Being a Guardian Is Important: Here’s How to Do It Well

Being appointed a guardian to a minor child is a serious undertaking. If you have or are considering applying for guardianship, you have likely felt the emotional, relational, and logistical implications of this decision.
The child—or “protected person”—under your guardianship depends heavily on you to make the best possible decisions regarding their welfare, estate, and other issues from a legal standpoint. There are several ways you can perform your role effectively and further the well-being of the child you represent.
Understand the Type of Guardianship You are Undertaking
The State of Ohio handles guardianship in three ways, including decision-making control over
- The minor’s person
- The minor’s estate
- Both minor’s person and estate
Caring for the minor’s person involves making healthcare, housing, and other decisions on their behalf. Having control over their estate means making legal decisions regarding managing the child’s financial assets. Duties include collecting what is due to the child, overseeing growth funds, and making payments out of their accounts. Some guardians handle both person and estate.
Distinguishing between the two is essential to know the legal limits on your decision-making on behalf of the child. For example, making healthcare decisions for your ward does not necessarily give you open access to their accounts or allow you to decide how to pay medical bills. In this case, those decisions might fall to someone else.
Get to Know Your Ward
Whether or not a judge has already appointed you guardian, you should take time to know as much about the minor child as you can. Although you make the final determination in certain legal matters, knowing the child’s feelings, wishes, or preferences regarding specific issues can help you make better, more informed decisions. Becoming more familiar with the child can also help strengthen your relationship.
However, you should only consider—not act on—the child’s feelings alone. Often, other factors that a protected person cannot understand entirely make them ill-equipped to respond appropriately. Remember, that is why you have guardianship.
Seek Advice from a Family Attorney
A family lawyer has extensive knowledge about guardianship issues. They can inform you of your rights and limitations, and they can answer all your questions about this complex process. If you are still applying to be a guardian, an attorney can help you anticipate all you need to do to complete your application and advocate for the minor child.
If you have guardianship over a minor child and live in the greater Cincinnati area, qualified and experienced family attorneys are available to you. The legal team at Donnellon, Donnellon & Miller includes accomplished attorneys who specialize in family law.
Communicate Openly with the Child’s Family
Serving as a child’s guardian often means maintaining a relationship with that child’s family. Being unable to attend to their child’s needs does not necessarily mean that parents have stopped caring about what’s best for their son or daughter.
As a guardian, continuing an open and positive relationship with the family is essential. Do your best to be transparent when necessary, including keeping them informed of all the legal decisions you made on their child’s behalf. Communicating clearly and honestly can help prevent misunderstandings and hard feelings, even if they disagree with some of your choices.