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File a guardianship application
Before you file
Before you file, make sure you understand the ways a person can become a guardian of a child.
If you are filing the application, you are the applicant or, if your application was filed before 15 October 2024, the plaintiff.
The other party is the respondent or if your application was filed before 15 October 2024, the defendant.
Key facts
Refer to the following on how to file and serve an application for guardianship.
When to file | Before the child reaches 21 years of age. |
When to serve | As soon as possible after you are issued the accepted documents from the court. |
How to file | Through eLitigation. |
What you will need
You should prepare the following before you file:
- The Originating Application for Children Orders (OA) (Form 55A, Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2024 (DOCX, 150 KB)).
- If you are seeking to be appointed as a guardian under the Guardianship of Infants Act, you will have to state in the title of action the relevant section from the Act under which you are applying.
- If you are seeking to be appointed as a guardian under the court's wardship jurisdiction, you will have to state in the title of action that your application is made under Section 17(1)(d) of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act and Section 22(1)(a) of the Family Justice Act.
- If your application commenced before 15 October 2024, you will need to prepare the Originating Summons instead (Form 47, Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2015 (PDF, 52 KB)).
- The affidavit in support of the OA.
- Your affidavit should contain the reasons and evidence explaining why you should be appointed as the legal guardian of the child.
- (If you were married to the defendant) Your marriage certificate.
- (If there are Syariah Court divorce proceedings between you and the respondent) The Notice of Syariah Court Proceedings in Form 58, Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2024 (DOCX, 48 KB) and your Syariah Court commencement certificate.
- Alternatively, instead of the Syariah Court commencement certificate, you and the respondent may also choose to submit a written consent to the commencement of proceedings in the Family Justice Courts together with a Syariah Court certificate of attendance.
Note
If you are not sure what to say, or need help preparing your OA or affidavit, you should seek independent legal advice.
The courts are not able to provide legal advice or recommend lawyers. Find out where to get help.
Estimated fees
Refer to the following for the possible fees for filing your documents. You may also refer to Division 2 of the Third Schedule of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 for the full list of court fees.
- If your filing commenced before 15 October 2024, refer to Part 2 of the Fifth Schedule of the Family Justice Rules 2014 for the full list of court fees.
In addition to the fees listed in the table, there are also other fees payable to the LawNet and CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.
Item or service | Fees |
|---|---|
File an OA | $60 |
File a supporting affidavit | $1 per page. subject to a minimum fee of $10 per affidavit |
| File the Notice of Proceedings (General) | $10 |
Serving the documents on the respondent | (If service is done by a lawyer or a lawyer’s clerk) Contact a lawyer directly to find out their fees. |
How to file and serve
Refer to the following steps to file and serve your application.
Step | Result |
|---|---|
| 1. File your application | The court will accept or reject the filing of your application. |
| 2. Collect the approved documents | You will receive a copy of the sealed documents via eLitigation. |
| 3. Serve documents on the respondent | The respondent is notified of your application. |
You may choose to file your application personally or through a lawyer. If you are represented by a lawyer, the documents will be filed by your lawyer.
If you are representing yourself, you must file the documents through eLitigation at the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.
You must follow Part 5 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 and the Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2024 to prepare your documents before heading down personally to do the filing.
- If your filing commenced before 15 October 2024, you must follow the Part 8 of the Family Justice Rules 2014 and the Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2015 to prepare your documents before heading down personally to do the filing.
Your documents will then be submitted to the FJC for review.
The LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau will notify you via email or SMS of the outcome of your submission. If the court accepts your documents, a copy of the approved documents containing the respective court's seal and registrar's signature will be issued via eLitigation.
You will have to collect the approved documents for service on the respondent from the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.
You must serve the sealed documents on the respondent as soon as possible from the date of issue. This is to alert them that you have filed an application for guardianship of an infant.
You can serve the sealed copies on the respondent by:
Service method | What it is |
|---|---|
Personal service | Hard copies of the documents will be handed directly to the respondent by someone authorised to do so such as:
|
(If a lawyer represents the respondent) Submitting soft copies of the documents to the respondent's lawyer. The court accepts this form of service only if the respondent's lawyer indicates on the documents that they accept service on behalf of the respondent. |
After you file and serve
If the respondent wishes to contest your application, they will have to file and serve their reply affidavit on you within 14 days from the date you served the documents on them.
- If your filing commenced before 15 October 2024, the defendant will have 21 days from the date you served the documents on them to file and serve their reply affidavit.
You and the respondent will also need to attend a court session known as a case conference. The date and time of the case conference will be mentioned in the sealed OA.
Note
You do not have to attend the case conference yourself if you have a lawyer. Similarly, if the respondent has a lawyer, their lawyer will attend the case conference.
Need help?
The information here is for general guidance as the courts do not provide legal advice. If you need further help, you may want to get independent legal advice.
Find out moreResources
- Specimen Government Medical Certificate (DOCX, 18 KB).
Legislation associated with this topic includes:
- Guardianship of Infants Act.
- For filings commenced on or after 15 October 2024, refer to:
- Part 5, Part 6, Part 7 (Division 1), Part 8 and Part 15 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.
- For filings commenced before 15 October 2024, refer to:
- Part 8, Part 18 (Divisions 3, 4, 6, 14, 24 and 38) of the Family Justice Rules 2014.
For filings commenced on or after 15 October 2024, refer to:
- Part 4 of the Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2024 for the general procedure.
For filings commenced before 15 October 2024, refer to:
- Part XIII of the Family Justice Courts Practice 2015 for the general procedure.
Related questions
You must attend the court session known as a case conference as mentioned in the OA served on you.
If you consent to the application during the case conference, an order will be made and the case will conclude.
If you do not consent to the application, you will have to file and serve your reply affidavit on the applicant within 14 days from the date you are served the documents.
- If the filing commenced before 15 October 2024, you will have to file and serve your reply affidavit on the applicant within 21 days from the date you are served the documents.
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