Single parenthood can present myriad challenges. With the onslaught of everyday tasks, planning for who might care for your child in the event of your death might not be at the top of your list. But even if it is less pressing than figuring out what your child is willing to eat today, planning for who will take care of your child if something happens to you is an essential part of your estate planning.<\/p>\n
Dying without nominating a guardian or conservator means your child will be the subject of a court-ordered guardianship or conservatorship \u2013 legal processes where a court appoints a person to assume responsibility for a child under 18 or their finances when parents are unable to provide care. When there is a surviving legal parent, that parent will have the right to sole custody of the child, absent a determination that the surviving parent is unfit. However, if there is no surviving parent, the court must appoint a guardian or conservator based on its determination of the best interests of the child. Obviously, what the court determines to be the best interests of your child might not be in line with your wishes.<\/p>\n
With that said, here are four reasons why it is better to be prepared with a comprehensive estate plan nominating a guardian and conservator.<\/p>\n
Having a will nominating a guardian and conservator can prevent conflict. If the child does not have a second or third legal parent, nominating a guardian and conservator in a will is the only way to have any input into who will care for your child after your death. Your nominee is not entitled to automatic appointment, but the court will generally give the nomination some weight in deciding who to appoint. The nomination may prevent extended family from fighting over who is to assume the role of guardian or conservator for your child after your death.<\/p>\n
Communicating with your nominee beforehand is key. If your nominee does not know beforehand that you have chosen them, they may not be prepared to take on the role of guardian or conservator. Going to the trouble of preparing a comprehensive estate plan is useless if your chosen nominee is unable or unwilling to serve.<\/p>\n
In Massachusetts, minors cannot directly inherit money or real estate. If your child may inherit assets, you may want to nominate a conservator for your child as well. A conservator is someone the court appoints to manage and control the child\u2019s assets until the child reaches the age of majority. If you do not nominate someone, the court will appoint someone suitable. As in the case of a guardian nominee, a nominated conservator may not be appointed but is entitled to first consideration by the court, provided there is no other parent.<\/p>\n
A conservator can be the same or a different person as your child\u2019s appointed guardian. Conservatorships of minors typically end at age 18, so nominating a conservator might not be sufficient to ensure that your assets are protected until your child is mature enough to manage them alone.<\/p>\n
First, you can nominate a guardian and a conservator in a document other than a will. A document nominating a guardian must be in writing, notarized, and witnessed to be valid. Interestingly, the statute does not contain similar requirements for nominating a conservator, noting in the comments that \u201cthere are many mechanisms available to the nominating individual to protect the property besides a conservatorship.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another alternative is that Massachusetts law also allows a parent to delegate parental authority during their lifetime under certain conditions and for a limited time. This delegation of authority occurs by completing a Caregiver Authorization Affidavit, which is only valid for two years and thereafter must be renewed. With such an affidavit, the parent and the caregiver have authority, but in cases of disagreement, the parent\u2019s decision controls.<\/p>\n
If a person did not nominate a guardian or conservator before death and there is no other parent, the proper procedure is for someone who is interested to petition the court for the appointment of a guardian and\/or conservator. There are three key areas of attention in petitioning for the appointment of a guardian or conservator.<\/p>\n
When planning for your child\u2019s care, consult with an attorney about your options.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Single parenthood can present myriad challenges. With the onslaught of everyday tasks, planning for who might care for your child in the event of your death might not be at the top of your list. But even if it is less pressing than figuring out what your child is willing…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":136,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[42,249],"tags":[247,246,245,248],"class_list":["post-183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-estate-plan","category-guardians","tag-caregiver-authorization-affidavit","tag-conservator","tag-guardian","tag-guardian-ad-litem"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n