The Role of the Guardian Ad Litem

F E A T U R E S F A M I L Y L A W

The Role of the Guardian Ad Litem
in Custody Cases

by Cheshire I’Anson Eveleigh and Mona S. Flax

As family law practitioners who try custody cases, we found inconsistencies in the role of guardians ad litem after interviewing family law practitioners throughout the Commonwealth and in other jurisdictions.
This was not a scientific sampling, but an overview to illustrate the need for standardization
of the gaurdian’s role.
The role of the guardian differs greatly across the Commonwealth. This article is
designed to address issues facing guardians as they struggle with defining their role and to make our suggestions on how the role of the guardian can be better defined.

The court recognizes guardians ad litem as officers of the courtand expects all to adhere to the standards set forth above. Thecourt reserves the right to remove and/or suspend guardians fromthe list as appropriate and will take into account the guidelinesand guardian’s compliance therewith in making such decisions.

You can find Topics below in this link

1 - Appointment of the Guardian Ad Litem

2 - The Pre-interview and Interview Processing

3 - The Home Visit

4 - Interview of Collateral Sources

5 - The Requirement of a Written Report

6 - The Necessity for Written Standards

7 - General Guardian Ad Litem Standards

8 - Enforcement of the Guardian Ad Litem Guidelines

9 - The Court’s Role

10-Guidelines and Standards from Outside the Commonwealth

11-Conclusion