint a guardian

A guardian's appointment must be made in writing, signed and dated. The best way to appoint a guardian is under the terms of a Will, where you can appoint trustees to ensure your estate passes to your child. You can make wills online easily these days and it is something that is recommended you do to ensure your loved ones are looked after in the event you or your partner pass away.

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