Guardianship and the guardian ad litem: who is appointed, when, and with what powers
Three different roles carry similar names and are almost always confused: guardian, guardian ad litem, and social worker for court procedures. Each has a different source of authority and different limits.
"Parents panic at the word guardian and assume someone is coming to take their child. In most cases it is an appointment meant to give the child a voice in the proceeding, and nothing more."
Adv. Ester Efrati · Head of the Family and Inheritance Department
Parents as natural guardians
The starting point under the Legal Capacity and Guardianship Law, 1962, is simple: both parents are the natural guardians of their child while the child is a minor. That is the default, and it does not follow from custody.
The practical significance matters most after a separation. Even where the child lives permanently with one parent, guardianship remains shared, and both parents take part in the decisions: educational framework, medical treatment, issuing a passport, travel abroad, a change of residence.
Guardianship is not a right that is acquired but a responsibility the law imposes. That is also why it is removed only in exceptional cases, and only by a court decision.
This page explains when the court intervenes in that structure, and which kind of appointment fits which situation.
Three roles that get confused
Most of the confusion in this area comes from three different roles sounding alike. This is the distinction worth remembering.
- A guardian is responsible for the affairs of a person who cannot manage them: person, property, day to day decisions. For a child these are the parents, and in exceptional cases a person or body appointed by the court.
- A guardian ad litem represents the person in the legal proceeding only. They give voice to that person and report to the court. They have no authority over daily life and none over property, and the appointment lapses when the proceeding ends.
- A social worker for court procedures represents no one. They are a professional arm of the court, preparing a welfare report and making recommendations.
That distinction also explains why appointing a guardian ad litem is not a blow to the parents: it takes no authority from them, it adds an independent voice for the child inside the proceeding.
The guardian ad litem
A guardian ad litem is an independent, objective representation of the child in the proceeding, detached from the interests of both parents. Usually a lawyer, sometimes a professional from the therapeutic field.
What they do:
- Meet the child and put their position before the court.
- Examine the material in the file from the child's point of view alone.
- File a position or a report, and sometimes examine witnesses.
What they do not do:
- They do not take decisions in the child's daily life.
- They do not manage the child's property.
- They do not replace the parents and do not reduce their guardianship.
A point that surprises parents: the guardian ad litem is not bound to repeat what the child said. Their role is to bring the child's position and, alongside it, what appears to them to be the child's interest, even where the two are not the same.
The appointment is limited in time and lapses when the proceeding for which it was made ends.
When one is appointed
The appointment is not routine. It is made where the court forms the impression that the child's voice is not being properly heard through either parent.
- A high-intensity conflict in which the child has become the arena rather than the subject.
- Parental alienation or refusal of contact in a sustained situation. See parental alienation and refusal of contact.
- A conflict of interest between the child's welfare and the parents' interest, for example over property or an agreement that concerns the child.
- Extreme imbalance of power between the parents, where the child's position risks being lost.
- An older child expressing an independent position, where the court wants to be sure it is their own.
- An unusual medical or educational question on which the parents and the professionals disagree.
The appointment can be made on the court's own initiative, on the application of the Attorney General, or on the application of an interested party.
The source of authority
The basis for the appointment is section 68(a) of the Legal Capacity and Guardianship Law, 1962. The section empowers the court, at any time, to take temporary or permanent measures to protect the interests of a minor, of a person declared legally incapable, or of a ward.
Alongside it there is also a route within the civil procedure rules, where separate representation of a minor in a proceeding becomes necessary.
How it works in practice:
- The need surfaces from the welfare report, from the hearing, from a party's application, or on the court's own initiative.
- The court hears positions, and sometimes seeks the Attorney General's position.
- An appointment decision is given, defining the scope of the role and its duration.
- Fees are fixed, along with who bears them. Usually the parents, in a division the court sets, and sometimes the state.
Worth knowing: an appointment can also be made as interim relief, at an early stage, where there is urgency.
Appointing a guardian for a child
This is an entirely different appointment, far broader and far rarer. It is made where the parents are not fulfilling their role, not merely where they are in conflict.
- Inability to function and to discharge their duties towards the child.
- Neglect or abuse of the child.
- Absence of the parents, including bereavement.
- A parent declared legally incapable, or convicted of violence or sexual offences within the family.
Who is actually appointed? The court's preference is almost always a family member, on the understanding that continuity and closeness matter to the child. Where no suitable relative exists, an external professional guardian can be appointed, and in certain cases a body recognised for that purpose.
Such an appointment is not necessarily total: the court can limit it to a defined area, for example property alone or medical decisions alone, leaving the rest with the parents.
Duties and supervision
A guardian is not an owner but a trustee. The law imposes duties, and the court supervises their performance.
- To provide for basic needs: food, a home, clothing, everyday equipment.
- To provide an educational framework as required by the compulsory education law.
- To decide on health matters and ensure appropriate medical care.
- To manage property prudently, and for certain transactions to obtain the court's prior approval.
- To hear the minor and take their position into account according to age and understanding.
Supervision runs mainly through the Administrator General and periodic reporting, and on exceptional matters through an application to the court. A guardian who does not discharge the role can be replaced.
A practical point: anyone appointed should establish in advance exactly what reporting is required and which acts need prior approval. A large share of the problems in this area come from not knowing rather than from intent.
When parents refuse medical treatment
This is the hardest case, and it illustrates the nature of guardianship better than any other.
The Supreme Court has dealt with a situation in which parents refused life-saving medical treatment for their child. It held that while both parents are indeed the minor's guardians, their status is not merely a bundle of rights: it includes a duty to provide for the child's needs, medical needs among them.
It follows that guardianship does not confer control over the child. It imposes responsibility, and where that responsibility is not discharged, the court may intervene to ensure the child is treated as devoted parents would treat them.
Such intervention is neither simple nor lightly undertaken. But it is possible, and it is done by removing guardianship on the specific point rather than as a whole, for example appointing a guardian for a single medical decision.
In summary
Three roles, three sets of limits. A guardian manages the affairs of someone who cannot manage them. A guardian ad litem represents that person in the proceeding and nothing beyond it. A social worker for court procedures represents no one, but examines and recommends.
Parents remain the natural guardians after a separation too, and the court intervenes in that structure only where there is real justification. Appointing a guardian ad litem is not a blow to the parents, and it is usually a sign that the court wants to hear the child directly.
If a guardian ad litem has been appointed in your case, or you are considering applying for one, contact us to examine what it means and how to proceed.
To speak with us: Jerusalem 02-5953322 · Tel Aviv 03-3030430 · WhatsApp 050-4411343
What people ask most
What is the difference between a guardian and a guardian ad litem?
A guardian is responsible for the person's affairs: person, property and daily decisions. A guardian ad litem represents them in the legal proceeding only, gives voice to their position and reports to the court, and has no authority over daily life or property. The appointment lapses when the proceeding ends.
Who is a child's guardian?
Both parents, by force of law, while the child is a minor. That is the default and it does not follow from custody: even where the child lives permanently with one parent, guardianship remains shared.
Does appointing a guardian ad litem harm the parents?
No. It takes no authority from the parents and does not reduce their guardianship. It adds an independent voice for the child inside the proceeding, and it is usually a sign that the court wants to hear the child directly.
When does the court appoint a guardian ad litem?
Where the child's voice is not being properly heard through either parent: a high-intensity conflict, parental alienation or refusal of contact, a conflict of interest between the child's welfare and the parents' interest, an extreme imbalance of power, or a contested medical or educational question.
What is the source of authority for the appointment?
Section 68(a) of the Legal Capacity and Guardianship Law, 1962, which empowers the court at any time to take temporary or permanent measures to protect the interests of a minor, a person declared legally incapable, or a ward. Alongside it there is also a route within the civil procedure rules.
Who can apply for the appointment?
The court on its own initiative, the Attorney General or their representative, and an interested party to the proceeding.
Who pays the guardian ad litem's fees?
The court fixes the fees and how they are divided. Usually they fall on the parents in a division set out in the decision, and in certain cases the state bears them.
Must the guardian ad litem present what the child said?
Not necessarily. Their role is to bring the child's position and, alongside it, what appears to them to be the child's interest, even where the two are not the same. This surprises many parents.
When is a guardian appointed for a child, rather than a guardian ad litem?
Where the parents are not fulfilling their role: inability to function, neglect or abuse, absence or bereavement, a declaration of legal incapacity, or conviction for violence or sexual offences within the family. This is a far broader and far rarer appointment.
Who is actually appointed?
The court's preference is almost always a family member, on the understanding that continuity and closeness matter to the child. Where no suitable relative exists, an external professional guardian can be appointed, and in certain cases a body recognised for that purpose.
Is the appointment all or nothing?
No. The court can limit it to a defined area, for example property alone or a single medical decision, leaving the rest of the guardianship with the parents.
Can parents be required to provide medical treatment to their child?
It is not a simple step, but it is possible. The case law holds that the parents' status as guardians includes a duty to provide for the child's needs, medical needs among them. Where life-saving treatment is refused, the court may intervene on that specific point.
All pages in the Family and Inheritance department
The separation itself
The divorce processLeaving home before divorceReconciliation or divorceRequest for dispute resolutionDissolution of marriageEconomic abuseRestraining orderBreach of a divorce agreementThe children
Child supportChild support claimIncreasing or reducing supportSupport for a child born outside marriageCollecting support through National InsuranceSpreading a maintenance debtCustody and parenting timeShared parentingThe tender years presumptionChanging a custody arrangementRelocating abroad with the childrenParental alienationDealing with an alienating parentGuardian ad litemSurrogacyPaternity claimThe Youth (Care and Supervision) LawVisual parenting plan builderProperty and agreements
Prenuptial agreementSame sex prenuptial agreementSame-sex marriageNotarised prenuptial agreementDissolution of joint ownershipCareer assets and goodwillSelling the apartment on divorceCommon law partnersInheritance and estate planning
Wills and inheritanceInheritance between same-sex partnersEstate planningWills in estate planningIntergenerational transfer in estate planningTrustsDynasty trustSpecial needs trustInheritance orderProbate orderAgreements between heirsInheritance disputes between siblingsContesting a willNo-contest clause in a willLet us work out what this appointment actually means for you
A short consultation meeting with a lawyer from the department, in which we will go over the decision made in your case, the scope of authority it sets, and what is worth doing at this stage.