You may feel you have to step in when a child you love is not safe or stable at home. Washington’s minor guardianship laws give grandparents and relatives a path to ask the court for legal authority to care for a child in these situations.
How Washington minor guardianship works
A minor guardianship gives you the right to make decisions about a child’s daily needs, school and health care. It does not end the parents’ rights. Parents may later ask the court to change or end the arrangement if they become able to parent again.
Courts start with the presumption that children should live with their parents. A judge may appoint a guardian only when the evidence shows the parents are unwilling or unable to perform basic parenting functions and a guardianship would protect the child’s well-being.
When a grandparent or relative can petition
You can seek guardianship when serious safety or caregiving concerns go beyond ordinary parenting issues. These situations are common:
- Unfit or unable parents: Abuse, neglect, severe substance use, unmanaged mental illness or incarceration.
- Abandonment or absence: Parents leave the child without reliable care or contact.
- Parents are deceased: No other legal arrangement exists.
- Best interests with a relative: A strong existing bond and a more stable home.
These factors help the court understand why living with you may give the child more safety and stability than staying with a parent. Being a relative supports your petition, yet you still must show that guardianship is necessary.
What “best interests of the child” means
Washington courts consider whether you can meet the child’s daily needs, support education, foster healthy relationships, use sound judgment about the child’s welfare and provide financial stability. The judge also looks at the child’s bond with you and, if the child is 12 or older, their preference.
Guardianship versus adoption
Guardianship gives you legal authority without ending the parents’ rights. Adoption permanently transfers those rights to you and makes you the child’s legal parent for all purposes. Guardianship may fit temporary crises. Adoption may fit situations where a long-term home is necessary.
What one can do next
These issues can be complex because they affect a child’s safety and a parent’s rights. A Washington family law attorney can explain how guardianship works, help you prepare filings and clarify what evidence may support your petition.
