Common Myths: Parents and Selecting a Child's Guardian

When I tell people that I am an estate planning attorney they often, wrongly, assume that my entire clientele consists of baby boomers or members of the "greatest generation". In fact, half of my clientele are parents with minor children -- and that is a good thing because they are one population where a will is imperative. Why? A will is the only way to legally declare a guardian for minor children. With Boomers or octogenarians, not having a will is not a huge crisis if their wishes do not deviate from statutorily prescribed distributions of estate. But with parents, there is no assumption about who will raise minor children.

Last month I read a nice article addressing why more parents of minor children do not take action. The author cites 4 myths:

1. There is a perfect match. I'd call this analysis paralysis....you search and search, but take no action;
2. Someone will step up;
3. A letter or email is sufficient;
4. You don't need to ask the guardian before making the nomination.

Thanks to Prof. Gerry Breyer for posting this article on his blog.

If you have children, take charge now. The last thing your child(ren) need is to loose both parents and then have a dispute over who will raise them.

Remember, a blog is not a substitute for an attorney. Please seek legal advice from an attorney licensed in your home state.