§ 15-5-204 — COURT APPOINTMENT OF GUARDIAN OF MINOR — CONDITIONS FOR APPOINTMENT

(1) The court may appoint a guardian for an unmarried minor if all parental rights of custody have been terminated by prior court order or upon a finding that the child has been neglected, abused, or abandoned or whose parents are unable to provide a stable home environment. "Abandoned" means the failure of the parent to maintain a normal parental relationship with the child including, but not limited to, reasonable support or regular contact. Failure to maintain a normal parental relationship with the child without just cause for a period of six (6) months shall constitute prima facie evidence of abandonment. Except in those circumstances described in subsections (2) and (3) of this section and where a temporary guardianship has been created at the request of a parent on active duty in or deployment with the United States armed forces, the court shall consider the best interests of the child as the primary factor in the determination whether to appoint, and whom to appoint, as a guardian for such child. In determining the choice of a guardian for an unmarried minor, the advanced age or disability of a potential guardian shall not, in and of itself, be used as a criterion of the suitability of the potential guardian as long as the potential guardian is otherwise suitable. A guardian appointed by will as provided in section 15-5-202, Idaho Code, whose appointment has not been prevented or nullified under section 15-5-203, Idaho Code, has priority over any guardian who may be appointed by the court, but the court may proceed with an appointment nonetheless upon a finding that the testamentary guardian has failed to accept the testamentary appointment within thirty (30) days after notice of the guardianship proceeding.
(2) The extended absence of a parent due to active duty in or deployment with the United States armed forces shall not by itself constitute neglect, abuse, abandonment, or failure to provide a stable home environment.
(3) Any guardianship granted at the request of or required by the United States armed forces or at the request of a parent while on active duty in or deployment with the United States armed forces, which duty or deployment does not constitute neglect, abuse, abandonment, or failure to provide a stable home environment, shall be terminated immediately upon the conclusion of the original circumstances necessitating the creation of the temporary guardianship or the filing of a termination report by the parent indicating the parent’s intent to resume all care, custody, and control of the minor.

Legislative History

[15-5-204, added 1971, ch. 111, sec. 1, p. 233; am. 1999, ch. 123, sec. 1, p. 360; am. 2002, ch. 233, sec. 3, p. 671; am. 2020, ch. 235, sec. 1, p. 691.]