There are two general types of guardianships that families may seek for children: guardianship of the estate of a minor and guardianship of the person of a minor. 

A Guardian of the Estate (or Conservator or other title as dictated by state law)is a person designated by the court to oversee the child’s financial matters. This person may be a relative or an unbiased third party such as an accountant or attorney. The Guardian of the Estate is responsible for making sure that the child’s money and/or property is properly managed. The Guardian of the Estate’s authority lasts until the court deems it is no longer necessary.

A Guardian of the Person of a minor has the authority to take physical control and provide care for the minor.  The guardian is responsible for making decisions about medical care, education and other factors and events that would affect the child’s life.  

The extent of a guardianship may vary. 

Plenary Guardian.  This type of guardianship is the closest legal definition for the rights and responsibilities that are naturally assumed with parenthood. A Plenary Guardian oversees both the “person” as well as the “estate” and, as a result, makes all the decisions on the child’s behalf. The only limitation to this type of guardianship is a condition stipulated by the court.

Emergency Guardian.  As the name indicates, this individual is awarded guardianship in an emergency situation.  This individual might be an attorney, a relative or other adult who is given the responsibility of caring and supervising the child until a long-term guardian can be appointed. This type of guardianship may be used when the child’s immediate welfare is at stake.

Interim Guardian.  In this type of guardianship, the court designates a guardian for a period of   time until it can appoint a permanent or replacement guardian.

Limited Guardian.  In this type of guardianship, the court gives this type of guardian authority over a specific aspect of the child’s life but nothing else. An example of this type of guardianship is a situation in which the parents oppose certain medical procedures but the court decides these procedures are in the child’s best interest.

The court may designate a physician to be a Limited Guardian with respect to the child’s medical care. The parents maintain all other forms of guardianship while the Limited Guardian is authorized to make the final decisions on the child’s medical treatment.

These different types of guardianship can be mixed and matched to suit the specific needs of the child. In addition, two people can share one or more types of guardianship for a child in which case, they would be “co-guardians”.

State Examples

Kansas has provisions for both a durable power of attorney and guardianship for minor children. 

Durable Power of Attorney.  A child's parents can temporarily give legal rights to a grandparent or another relative caring for the child through signature of a durable power-of-attorney form.  Kansas law permits the parents to give selected rights, such as a right to make health-related or schooling-related decisions, to a grandparent or other caregiver.  The durable power-of-attorney may last for a designated temporary period, or end at any time chosen by the parents, up until the child reaches the age of 18. Parents who need temporary assistance with caregiving responsibilities may use a durable power-of-attorney form; in doing so, they may retain their legal rights to custody of the child and avoid a formal guardianship arrangement.

Legal Guardianship for Children. Grandparents or other relatives caring for children also can seek legal guardianship from a Kansas court. If granted, the legal guardian has the same custodial rights and obligations as those held by parents. While a legal guardianship may become a long-term custodial solution for a child, it remains temporary in that the court does not permanently terminate the rights of the child's parents when granting the arrangement. The child's parent may be able to ask the court to terminate the guardianship if the parent wishes to regain custody of the child. A legal guardianship may be voluntary if the child's parents agree, but also involuntary without parental approval if ordered by the court

In Kentucky, a person wishing to be appointed a child's guardian files a Petition and an Application with the district court in the county where the child lives. If the child is 14 years of age or older, the child may nominate his or her own guardian.  The court conducts a hearing at which the child's best interests are considered. The child for whom a guardian is being sought is considered the “respondent” and must be represented by an attorney (which the court may appoint). The court, based on the evidence, may appoint a guardian

In Idaho, any “interested person” may become a child’s guardian. When a family or other interested party seeks to become a child’s guardian, the court appoints a guardian ad litem attorney to represent the child.  Guardians receive “letters of guardianship” that can be revoked only by the court.  Idaho law also uses the term “conservatorship” to refer to the court appointing a competent suitable person to manage the financial affairs of a child, an adult with developmental disabilities, or a person who is otherwise incapacitated. 

New York law allows any person to ask the court to be appointed the guardian of a child under 18 years of age.  A child over the age of 14 may ask the court to appoint a guardian and the child may voice his or her consent to the guardian who the court chooses.  Parents may to allow the individual to be the child's guardian.  The appointed guardian receives receive "letters of guardianship" that authorize him/her to make decisions on behalf of the child.

Ohio defines “guardian” as a guardian of the person, limited guardian, interim guardian, or emergency guardian pursuant to appointment by the probate court.  A parent may nominate another person in a writing to be the guardian of a person, estate, or both of the parent’s minor children, whether born at the time of the execution of the writing or afterward, subject to notice and a probate court hearing. The probate court, based on the presented evidence, may then grant a guardianship.

These types of guardianship are generally granted by Probate Courts. State laws vary as to what must be demonstrated for a court to grant guardianship.

State Examples 

Under Massachusetts law, the court will approve a guardianship when the parents of the child and the child, if age 14 or older, if the judge finds that guardianship is in the child’s best interest. If either parent objects to the guardianship  and guardianship is being sought by a nonparent, the courts must find “clear and convincing evidence” that the objecting parents is unfit to have custody of the child and that it is in the child’s best interest that someone else be appointed guardian.

In New York State, the person asking that a guardianship be granted must show that the parents will consent or prove “extraordinary circumstances” that demonstrate a parent’s unfitness or inability to parent (such as parental mental illness or abandonment of the child).

In Virginia, courts are required to “give due regard to the primacy of the parent-child relationship but may upon a showing by clear and convincing evidence that the best interest of the child would be served” by awarding a guardianship “to any other person [other than a parent] with a legitimate interest.”  These individuals are to be broadly construed and includes but is not limited to grandparents, stepparents, former stepparents, biological relatives and family members (Code of Virginia Section 20-124.1)