Opinion ID: 1801825
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Probate Guardianship

Text: (1) A brief review of probate guardianship is in order. This custodial arrangement originated in the law governing the administration of decedents' estates, but it has not been restricted to orphans. Long before the advent of the dependency statutes, probate guardianships were instituted when conditions [were] shown to be such, by reason of the mental and moral limitations or delinquency of parents, that to allow the child to continue in their custody would be to endanger [the child's] permanent welfare. ( In re Imperatrice (1920) 182 Cal. 355, 358 [188 P. 48].) [2] In such cases, courts recognized that the right of the parent [to custody] must give way, its preservation being of less importance than the health, safety, morals, and general welfare of the child. ( Imperatrice, at p. 358.) After the passage of the juvenile dependency statutes, probate guardianships have continued to provide an alternative placement for children who cannot safely remain with their parents. (See Weisz & McCormick, supra, 12 S.Cal. Rev.L. & Women's Stud. at pp. 195-196.) The differences between probate guardianships and dependency proceedings are significant. ( Id. at pp. 195-197.) Probate guardianships are not initiated by the state, but by private parties, typically family members. They do not entail proof of specific statutory grounds demonstrating substantial risk of harm to the child, as is required in dependency proceedings. (See Welf. & Inst. Code, § 300; Guardianship of Stephen G. (1995) 40 Cal.App.4th 1418, 1429-1430 [47 Cal.Rptr.2d 409].) Unlike dependency cases, they are not regularly supervised by the court and a social services agency. No governmental entity is a party to the proceedings. It is the family members and the guardians who determine, with court approval, whether a guardianship is established, and thereafter whether parent and child will be reunited, or the guardianship continued, or an adoption sought under section 1516.5. A relative or other person on behalf of the minor, or the minor if 12 years of age or older, may file a petition for the appointment of a guardian.... (Prob. Code, § 1510, subd. (a).) The probate court may appoint a guardian if it appears necessary or convenient. (Prob. Code, § 1514, subd. (a).) [3] An investigation into the circumstances of the proposed guardianship may be conducted, though the court may waive the investigation. (Prob. Code, § 1513, subd. (a).) [4] A probate guardianship is often established with parental consent, as in this case. (See, e.g., In re Charlotte D. (2009) 45 Cal.4th 1140; Guardianship of L.V. (2006) 136 Cal.App.4th 481, 485 [38 Cal.Rptr.3d 894]; Guardianship of Kassandra H. (1998) 64 Cal.App.4th 1228, 1237 [75 Cal.Rptr.2d 668]; Guardianship of M.S.W. (1982) 136 Cal.App.3d 708, 710 [186 Cal.Rptr. 430].) A parent who objects to guardianship is entitled to notice and a hearing. (Prob. Code, § 1511.) Early authorities held that in contested guardianship cases, parents were entitled to retain custody unless affirmatively found unfit. (14 Witkin, Summary of Cal. Law (10th ed. 2005) Wills and Probate, § 928, pp. 1031-1032, citing cases.) However, the unfitness standard fell out of favor and the best interest of the child, as determined under the custody statutes, became the controlling consideration. ( In re B. G. (1974) 11 Cal.3d 679, 694-698 [114 Cal.Rptr. 444, 523 P.2d 244]; Guardianship of Marino (1973) 30 Cal.App.3d 952, 957-958 [106 Cal.Rptr. 655].) The Probate Code now specifies that the appointment of a guardian is governed by the Family Code chapters beginning with sections 3020 and 3040. (Prob. Code, § 1514, subd. (b).) (2) Family Code section 3020, subdivision (a) declares that the health, safety, and welfare of children shall be the court's primary concern in determining the best interest of children when making any orders regarding the physical or legal custody or visitation of children. Under Family Code section 3040, subdivision (a), parents are first in the order of preference for a grant of custody, but the court and the family are allowed the widest discretion to choose a parenting plan that is in the best interest of the child. (Fam. Code, § 3040, subd. (b).) Before granting custody to a nonparent over parental objection, the court must find clear and convincing evidence that granting custody to a parent would be detrimental to the child and that granting custody to the nonparent is required to serve the best interest of the child. (Fam. Code, § 3041, subds. (b), (a).) In 2002, the Legislature added subdivisions to Family Code section 3041 emphasizing the importance of a stable home environment for the child. (Stats. 2002, ch. 1118, § 3.) It specified that `detriment to the child' includes the harm of removal from a stable placement of a child with a person who has assumed, on a day-to-day basis, the role of his or her parent, fulfilling both the child's physical needs and the child's psychological needs for care and affection, and who has assumed that role for a substantial period of time. A finding of detriment does not require any finding of unfitness of the parents. (Fam. Code, § 3041, subd. (c).) And, if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the person to whom custody may be given is a person described in subdivision (c), this finding shall constitute a finding that the custody is in the best interest of the child and that parental custody would be detrimental to the child absent a showing by a preponderance of the evidence to the contrary. (Fam. Code, § 3041, subd. (d).) Thus, the Legislature has determined that the critical finding of detriment to the child does not necessarily turn on parental unfitness. It may be based on the prospect that a successful, established custodial arrangement would be disrupted. (See Guardianship of L.V., supra, 136 Cal.App.4th at p. 491.) (3) When the court appoints a guardian, the authority of the parent ceases. (Fam. Code, § 7505, subd. (a).) The court has discretion to grant visitation ( Guardianship of Martha M. (1988) 204 Cal.App.3d 909, 911 [251 Cal.Rptr. 567]), but otherwise parental rights are completely suspended for the duration of a probate guardianship ( Guardianship of Stephen G., supra, 40 Cal.App.4th at p. 1426). The guardian assumes the care, custody, and control of the child. (Prob. Code, § 2351, subd. (a).) There is no periodic court review of the placement, as there is in dependency proceedings. ( Stephen G., at p. 1429.) Nor is the parent given the reunification services that the county provides to parents of dependent children. ( Guardianship of Kaylee J. (1997) 55 Cal.App.4th 1425, 1430-1432 [64 Cal.Rptr.2d 662].) Unless ended by court order, the guardianship continues until the child attains majority or dies. (Prob. Code, § 1600, subd. (a).) The court may terminate the guardianship on a petition by the guardian, a parent, or the child, based on the child's best interest. (Prob. Code, § 1601.) The fitness of the parent to assume custody is not a controlling consideration. ( Guardianship of L.V., supra, 136 Cal.App.4th at pp. 488-491.)