Can guardianship be mentioned in the living will?

Question

I'm pretty confused about what the living will is but what I want to do is to name the guardian for our kid in case we die. We don't want any relatives to raise our daughter. And since we don't have any real estate or property to worry about and she's already the beneficiary on all bank accounts, that guardianship is all we need to take care of. Can we just write a letter or something and notarize it?

Answer 1

No, you cannot just write a letter and have it notorized for it to be legally effective. You want a Will, not a living will, which is a right to die statement. Get an actual Will leaving your property to your child and you can appoint a guardian for your child in the Will. You can appoint the same person or a different person to be a trustee or conservator in the Will. The guardian takes care of the child's personal needs and a conservator takes care of the child's assets. Having money is not the determining factor on whether you need a Will. Everyone with minor children should have a Will for the reasons you hinted at in your question regarding your relatives.

Answer 2

You're living will refers to your medical treatment - things which you do and do not want done to you, and who you want to make these decisions should become incapacitated.
What you need is a straight forward will that says in the even of our death "John and Mary Doe" will assume guardianship of our child.

Let me restate that - everyone should have a living will as well as a regular will - to let their familieis know their wishes in the event of tragic illness, but to name guardians for your children you need a regualr will and testament.