Adoption vs. Adult Guardianship

Many caregivers ask the legal experts at Greenlight Family Services what the difference is between adult guardianship and adult adoption. They are actually two unrelated services that have different purposes.

Adult guardianship is designed to protect the interest of incapacitated adults; adults who are disabled, are mentally ill, or who have special needs. Greenlight legal services represent caregivers in the court process that enables the guardian to make financial, medical, and legal decisions for the incapacitated adult, and simultaniously deprives the incapacitated adult of many of their rights in order to protect their well-being. The incapacitated adult will no longer have certain privileges that are given to other adults, such as the right to vote or to obtain a driver’s license. Due to the seriousness of the loss of individual rights, adult guardianship requires proof from a medical professional that it is in the best interest of the incapacitated adult for the guardianship to be granted. Adult guardianship has to be renewed every year, making it possible for individuals who have regained capacity to restore their rights and manage their own lives.

Adult adoption offered by Greenlight legal services does not take away any rights of the individual being adopted. It does not provide the adoptive parent with any legal authority to make day-to-day decisions for the individual. Although there are many reasons for a family to seek adult adoption services, it is a service most often requested to establish a legal connection between a stepparent and stepchild if they did not complete the adoption process when the stepchild was a minor.