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Can I use my will to name a guardian to care for my young children and manage their property? | Freilich Law | Michael Freilich | freilichlaw.com | (410) 321-0040

In most states, yes. In Maryland, there’s a statute which provides a surviving spouse can appoint a guardian. There are two types of guardians. There’s guardian of the person, and there’s guardian of the property. You need not have the same person fulfill both roles. You could have one person being both, or you could have two separate people, one manage the money, and one manage the person. Then the question is, if you’re divorced, who has the right to name the guardian of the child? Again, it’s the surviving parent. If, for example, the wife does not have custody, and there’s a death, she, as noncustodial parent, she would still have the right to raise the children, and on her death, she could name the guardian of the person and/or the property in her will.