Right to counsel for certain parents
In private guardianship cases, the court shall appoint counsel for a parent who is incapable of participating due to a disability or for a minor parent. Md. Family Law Code Ann. § 5-3A-07, which is under the subtitle “Private Agency Guardianship and Adoption”, states:
(a)(1) In a case under this subtitle, a court shall appoint an attorney to represent a parent who:
(i) has a disability that makes the parent incapable of effectively participating in the case; or
(ii) when the parent must decide whether to consent under this subtitle, is still a minor.
Proceedings to review and termination the guardianship are under §§ 5-3A-23 and 5-3A-25 respectively, which are under the same subtitle, so this limited right to counsel would apply there too.
Because the right to counsel does not apply to all objecting parents in minor guardianship matters, the right is classified as “qualified.” To learn more about the right to counsel for parents in state-initiated termination of parental rights cases, which can include state-initiated guardianship matters, see Maryland, Legislation, Termination of Parental Rights (State) – Birth Parents.
