When referring to minors, guardianship is usually the process involved when a person who is not a parent of a minor takes over parenting responsibilities.  In essence, the court gives custody of the minor child to an adult relative, caregiver or other individual.  This term is also used to refer to someone who takes over the property of a minor child.

In some circumstances, guardianship appointments arise because of a catastrophe.  Both of the parents may have died in an accident or a single parent’s health may have declined to the extent that he or she can no longer care for the child.  Similarly, if a parent is deployed overseas and cannot take the child with him or her, a guardianship may be considered.

In other cases, guardianship may become necessary after the child was abandoned.  A parent may be unfit to raise the child at the current point in time due to financial, emotional, mental or other issues.  The parent may be suffering from substance abuse and may need to be treated at a rehabilitation center.  The parent may also be facing impending incarceration.

When making a determination regarding whether guardianship should be appointed, the family court judge may review the evidence.  The standard that the judge usually uses is to determine what is in the best interests of the child.  Each state has different factors that the court may consider, such as a history of abuse, a history of substance abuse, the child’s preferences if he or she is old enough or is able to understand and explain his or her wishes, the experiences of the potential guardian, the relationship between the potential guardian and the child and whether the child would suffer harm from being removed from his or her home in order to be placed with the guardian.