We believe that every person has a right to feel loved and safe. While the ideal situation is for a child or adult to find love and safety in the permanency of a family, that isn’t always possible. Some situations require temporary measures to ensure that everyone is in the best place possible — and that’s why we work with families to establish legal guardianship for a child or adult.
Legal guardianship for a child or adult is an option for Illinois residents who need to secure a safe (usually temporary) guardianship situation for a loved one. It can also be an option for people in other periods of life, such as an older adult who needs care but does not want to be adopted.
We know that anyone considering establishing legal guardianship probably has a lot of questions. How does this work? How much does it cost? Who can help me? Do I need lawyers for legal guardianship?
Gillespie Law Group, LLC has more than 20 years of legal experience, and we can answer all of these questions and provide the services you need to establish legal guardianship for an adult or child. More than that, our legal team can be a friend throughout the process. This might be a stressful time, and our goal is always to make you feel supported and encouraged.
Contact us today to find out how we can serve you.
To that end, we’ve created this guide to establishing legal guardianship. As you learn more about what it entails, our hope is that you feel confident and prepared to move forward with this legal process. If you have questions or want to talk about your specific situation, we encourage you to contact us at any time.
What is Legal Guardianship in Illinois?
Legal guardianship is the process of granting an individual some or all authority over another individual, who can be a child or an adult. Once someone become a legal guardian, they have the ability to do things like sign legal documents, make medical or educational decisions, provide a long-term living situation and more.
Each legal guardianship agreement is specific to the situation it is created for, so the powers granted to the guardian will be different in each case. Some are more limited, while others are given close to all parental authorities.
Situations Where Legal Guardianship May Be Necessary
Many guardianship cases involve legal guardianship for a child. But, why would parents grant another individual legal authority over their child? There are several possible reasons.
Legal guardianship for a child may be established to ward off a placement in foster care. The biological parents could need time to secure employment or housing or attend rehab. Instead of allowing their child to enter the system, they could decide that it would be better to establish legal guardianship with a family member or close friend.
Not all cases of legal guardianship involve children. There are also instances in which an adult may need another adult to establish legal guardianship over them — for instance, if an adult is disabled or incapacitated and has no one to make medical decisions for them. Mac Gillespie specializes in adult guardianship, and can provide expertise and depth of experience unlike most any other attorney.
Whatever the case may be, establishing legal guardianship in Illinois can be an important legal step to protect and care for those who are in need — both children and adults.
Types of Legal Guardianship in Illinois
There are several types of legal guardianship. Anyone considering establishing legal guardianship for a child or adult should understand these options in order to choose what is best for them.
The three primary types of legal guardianship are:
- Full Guardianship: This grants the legal guardians total decision-making authority, meaning they are capable of making medical, financial, legal and any other type of decision that a parent would normally make.
- Limited Guardianship: More common than full guardianship, limited guardianship grants certain legal power to the guardian that could be necessary during the time they are the legal guardian, such as power of attorney and the ability to make medical decisions. Since many legal guardianships are temporary, this type of guardianship makes a lot of sense in most situations.
- Joint Guardianship: If legal guardianship is granted to more than one person, it is a joint guardianship. Joint guardianships can have either full or limited legal authority.
Which type of legal guardianship is best for your situation? The team at Gillespie Law Group can help you make that choice. Give us a call at 312-332-6339 at any time to discuss the types of legal guardianship.
How to Obtain Legal Guardianship in Illinois
The process for establishing legal guardian for a child or adult consists primarily of paperwork. It’s not the most glamorous thing, but each filing is important. The letter of the law has to be followed exactly, or else there could be problems down the line. To be confident that your legal guardianship is established correctly, you should always work with an experienced Illinois lawyer for legal guardianship.
Fortunately, we bring that experience to the table. More than that, we do this type of work because we genuinely care about your situation. We’re not in this for the money like some attorneys are. On the contrary, we are passionate about protecting children and families, and our goal is always to ensure the safety and long-term well-being of the people we serve.
Our services in the Illinois legal guardianship process will include things like:
- Helping you decide which type of guardianship is best
- Verifying that the proposed guardian is eligible according to state law
- Crafting a guardianship contract that outlines both the legal authority and proposed timespan of the guardianship
- Filing all necessary documents on deadline
- Representing you in the legal guardianship hearing and securing an order from a judge
Contact Illinois Lawyers for Legal Guardianship Now
We believe our expertise and experience make us the best lawyers for legal guardianship you can find. We’d be honored by the opportunity to prove that to you.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation, or call 312-332-6339. We can answer your questions and review your situation to create best guardianship plan moving forward.