Legal Guardianship

[Smiles]

I would be interested to know that as well.

I'm glad I read this thread...my husband and I are different nationality, both our parents live in a different country (his have a bad relationship due to bitter divorce...plus the idea of paternal grandparents getting automatic guardianship!!!arrggh!).

Does make you realise how important to get things organised just in case...

 

[C bebe]

wow, this thought didn't even cross my mind. what an insightful thread... i'm bookmarking the above website (profwills.com) and definitely discussing this with my husband.

out of curiosity, who did you all appoint as guardians?

 

[reei]

with the interest of the child comes first. mine is my own brother in australia. i like the way he bring up his kids ,so i aked him and he agreed..
is it expensive to draw up a will mainly for legal guardianship? how much does it cost?

 

[Guy]

Hi, you would normally appoint guardians in your Will. For this reason alone, a good idea of having Wills done. You can also appoint temporary guardians to look after your kids pending the arrival of guardians if they are overseas.

 

[nicolejoy]

My husband and I have had this conversation but totally disagree... I would prefer for my parents to raise our child if we died for a few reasons - they are younger, they have a child who is 11, they are still married, I personally prefer their "parenting style"... but my husband would prefer for his mother to raise our child... it's SO hard to come to an agreement on an issue like this!! I know we NEED to do it though...

 

[LeahH]

If your named guardians live outside HK you def need temporary guardians appointed or you run the risk of the children being taken into care to wait for their arrival. With the regularity that people travel in HK, it was an issue for me to choose friends for this. For that reason, we are selecting our helpers to act as temporary guardians - if we were not around they are the people my baby would feel most comfortable with and that I know would care best for her needs in the short term. Probably a good idea to ensure they are able to authorise emergency medical care in your place if need be too.

Not nice to think about but good to be prepared!

 

[elizaveta]

SAR International, http://www.profwills.com/

They are very thorough and familiar with wills in various jurisdictions. As an expat in Hong Kong you may be in need of more than one will, depending on the place you are from originally.

I contacted pro wills company mentioned above to sort out guardianship for my daughter and our wills. I am sorry to say we had a HORRIBLE experience with them. They made an error while quoting us the total cost and then denied it, became rude and aggressive. I have never had such a bad experience with a professional company I must say, so I would not recommend them to anyone, quite the contrary.

We found out later (from a great and polite lawyer) that in Hong Kong you can also appoint guardians with a "deed", not only with a will. It is a simple and not too costly procedure, so for people not having assets in HK it may be a better option.

 

[carang]

we asked my brother as well. he has two kids of his own. and he and his partner are FANTASTIC parents.

my hubby's parents are already in their 70s and my b-i-l and his wife have no children and really no idea what's involved in raising kids. i also have some religious issues with them, although it doesn't overlap into our everyday interactions. i DO NOT want my children raised in their religion.

we, too, have to get wills drawn up...i didn't know that you could just have a "deed" done up...

any idea of the costs of the two procedures?
thanks!

 

[bekyboo44]

I was recently told by a lawyer in HK that you do NOT need to pay to have a will drawn up.

You can just write down who you want the guardian to be etc.; have it signed by two witnesses and it is legally binding. Anyone know if this is true??

 

[elizaveta]

Pro wills quoted us 8000 HKD for mirror wills + guardianship letters. After we agreed to that price, they added 1000 HKD for "non-storage fee" and after that they said they will bill the initial phone conversation (!!!) for 1450 HKD. That is why I would recommend to stay clear from these people.

My friend did a Hong Kong wills with another firm for around 2000 HKD. I have not yet been quoted a fee for the "deed", I will post when I know.
I am also interested to know whether simple written document will be considered legal by HK authorities.