Full question:
My niece has been diagnosed as bipolar an she has substance abuse problems and has already had 2 children removed from her care. Her youngest child is 2 and we have her. Her mom left her with us a week ago and she is not able to care for her and has a long history of offences, I am seeking legal guardianship of this child and need to know best way to go about it. Probably will need a lawyer. She may consent to let me have her but I am concerned about the future of the child with her history. Mom is 31 and been this way since she was 16 or 18 years old. I would like to file the proper papers and need to know which package would be best for this case. I would like only supervised visitation rights for the mom.
- Category: Minors
- Date:
- State: Texas
Answer:
Texas law states that the natural parents of a minor child are the natural guardians of the person, but not the estate, of their children. If one of the parents dies, the surviving parent is automatically the naturally guardian of the person. Because of this automatic recognition of parents as the guardians of their children, no appointment from a Court is necessary to validate the guardianship status.
However, this automatic provision does not relate to money or property to which minor children may become entitled. For instance, if a child inherits property from a parent or grandparent, the law presumes that the minor is not capable of handling the money for himself. Likewise, the law does not provide any automatic provision for a parent to serve as the guardian of the estate to manage the money for the children. Instead, in this instance, a Probate Court would have to appoint a guardian of the estate to manage money for a minor child.
In the event that a minor child’s parents both die or relinquish their parental rights, then the Probate Court would be required to appoint a guardian of both the person and estate of the minor child. In this instance, the law does not recognize any automatic provisions for determining a guardian to care for the minor children.
If both parents are still alive, it would be a complex proceeding in order to obtain guardianship over the children. Therefore, it is recommended that you discuss the matter with a local attorney who is experienced in probate law.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
