Guardian Nomination Minors

---
name: guardian-nomination-minors
description: >-
  Drafts a US parental guardianship nomination for minor children aligned to
  state statute formalities and court best-interest standards. Covers primary
  and alternate guardian designations, death/incapacity triggers, custody-order
  alignment, scope of authority, financial coordination, and execution
  requirements. Use when creating a nomination of guardian, standby guardian
  appointment, or minor guardianship designation in estate planning.
tags:
  - agreement
  - drafting
  - transactional
---

# Nomination of Guardian for Minor Children

Draft a jurisdiction-specific nomination stating parental intent and satisfying state execution formalities.

## Prerequisites

Gather before drafting:

1. Governing state and statutory basis for parental nomination [VERIFY].
2. Parent(s) legal names, addresses, authority to nominate for each child.
3. Each minor child: full legal name, DOB, relationship, current residence.
4. Primary and alternate guardian(s): contact details, relationship, willingness confirmed.
5. Existing custody orders or parental-rights constraints.
6. Existing trusts/UTMA accounts; whether guardian of person and estate are the same.
7. State execution requirements: witness count/qualifications, notarization, self-proving affidavit [VERIFY].

## Drafting Workflow

### 1. Header and Preamble

- Title: "Nomination of Guardian for Minor Children."
- Identify nominating parent(s), capacity, voluntary intent, statutory authority.
- Cite governing statute: "[State] [Code Section] [VERIFY]."

### 2. Parties and Children

Populate identification table:

| Role | Full Legal Name | Address | DOB | Relationship/Authority |
|------|----------------|---------|-----|------------------------|
| Parent 1 | | | | |
| Parent 2 (if any) | | | | |
| Child 1 | | | | |
| Child 2+ | | | | |

### 3. Guardian Nominations

List primary and alternates in order of succession:

| Priority | Name | Address | Contact | Relationship | Willingness |
|----------|------|---------|---------|--------------|-------------|
| Primary | | | | | |
| First Alternate | | | | | |
| Second Alternate | | | | | |

### 4. Eligibility and Court Preference

Confirm statutory eligibility and request court give substantial weight to nomination consistent with the child's best interests. Cite state law [VERIFY].

### 5. Effectiveness Triggers

- [ ] Death of both parents (joint nomination) or sole nominating parent.
- [ ] Incapacity standard per state definition or medical certification [VERIFY].
- [ ] Temporary vs permanent incapacity distinguished.
- [ ] Rights of any other legal parent and existing custody orders acknowledged.

### 6. Scope of Guardian Authority

Parental guidance preferences (not court orders):

- [ ] Residence and daily care.
- [ ] Education and extracurricular decisions.
- [ ] Medical, dental, mental health decisions.
- [ ] Travel and relocation preferences.
- [ ] Religious upbringing (if applicable).
- [ ] Maintaining relationships with specified relatives.

### 7. Financial Coordination

- [ ] State whether guardian of person is also guardian of estate.
- [ ] Identify trust(s) by name/date if applicable.
- [ ] Expectation for cooperation with trustee/UTMA custodian.
- [ ] Standard-of-living guidance if desired.

### 8. Co-Guardian and Succession

If co-guardians named: decision-making rule (joint/majority/tie-break), handling of divorce, incapacity, or disagreement among co-guardians.

### 9. Revocation and Amendment

Include revocation language: nomination may be revoked or amended by signed writing with same formalities or by a subsequent nomination expressly superseding prior ones. Consider automatic revocation on divorce for spouse nominee.

### 10. Duration

Terminates at majority age, emancipation, or court order.

### 11. Execution and Attestation

- [ ] Signature lines for each parent with printed names and dates.
- [ ] Witness count and qualifications per statute [VERIFY].
- [ ] Notarial acknowledgment in state-compliant form [VERIFY].
- [ ] Self-proving affidavit if allowed [VERIFY].

### 12. Client Transmittal Note (Optional)

Short memo covering: purpose, non-self-executing nature, storage guidance, nominee notification, update triggers.

## Pitfalls

- **Never imply court must appoint nominee** — use best-interest language only.
- **Verify execution formalities** — witness count, notarization, statutory forms vary by state [VERIFY].
- **No nomination without authority** — confirm nominating parent has legal authority over each child.
- **Disqualified nominees** — check for statutory disqualification or protective-order issues before naming.
- **Consistent terminology** — distinguish "guardian of the person" from "guardian of the estate" throughout.
- **Use exact legal names** from IDs/birth certificates; use gender-neutral language.