Can you 'leave' a child to someone in your will?

[mrs_overall]

My niece is a single parent to a 6 yr old girl. Her husband left when the girl was a baby and he's never paid a penny to her upkeep and only sees her a couple of times a year despite living in the same town. He's since remarried and has a new family now. My niece is terminally ill and her priority is making sure her daughter is looked after. She wants her brother and sister in law to raise her and they are happy & willing to do this. However, all the family are worried that once my niece dies, her ex husband will come crawling out of the woodwork to claim his daughter, particularly if he learns that she has a large sum of money left to her by a grandparent. Is there any way my niece can stop this happening and ensure her little girl goes to live with her aunt & uncle?

[angeldraws]

I think you can state a preference of who would get custody of the child and depending on the childs age, s/he would also get a say. The concern that the child would go to her estranged father - he would have to prove an extremely good case for this, and it is unlikely, unless the child has no other family. If the money is put into trust until the child is say, 18, or 21, no-one can touch this until then.

[mrs_overall]

Thanks for that. The money is already in trust until she's 18 but he's such a money grabbing weasel that if she went to live with him he'd probaby demand it from her on her 18th birthday to cover the cost of her upbringing, and then he'd blow it all in the pub.
My niece is more concerned for the welfare of the little 'un as when her dad does see her, he usually dumps her alone in a beer garden while he's at the bar, and his new wife ignores her. She'd have a rotten upbringing with her dad.

[Ethel]

Here is an excellent article on how to provide a legal guardian in the event of parental death:

http://www.babyworld.co.uk/information/money/l egal_guardians.asp

Your niece is being sensible to consider this possibility - and it should put her mind at rest.

[mrs_overall]

Brilliant article Ethel, many thanks. One worrying aspect was the bit about both parents having parental responsibility which makes me think that the weasel of a dad could contest the appointment of a guardian detailed in the will.We'll have to get a family law solicitor out to see my niece to discuss this.

[GAZ6078]

Me and my wife were made legal guardians for our grandchildren by my Daughter in the event of her death, this was done by way of a living will at the solicitors, so it might be worth it for you to talk to one. Unfortunately my daughter like your niece also married a jerk who hasn't paid or seen the kids since they were young which suits us great, but please see a solicitor and sort it., and my sincere sympathy to you and your family