Parents’ Guardianship Kit
Your Children Should Never Wait on a Judge to Decide Where They Sleep
You probably know who you would trust to raise your children if you could no longer be there. But knowing who you want for your kids is different from putting that decision into a legal plan. The Parents’ Guardian Kit helps you put your wishes in writing, prepare the people you trust, and keep one of the most important decisions about your children’s future in your hands.
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I Named a Guardian in My Will. Isn’t That Enough?
Naming a guardian in your will is an important step, but it doesn’t create a complete plan for what happens to your children if you suddenly aren’t there.
Your will doesn’t solve the immediate emergency.
A guardian named in your will does not simply take your children home the moment something happens to you. There is still a legal process before that appointment becomes effective. Your children may need someone you trust to step in during the hours or days before then.
A family promise isn’t a legal appointment.
Your sister may have promised to raise your children. Your parents may know exactly what you want. You may even have chosen godparents. Those conversations matter personally, but they do not give someone legal authority to act as your child’s guardian.
Your first choice may not be available.
The person you trust today could move away, become ill, face a major life change, or simply be unable to take responsibility when the time comes. A complete plan lets you name backup choices instead of leaving your family without direction.
A guardian doesn’t automatically control your child’s inheritance.
Choosing who raises your children and deciding who manages the money you leave them are separate decisions. Your plan should address both, especially when your children are too young to manage an inheritance themselves.
The Parents’ Guardian Kit goes beyond naming someone in your will. It helps you plan for who should raise your children, who can step in during an emergency, who should serve as a backup, and how the rest of your estate plan should work around them.
The Parents’ Guardian Kit Includes
Guardian Appointment
Put your choice of who should care for your children in writing.
Backup Guardian
Name another person you trust if your first choice cannot serve
Emergency Care Planning
Prepare for the period when your children need someone to step in before the long-term plan takes effect.
Medical Care Planning
Help the people caring for your children handle medical needs when you are unavailable
Caregiver Instructions
Leave important details about your children’s routines, schools, doctors, values, and care.
Estate Planning Coordination
Plan for who manages the money and property you leave behind for your children.
If something happens to both parents without a legal guardian plan in place, the question of who cares for your children can end up before a court. The Parents’ Guardian Kit helps you make that choice now, while it is still yours to make.
The Parents’ Guardian Kit Includes
If something happens to both parents without a legal guardian plan in place, the question of who cares for your children can end up before a court. The Parents’ Guardian Kit helps you make that choice now, while it is still yours to make.
Put your choice of who should care for your children in writing.
Name another person you trust if your first choice cannot serve.
Prepare for the period when your children need someone to step in before the long-term plan takes effect.
Help the people caring for your children handle medical needs when you are unavailable.
Plan for who manages the money and property you leave behind for your children.
Leave important details about your children’s routines, schools, doctors, values, and care.
What Happens If You Don’t Legally Name a Guardian for Your Children?
The people you love may know your wishes. The law needs more.
You may have already told your sister that you want her to raise your children. Your parents may know the plan, and the person you chose may have promised that they would step in without hesitation.
But when it comes to who legally cares for your children if you die or can no longer care for them, a family understanding is not the same as a legal plan.
Here is the difference planning can make.
Without a legally documented choice, your family may have to turn to the courts to determine who has authority to care for your children. The people closest to you can explain what they believe you wanted, but they cannot point to a legal document that clearly records your decision.
That can create uncertainty at exactly the moment your children need stability most.
This is an important step. A will can name the person you want to care for your children, and that choice can carry significant legal weight.
But a will does not answer every question your children may face.
Who can step in during the immediate emergency? What happens if your first choice cannot serve? Who has the information caregivers need about your children? Who should manage the money you leave behind?
Naming a guardian is important. Building a plan around that guardian is better.
The Parents’ Guardian Kit looks beyond a single guardian nomination and plans for what your children could actually need if you were no longer able to care for them.
Depending on your family and whether you live in Michigan or Washington, D.C., your plan can document your preferred guardian and backup choices, address emergency care, preserve important caregiver instructions, and coordinate guardianship decisions with the estate plan you leave behind.
Instead of asking your family to piece together what you would have wanted, you leave them a plan built around the decisions you made yourself.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How do I appoint a guardian for my child if I die?
Michigan law allows the parent of an unmarried minor to appoint a guardian through a will or another written document signed by the parent and witnessed by at least two people. The Parents’ Guardian Kit helps you document your choice and plan for the other decisions your children may face if you are no longer able to care for them.
Who gets guardianship of my child if I die?
If the other parent is alive and retains parental rights, that parent’s rights generally come first. If both parents have died, are legally incapacitated, or the surviving parent has no parental rights or is legally incapacitated, a properly made parental guardian appointment can become effective when the appointed guardian files an acceptance with the appropriate court. (Michigan Legislature)
Can I name a guardian for my children in my will?
Yes. Michigan law specifically allows you to appoint a guardian for a minor child in your will. However, a will alone may not address every part of your children’s protection, including temporary care when you are unavailable, backup choices, caregiver instructions, and how assets left to your children should be managed. (Michigan Legislature)
If I already named a guardian in my will, why would I need a Parents’ Guardian Kit?
Naming a guardian is an important part of the plan, but it answers only one question: Who do I want to care for my children long term?
A more complete plan can also address who steps in temporarily when you are unavailable, who serves if your first choice cannot, what caregivers need to know about your children, and how your guardianship choices work alongside your estate plan.
What if the guardian I choose cannot take care of my children?
Your plan can name a backup choice. This is important because circumstances change. Someone who is the right choice today could move, develop health problems, experience major family changes, or simply be unable to serve years from now.
Can someone care for my child temporarily if I am hospitalized or unavailable?
Michigan law allows a parent to use a properly executed power of attorney to delegate certain parental powers concerning a minor child’s care, custody, or property to another person for up to 180 days. There are exceptions to what can be delegated, and special provisions apply in certain military deployments. (Michigan Legislature)
Can my child object to the guardian I choose?
Michigan law gives a minor who is 14 or older the right to object to a parental guardian appointment before it becomes effective or within 28 days after receiving notice of the appointment. This is one reason parents with teenagers may want to discuss their choice with their children as part of the planning process. (Zeus Milenia)
What happens if my chosen guardian dies or can no longer serve?
Your plan should include another person you trust as a backup. It should also be reviewed whenever your chosen guardian’s circumstances change so that the people named in your documents still reflect your wishes.
When should I update my Parents’ Guardian Kit?
Review your plan after major family changes, including the birth of another child, marriage, divorce, moving to another state, or a significant change in your chosen guardian’s circumstances. Even when nothing major changes, periodically reviewing the plan helps ensure your choices and instructions are still current.
How do I sign my Michigan guardian appointment correctly?
Michigan has specific execution requirements for a parental guardian appointment. Before signing, read our How to Sign and Use Your Michigan Guardian Appointment → for instructions about witnesses, signing, storing the original, providing copies, and keeping the document current. (Michigan Legislature)