GUARDIANS FOR YOUR CHILDREN

You may have informal arrangements as to who will look after your children if anything happens to you.  Without naming a guardian in your Will it's open to doubt and Social Services could intervene to deny your wishes.  In some circumstances, decisions on hospital treatment can also be delayed if there is no Will.

• Informal arrangements with relatives are not recognized by authorities.
  

• Unmarried fathers have no legal rights.   Try putting the children on their father's passport!
  

• Make a Will and appoint guardians of your choice to look after your children.
  

• Make a Will and create a trust for the benefit of your children.
  

• Save your guardians time and money contesting their rights in the courts.

Making a Will can make sure your wishes are adhered to.

Came into force 14 October 1991and introduced the new concept of parental responsibility:

Parental Responsibility.

The term "Parental Responsibility" has come about through the philosophy that vital to the relationship between parent and child should be a responsibility toward the child rather than having rights over that child.

The Law is particularly pertinent where a couple who have between them produced a child and are not married.

Who has Parental Responsibility?

If both the ''Birth Mother'' and ''Birth Father'' of a child are married at the time of the birth then BOTH mother and father have and will continue to have parental responsibility for that child.

A subsequent adoption order concerning that child will however cause the parents to lose parental responsibility by court order.

If the ''Birth Mother'' and ''Birth Father'' of a child are not married at the time of the birth of that child then ONLY the Mother has parental responsibility for that child.

The Birth Father can acquire parental responsibility by agreement with the Mother and/or by court order. If parental responsibility is granted by agreement then that agreement must be registered with the Principal Registry. (Very few parents do).

If the ''Birth Mother'' and the ''Birth Father'' of a child subsequently marry then BOTH have parental responsibility for that child.

If the ''Birth Mother'' and the ''Birth Father'' of a child divorce having legally been married, then neither parent will lose their parental responsibility irrespective of where the child lives. unless the court stipulates otherwise).

If one partner within a marriage dies, any appointed guardians will NOT be entitled to act.

The guardians appointed in your Will only act if both parents die.

In a divorce case where the father lives away and the mother dies, again any guardians appointed by the mother will not automatically be entitled to act if the birth father is still alive.

Note; Grand parents do not have by right, nor would they be granted automatic parental responsibility. They could, however if circumstances dictated, be awarded a residence order.   Better still, they could be appointed to act in your Will.

An adoption order concerning any child will cause the parents to lose parental responsibility by court order.

Generally it would be advisable to appoint in your Will a Husband and Wife team who would obviously be more capable of acting as Guardians than separate individuals who live in different locations.