Does Arkansas have a separate guardianship of a minor statute?

No. Arkansas Code Title 28, Subtitle 5, Chapter 65 defines a person under 18 whose disabilities have not been removed as one category of 'incapacitated person,' the same category that covers disabled adults. The same generic Petition for Appointment of Guardian of the Person and/or Estate, the same circuit court probate division, and the same clear and convincing evidence standard apply to a minor's guardianship as to an adult incapacity case.

What court handles an Arkansas guardianship of a minor petition?

The circuit court, probate division. Jurisdiction over guardianship matters is exclusive to the circuit court statewide, since Arkansas has no separate probate court.

Is there an official Arkansas guardianship of a minor petition form?

Yes. The Arkansas Supreme Court's Administrative Order No. 12 adopts Form 24, Petition for Appointment of Guardian of the Person and Estate, a generic form used for any incapacitated person, including a minor. The form's own Reporter's Notes direct a petitioner to modify it if the guardianship sought is of the person only or the estate only. The court's own form controls.

Who must be notified of an Arkansas guardianship of a minor petition?

Before an ordinary guardianship is granted, notice of the hearing must be served, if reasonably possible, on the proposed ward if 14 or older, the minor's legal parents, any spouse of the proposed ward, any existing guardian or person with care and custody of the minor and the director of any agency providing services, the Department of Human Services if the proposed guardian already serves as guardian of five or more minor wards, and at least one nearest competent relative if there is no known parent or spouse.

Does a child have to consent to a guardianship in Arkansas?

There is no separate consent age below 18. Age 14 is instead when the proposed ward must be personally notified of the hearing and of due process rights, and when the court gives due regard to the minor's own request as to who should serve as guardian. A guardian ad litem for the proposed ward is not required by statute.

What happens if a parent objects to an Arkansas guardianship?

A guardianship that removes custody from a parent, or prevents a parent from having custody, cannot be granted over that parent's objection, outside an emergency or temporary guardianship, unless the petitioner proves by clear and convincing evidence that the parent is unfit to care for the child given the circumstances.

Is a background check or training required for an Arkansas guardian of a minor?

No generally applicable criminal background check was found for an ordinary private petition for guardianship of a minor, and no training is required. A background check, including an FBI fingerprint check, is required when a court appoints an unrelated person, a relative outside the fifth degree, or an institution as more than a temporary guardian of an adopted juvenile.

Is a bond required for an Arkansas guardian of a minor?

Bond is discretionary, not automatic. Since a 2025 law rewrite repealed the guardian-specific bond rules that once capped a person-only guardian's bond at $1,000 and allowed a will-based waiver, the court simply may require a bond from the guardian, or such other bond as it deems appropriate, using the same standard that applies to a personal representative.

Does an Arkansas guardianship end a parent's parental rights?

No. Guardianship is not a termination of parental rights and is not adoption. A guardianship based only on the ward's minority ends automatically when the ward turns 18, unless a Department of Human Services guardianship subsidy extends it to age 21, or earlier if the ward, once 18 or older, asks to end it.

What if a child is in danger right now in Arkansas?

If a child faces abuse, neglect, or immediate danger, contact the Arkansas Department of Human Services or local law enforcement, and consider the protective order process. A guardianship petition by itself is not an emergency safety intervention.

Is an Arkansas guardianship the right process for a custody dispute between parents?

No. A dispute between a child's own parents over custody or parenting time is handled through a custody or parenting plan process, not through a guardianship petition.

Arkansas Guardianship of a Minor Petition

Arkansas has no separate guardianship of a minor statute: a child is petitioned for as an incapacitated person under the same chapter that covers adults, in the circuit court's probate division on the state's official Form 24, and a 2025 law rewrite left bond entirely to the court's discretion while narrowing a parent's death triggered nomination to first consideration, yielding to any living, fit legal parent, rather than an automatic appointment.

Find out where you stand in Arkansas

Where are you with the guardianship?

DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.

Introduction

Arkansas has no separate guardianship of a minor statute: a child under 18 is legally one category of incapacitated person under Arkansas Code Title 28, Subtitle 5, Chapter 65, so the same Petition for Appointment of Guardian of the Person and/or Estate, filed in the circuit court's probate division, applies to a minor as to an adult incapacity case. Administrative Order No. 12 adopts official Form 24, and the court's form controls. For an urgent situation, an emergency guardianship requires a review hearing within 14 days, and the court may then grant a temporary guardianship for up to 90 days, extendable for a minor by up to an additional 180 days after a hearing on the merits or agreement of the parties. Before an ordinary guardianship is granted, notice must go, if reasonably possible, to the minor's parents and, if the proposed ward is 14 or older, to the proposed ward directly; outside an emergency or temporary guardianship, a parent's objection blocks a guardianship that removes or prevents the parent's custody unless clear and convincing evidence shows the parent is unfit. No general background check was found for an ordinary private guardian, beyond a narrow rule for certain guardians of an adopted juvenile, and no court investigator or training is required. Since a 2025 law rewrite, bond is left entirely to the court's discretion rather than being automatic. This guardianship does not terminate the parents' parental rights and is not adoption. Attorney review is available before you file.

Key Things to Know

1
Arkansas has no separate 'guardianship of a minor' statute. A child under 18 whose disabilities have not been removed is, by definition, one category of 'incapacitated person' under Arkansas Code Title 28, Subtitle 5, Chapter 65, so the same generic Petition for Appointment of Guardian of the Person and/or Estate, filed in the circuit court's probate division, applies to a minor as to an adult incapacity case. The Arkansas Supreme Court's Administrative Order No. 12 adopts an official Form 24 for this purpose, and the court's own form controls.
2
This guardianship does not terminate the parents' parental rights and is a different legal status than adoption. A guardianship based only on the ward's minority ends automatically when the ward turns 18, unless the guardian receives a Department of Human Services guardianship subsidy, in which case it ends at 21 or earlier if the ward, once 18 or older, asks the court to end it.
3
An emergency guardianship, granted on a showing of imminent danger to the minor's life, health, or property, requires a review hearing within 14 days. At that hearing, or any hearing on proper notice, the court may grant a temporary guardianship for up to 90 days; because the ward here is a minor, the court may extend the temporary guardianship for up to an additional 180 days after a hearing on the merits or agreement of the necessary parties.
4
Before an ordinary guardianship is granted, notice of the hearing must be served, if reasonably possible, on the proposed ward if 14 or older, the minor's legal parents, any spouse of the proposed ward, any existing guardian or person with care and custody, and the Department of Human Services if the proposed guardian already serves as guardian of five or more minor wards. Age 14 is also when a minor's own request about who should serve as guardian gets due regard from the court.
5
A guardianship that removes custody from a parent, or prevents a parent from having custody, cannot be granted over that parent's objection, outside an emergency or temporary guardianship, unless there is clear and convincing evidence the parent is unfit to care for the child given the circumstances. The court separately gives due regard to any guardian nomination a parent made in a will or other written instrument.
6
No generally applicable criminal background check was found for an ordinary private petition for guardianship of a minor, and no court investigator, home study, or lay-guardian training is required. A home study with a background check is required when an unrelated person, a relative outside the fifth degree, or an institution is appointed as more than a temporary guardian of an adopted juvenile. A guardian ad litem for the proposed ward is not required by statute, though the proposed ward may retain counsel of their own choosing. Since a 2025 law rewrite, bond is not automatic: the court may require a bond from the guardian, or may decline to, under the same discretionary standard used for a personal representative's bond.
7
Arkansas repealed its standby-guardian statute in 2025, which had let a parent obtain a court-appointed standby guardian. A parent's nomination of a guardian to take effect on the parent's death now only earns the nominee 'first consideration' in a guardianship proceeding that must still be filed with, and granted by, the court, and if another legal parent is alive and fit, that parent gets first consideration instead; the nomination alone creates no guardianship.

Key decisions before you file

Before you file a Guardianship of a Minor Petition in Arkansas, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Guardianship of a Minor Petition guide walks through them.

Open the Guardianship of a Minor Petition guide

Customize your Guardianship of a Minor Petition Template with DocDraft

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF [COUNTY] COUNTY, ARKANSAS PROBATE DIVISION

IN THE MATTER OF THE GUARDIANSHIP OF [CHILD'S FULL NAME], A MINOR

CASE NO. [CASE NUMBER]

PETITION FOR APPOINTMENT OF GUARDIAN OF THE PERSON AND/OR ESTATE (Prepared based on Arkansas Supreme Court Administrative Order No. 12, Form 24; the court's official form controls.)

TO THE HONORABLE COURT:

Petitioner, [PETITIONER'S FULL NAME], respectfully states:

PETITIONER Petitioner resides at [PETITIONER'S ADDRESS] and is the [RELATIONSHIP TO CHILD] of the minor named below. Petitioner requests appointment as guardian of the [PERSON AND/OR ESTATE] of the minor.
THE MINOR [CHILD'S FULL NAME], born [DATE OF BIRTH], currently resides at [CHILD'S CURRENT ADDRESS]. The minor is [AGE] years old.
PARENTS The minor's parents are [MOTHER'S FULL NAME], residing at [MOTHER'S ADDRESS OR LAST KNOWN WHEREABOUTS], and [FATHER'S FULL NAME], residing at [FATHER'S ADDRESS OR LAST KNOWN WHEREABOUTS]. Each parent's status is: [WHETHER EACH PARENT IS LIVING, CONSENTS TO OR OBJECTS TO THIS PETITION, OR CANNOT BE LOCATED, AND WHY EACH PARENT IS CURRENTLY UNABLE TO CARE FOR THE MINOR]. Any guardian nomination by a parent in a will or other written instrument: [DESCRIPTION OF ANY PARENTAL NOMINATION AND EXHIBIT LETTER, OR NONE KNOWN].
WHY A GUARDIAN IS NEEDED Appointment of a guardian is necessary because [FACTS SHOWING WHY THE PARENTS CANNOT CURRENTLY CARE FOR THE MINOR AND WHY GUARDIANSHIP IS NEEDED].
THE MINOR'S PREFERENCE The request of the minor, if 14 years of age or older, as to who should serve as guardian, which Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-204(b)(2) directs the court to consider, is: [THE MINOR'S REQUEST, OR NONE MADE].
QUALIFICATIONS OF PROPOSED GUARDIAN Petitioner is [AGE] years old, resides at the address above, and is able to provide for the minor's care because [FACTS SHOWING PETITIONER'S FITNESS TO SERVE].
PROPERTY OF THE MINOR [DESCRIPTION OF THE MINOR'S PROPERTY AND ITS ESTIMATED VALUE, OR A STATEMENT THAT THE MINOR OWNS NO PROPERTY].
BOND Because bond is not automatic and rests in the court's discretion under Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-215, petitioner requests that the court require no bond or set only such bond as it deems appropriate.
EMERGENCY OR TEMPORARY GUARDIANSHIP Temporary or emergency relief requested under Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-218 pending a hearing on this petition: [TEMPORARY GUARDIANSHIP REQUESTED ON PROPER NOTICE, EMERGENCY EX PARTE ORDER REQUESTED BASED ON FACTS SHOWING IMMINENT DANGER TO THE MINOR'S LIFE, HEALTH, OR PROPERTY, OR NONE].
RELIEF REQUESTED Petitioner asks the court to appoint petitioner guardian of the [PERSON AND/OR ESTATE] of the minor named above, to issue letters of guardianship, to set bond as the court finds appropriate, and to grant such other relief as is proper.

VERIFICATION

STATE OF ARKANSAS COUNTY OF [COUNTY]

Before me, the undersigned notary, personally appeared [PETITIONER'S FULL NAME], who, being duly sworn, stated that the facts stated in this petition are true and correct to the best of petitioner's knowledge.

[SIGNATURE] [PETITIONER'S FULL NAME] [ADDRESS] [CITY, ARKANSAS ZIP] [PHONE] [EMAIL]

Sworn to and subscribed before me this [DATE].

[NOTARY SIGNATURE AND SEAL]

Arkansas Requirements for Guardianship of a Minor Petition

Circuit Court Probate Division Has Exclusive Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction over guardianship matters, including a minor's, is exclusive to the circuit court statewide, since Arkansas has no separate probate court (Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-107(a)).
No Separate Minor Guardianship Statute
Arkansas treats a person under 18 whose disabilities have not been removed as one category of 'incapacitated person,' so the same generic petition and proof standard used for adult incapacity cases applies to a minor (Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-104(1)).
Official Form 24 Petition Controls
Arkansas Supreme Court Administrative Order No. 12 adopts Form 24, Petition for Appointment of Guardian of the Person and Estate, for use in any incapacitated-person case, including a minor's; the court's own form controls over any draft.
Emergency Guardianship Requires a 14-Day Review Hearing
An emergency ex parte guardianship order, granted on a showing of imminent danger to the minor's life, health, or property, must set a review or temporary-guardianship hearing within 14 days (Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-218(a)).
Temporary Guardianship Capped at 90 Days, Plus 180 Days for a Minor
At a hearing held on proper notice, the court may grant a temporary guardianship for up to 90 days; because the ward is a minor, the court may extend it for up to an additional 180 days after a hearing on the merits or agreement of the necessary parties (Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-218(a)-(b)).
Notice Required Before an Ordinary Guardianship Is Granted
Notice of the hearing must be served, if reasonably possible, on the proposed ward if 14 or older, the minor's legal parents, any spouse of the proposed ward, any existing guardian or custodian, and the Department of Human Services if the proposed guardian already serves as guardian of five or more minor wards (Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-207(b)-(c)).
Parental Objection Requires Clear and Convincing Evidence of Unfitness
A guardianship that removes custody from a parent, or prevents a parent from having custody, cannot be granted over that parent's objection, outside an emergency or temporary guardianship, unless there is clear and convincing evidence the parent is unfit given the circumstances (Ark. Code Ann. section 28-65-204(a)-(b)).
No General Background Check, GAL, or Training for a Private Petition
No generally applicable criminal background check was found for an ordinary private petition for guardianship of a minor, beyond a check required for certain guardians of an adopted juvenile; no court investigator or lay-guardian training is required, and a guardian ad litem for the proposed ward is not required by statute (Ark. Code Ann. sections 28-65-203(l), 28-65-207(c)(3), 28-65-211(a)).
Bond Is Discretionary Since the 2025 Rewrite
The court may require a bond from the guardian, or such other bond as it deems appropriate, either before letters issue or at any time during the case; the prior guardian-specific bond cap and waiver provisions were repealed (Ark. Code Ann. sections 28-65-215, 28-48-201(a)-(b)).

Find out where you stand in Arkansas

Introduction

Key Things to Know

Key decisions before you file

Customize your Guardianship of a Minor Petition Template with DocDraft

Arkansas Requirements for Guardianship of a Minor Petition

Circuit Court Probate Division Has Exclusive Jurisdiction

No Separate Minor Guardianship Statute

Official Form 24 Petition Controls

Emergency Guardianship Requires a 14-Day Review Hearing

Temporary Guardianship Capped at 90 Days, Plus 180 Days for a Minor

Notice Required Before an Ordinary Guardianship Is Granted

Parental Objection Requires Clear and Convincing Evidence of Unfitness

No General Background Check, GAL, or Training for a Private Petition

Bond Is Discretionary Since the 2025 Rewrite

Frequently Asked Questions