The person, the property, or both
New York separates authority over a child's daily life from authority over a child's money. A guardian of the person makes decisions about where the child lives, school, and medical care, and can be appointed in Family Court or Surrogate's Court. A guardian of the property manages funds that belong to the child, and that usually runs through Surrogate's Court, with court oversight of how the money is held and spent. Parents are sometimes surprised that being a parent does not automatically give them control over a significant sum that belongs to their child. The court can appoint one person for both roles or different people for each.
When parents are living
Parents generally have priority, so a guardianship petition for a child whose parents are alive requires notice to them, and their consent or objection matters a great deal. If a parent agrees, the case can move relatively smoothly. If a parent objects, the court usually needs a showing of extraordinary circumstances before giving custody of a child to a non-parent, which is a demanding standard. Courts also run background checks on proposed guardians and on other adults in the household. Gather the child's birth certificate, school and medical information, any death certificate, and contact information or last known addresses for both parents.
Children born abroad and other special situations
For some young people born outside the United States, a Family Court guardianship case is also where a request is made for findings that a separate federal immigration application relies on. The Family Court does not decide that application; USCIS does, and the guardianship has to stand on its own merits. Guardianship of a child can also intersect with a pending custody case, a foster care case, or an estate. In a first meeting we work out which court fits, whether the parents are likely to consent, and whether any timing issue, such as a child's approaching birthday, affects when to file.
