There exists much confusion surrounding the terms legal guardianship and adoption. Both legal relationships confer authority of the guardian or adopted parent over the child, but they come with several significant differences. The following is a list of differences between legal guardianship and adoption:
- In a legal guardianship, the parents of the child still have parental rights. Often, the parents maintain reasonable contact with the child. In an adoption, on the other hand, the rights of the biological parents have been permanently ended or terminated. Usually, the birth parents have no contact with the child after the adoption takes place.
- In an adoption, the adoptive parents make all decisions with respect to the child. In a legal guardianship, the birth parents retain some important rights, such as consent to adoption and visitation.
- A legal guardianship can be revoked at any time if the court deems the birth parents are able to care for the child and the guardian is no longer needed. However, in an adoption, the relationship is permanent. It cannot be revoked or undone.
- Following an adoption, adoptive parents have the right to determine the child’s legal name. In a guardianship, the child retains his or her own legal last name.
- Adoptees are entitled to receive any inheritance left to them by their adoptive parents, unless the will calls for something different. However, if the child is part of a legal guardianship, he or she will not by default be entitled to receive an inheritance from the guardian. Legal guardians desiring to leave an inheritance to the child in their care can nonetheless do so through a will.
- Courts are permitted to supervise guardians in a legal guardianship. Once an adoption is finalized, however, the court cannot supervise adoptive families.
- Adoptive parents are legally responsible for providing all financial support for the child. Legal guardians, however, need only provide certain amounts, such as food, education, and shelter. The biological parents remain responsible for providing some financial support for the child.
From this list of differences between guardianship and adoption, you can probably start to glean the advantages and disadvantages of each. Adoption has clear benefits for children whose parents lack the ability to care for them and are unlikely to ever be able to provide appropriate care for the children. However, adoption is a more extreme method of becoming a caregiver. It will permanently terminate the parental rights of the biological parent.
There are also financial implications involved with each decision. In Kansas, currently, the guardianship payment amount is less than the state’s Adoption Assistance payment. However, in a guardianship, the guardian is not always fully responsible for all of the child’s financial needs.
Adoption and legal guardianship both offer similar paths to permanency in the caregiver-child relationship. Both adoption and guardianship are strong commitments to children. The several distinct differences between the two legal relationships can help guide you towards selection of the most appropriate course of action. The best choice will depend upon your families individual circumstances. It is important to remember that both adoption and guardianship are commitments to be taken seriously by caregivers.
McDowell Chartered: Adoption and Guardianship Attorneys of Unmatched Excellence
Since 1992, the experienced Kansas Adoption Attorneys of McDowell Chartered have provided quality legal services to families seeking to become guardians or adoptive parents. At McDowell Chartered, we offer our decades of family law experience to guide your decision of whether to become a guardian or adoptive parent. Call us today at (316) 633-4322 to see how one of our knowledgeable family law attorneys can help you!