Does a guardianship form require access arrangements to be agreed upon?

newboard

Hello,
The form here states;

(do solemnly and sincerely declare and say as follows:..)


4. We have entered into arrangements regarding the custody of [and access to]*________________

Does "entered into arrangements" mean that it's a requirement for custody/access arrangements to be finalised? Or is it just declaring that discussions will be held?

In other words if final arrangements have not been determined or if they remain a point of disagreement, can the form be completed?

I know that the courts will grant a fit father guardianship regardless, but still unsure of the above.

Thank you

Peregrinus

Just like "I have entered the building" doesn't mean "I am heading towards the building", so "we have entered into custody arrangements" doesn't mean "we're talking about the kind of custody arrangements that we might make "; it means "we have agreed the custody arrangements".

newboard

Peregrinus wrote: »

Just like "I have entered the building" doesn't mean "I am heading towards the building", so "we have entered into custody arrangements" doesn't mean "we're talking about the kind of custody arrangements that we might make "; it means "we have agreed the custody arrangements".

Okay - so perhaps where the specifics of an access arrangement have not yet been determined, it'd be sufficient to say we have agreed the custody arrangements (i.e being joint custody), to recognise that the particulars/logistics of access

The form includes "strike out as necessary" for the access part, which hopefully allows for the above?

Am I right in assuming that where there will be some level of access during which the father will have full responsibility for the care of the child, the father will thus be exercising (join) custody of the child?

Thank you

Peregrinus

If you have agreed custody arrangements and the arrangements are "joint custody" and you live together, obviously the issue of access arrangements doesn't arise. That's why there is an option to strike it out.

YOu can have joint custody when the parents do not live together. Joint custody means that both of the parents have custody of the child in that they make joint decisions about the significant issues - education, medical care, religious upbringing etc - regardless of which of them the child happens to be staying with at the time the issue arises. It's not a case of the father having custody while the child stays with him from (say) from Sunday to Wednesday, and the mother having custody while the child stays with her from Thursday to Saturday.

So, basically, if you don't live together but you agree to joint custody, you then need to go on and agree access arrangements - who will the child say with, and when, and during those times what contact will their be with the other parent?

You don't have to have made permanent, committed, irrevocable arrangements about all this. Once you agree these details you can subsequently vary them by agreement, and you probably will from time to time as the child grows and/or circumstances change. But I think you do have to have at least agreed how this will work initially.

But if access is relevant to your situation then, yeah, I do think you have to agree both custody and access arrangements.

newboard

I was advised by a solicitor that point 4 could be struck out entirely. I had thought that the option to strike-out only related to the bracketed "[and access to]" but their view was that it applied to the entire line.

Peregrinus

I don't agree. But if that is the legal advice you are getting (and paying for) and if you have confidence in that advice, it's a bad policy to bring it to Boards to be second-guessed.

newboard

Thanks for the reply. I got the advice since making the OP and the first follow up post. It's a time sensitive issue and I wasn't sure how long it'd take to get a response on it, so I thought I'd post here to see if it was a very definite yes or no.

May I ask why you disagree?

Peregrinus

newboard wrote: »

Thanks for the reply. I got the advice since making the OP and the first follow up post. It's a time sensitive issue and I wasn't sure how long it'd take to get a response on it, so I thought I'd post here to see if it was a very definite yes or no.

May I ask why you disagree?

Because I think the square brackets around the words "and access to" are a fairly clear indication what it is intended can be struck out. If they don't mean that, what do they mean?