guardianship of my child if I die

What is the name of your state? Texas

My husband and I are in the middle of an uncontested divorce. We have completed all the forms and are filing them tomorrow. There is verbage in the Settlement Agreement regarding him having custody but friends of ours having guardianship of our minor child in the event of my death. I would like to know if there is more I need to do to make this arrangement legally binding. My husband is not able to quit his job to home school her and he does not live a lifestyle appropriate for her best interests. The same question applies in the event we both die while she is still a minor. We are in agreement on this now and I would like to make it more legally binding in the event he tries to change his mind later on. What forms should I consider?

MichellePk said:

What is the name of your state? Texas

My husband and I are in the middle of an uncontested divorce. We have completed all the forms and are filing them tomorrow. There is verbage in the Settlement Agreement regarding him having custody but friends of ours having guardianship of our minor child in the event of my death. I would like to know if there is more I need to do to make this arrangement legally binding. My husband is not able to quit his job to home school her and he does not live a lifestyle appropriate for her best interests. The same question applies in the event we both die while she is still a minor. We are in agreement on this now and I would like to make it more legally binding in the event he tries to change his mind later on. What forms should I consider?

Click to expand...

My response:

Unless he terminates his parental rights due to some legally cognizable reason, your scheme of guardianship isn't going to happen. Upon your death, he immediately obtains custody of his children. You cannot "Will-away" your children, nor can you sidestep the jurisdiction of the court to make such a decision.

In other words, anything the two of you agree to along these lines is void on it's face, and unenforceable by the court.

IAAL

In my effort to remain brief I did not get an answer to my question. My husband does not want to sign away his parental rights. He works fulltime and plays music most nights and does not want to change his life style. I have been home schooling and providing for her care fulltime for 4 years since we separated. This is the case with most broken homes. He visits her one night a week and she spends a day and night with him every weekend. He would like for this to continue with our friends (whom we have known for years) providing for her in the event of our joint death or my death. They would need to have some ability to provide emergency medical care and he wants to continue providing support for her. This is preferable to him putting her in the care of strangers and babysitters when he is unavailable and forcing her to go to public school and after school care to accomodate his work schedule. Is there a legal form available for such situations?

MichellePk said:

In my effort to remain brief I did not get an answer to my question. My husband does not want to sign away his parental rights. He works fulltime and plays music most nights and does not want to change his life style. I have been home schooling and providing for her care fulltime for 4 years since we separated. This is the case with most broken homes. He visits her one night a week and she spends a day and night with him every weekend. He would like for this to continue with our friends (whom we have known for years) providing for her in the event of our joint death or my death. They would need to have some ability to provide emergency medical care and he wants to continue providing support for her. This is preferable to him putting her in the care of strangers and babysitters when he is unavailable and forcing her to go to public school and after school care to accomodate his work schedule. Is there a legal form available for such situations?

Click to expand...

My response:

You either didn't understand my response, or you refuse to understand my response. Either way, everything that you have stated is completely irrelevant.

In the event of YOUR death, the father obtains immediate custody. Period. You CANNOT usurp the jurisdiction of the court by making a private agreement. If, however, your ex wants to give custody to someone else AFTER your death, then he and the guardians can file a Petition in court. But, the end result is the same - - you MUST go through the court to have custody transferred. A private agreement for custody is useless.

In the event of your dual death then the court, through Child Protective Services, takes immediate custody of your child(ren) and then any surviving relatives may file a Petition in court for custody -- the exact nature of this Petition and the requirements are beyond the question of this thread.

I know what you want to do, but you can't do what you want to do. Everything must go through the court system, and approval of a judge, first.

IAAL

"This is preferable to him .....forcing her to go to public school and after school care to accomodate his work schedule."

Just curious. Please explain why the concept of a public school is so abhorent that a parent would rather not even have his kids than have them attend public school? Many very distinquished Americans attended public schools and universities. I know successful doctors, lawyers, community leaders, all of whom are model citizens - and attended public schools.

nextwife said:

"This is preferable to him .....forcing her to go to public school and after school care to accomodate his work schedule."

Just curious. Please explain why the concept of a public school is so abhorent that a parent would rather not even have his kids than have them attend public school? Many very distinquished Americans attended public schools and universities. I know successful doctors, lawyers, community leaders, all of whom are model citizens - and attended public schools.

Click to expand...

My response:

Nextwife, you're dwelling on the minutia, and a non-issue. The above quote is just a meaningless, "throw-away issue" that has nothing to do with the issue of custody and guardianship, or her belief that she can give away her child without court orders. Her statement is one of emotion and filler.

IAAL