Guardianship for Minor Kids
Having A Will Alone Does Not Ensure the Care of Your Kids
If you are a parent of minor children (or those with special needs), your estate plan must begin with your children to ensure they will always be taken care of by the people you want, in the way you want, no matter what happens.
At Zarda Law, S.C., one of our areas of greatest expertise is planning for the well-being and care of children, an area commonly missed by traditional estate planning attorneys. Don’t leave your children’s futures to chance.
Did you know that 69% of parents have not yet named guardians for their kids?
Without Proper Planning Here’s What Could Happen:
Your children could be placed into Child Protective Services (CPS) even if you have a will in place; even if you have a living trust while your legal documents or located or your family is identified. Or worse, your kids could be left in the care of the one person in your family you would never want raising them;
A Judge who doesn’t know you, or your family, will decide who will raise your kids.
Approximately 5% of the total value of your assets could be lost due to probate
When your kids turn 18, they get a check for whatever assets are left – outright with no protection.
There are people who make it their business to review public records to find out what 18 year olds are coming into money.
The vast majority of estate planning attorneys simply do not address these issues, and do not plan from a parent’s perspective.
Yes, these things scare us too. That’s why we offer a Child Well-being Plan with every estate plan we prepare for families with young children.
What is a Child Well-being Plan?
A Child Well-Being Plan is a set of instructions and legal documents.
If you are in an accident, your Child Well-being Plan will make sure your children are never taken into the custody of Child Protective Services, strangers or the care of anyone you wouldn’t want because the authorities don't have clear instructions from you. And this plan will ensure your children are raised by people you choose, not someone chosen by a Judge who doesn’t know you.
What if we can’t agree on who to name as legal guardian of our kids?
If you and your spouse/partner cannot agree on who would be the ideal guardian(s) for your kids, that’s something we can help with. We can help parents work through this critical decision.
Otherwise, if you do nothing, the decision about who would raise your children (if something were to happen to you) would be left up to a judge to decide.
We know that’s not what you want.
And, truth is… there may never be a perfect solution for you, but there is definitely a solution that is better than your children being raised by someone you didn’t choose.
Responsible parents protect their children, and that means they plan ahead.
