Guardianship and conservatorship

What is the difference between guardianship and conservatorship? Who can become a guardian (custodian)?

Legislation establishes that guardianship is established over young children, i.e. children under the age of fourteen, and custody is established over minor children between the ages of fourteen and eighteen.

The basis for establishing guardianship and custody over children is the fact that they have lost parental custody for one reason or another. Tutorship or guardianship is established over children without parental care, for the purposes of their maintenance, upbringing and education, as well as to protect their rights and interests.

The distinction between the concepts of guardianship and custody does not have significant significance in the sphere of the upbringing and education of ward children, but is extremely important in the protection by guardians (custodians) of their personal and property rights and interests, which is largely determined by differences in the content of the legal capacity of minors under the age of fourteen and from fourteen to eighteen years old. In the civil legal sphere, guardianship and custody are regarded as methods of completing the legal capacity of citizens (partial or incomplete).

The guardianship and custody agency at a child’s place of residence appoints a guardian or custodian for a child within a month from the moment when it became aware of the need to establish guardianship (custody) over them. In the presence of noteworthy circumstances (e.g., the child is already living in the family of the candidate for guardianship, custody), a guardian or custodian may also be appointed by the guardianship and custody agency in the place of residence of the guardian (custodian). If a child in need of guardianship or custody has not appointed a guardian or custodian within one month, the performance of the duties of guardian or custodian is temporarily assigned directly to the guardianship and custody agency.

A guardian or custodian may only be appointed with his or her consent. This is a mandatory condition, which is natural, since forcing a guardian or custodian to fulfill their duties cannot be in the interests of the child, and the goals of guardianship (custody) are unlikely to be achieved. Such consent is expressed in a corresponding application to the guardianship and custody agency.
Only legally capable adults may be appointed as guardians (custodians)
The law prohibits guardians (custodians) from being appointed due to their inability to properly provide for the family upbringing of a child:

minors regardless of their acquisition of full legal capacity before reaching the age of majority;

Persons without full legal capacity;

Persons deprived of parental rights;

Persons suffering from chronic alcoholism or drug addiction;

Persons previously removed from their duties as guardians or custodians;

Persons from whom children have been removed without deprivation of parental rights, i.e., restricted in parental rights;

Former adoptive parents, if the adoption was cancelled through their fault;

Persons who cannot, for health reasons, bring up a child.