2018 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 45a - Probate Courts and Procedure
Chapter 802h - Protected Persons and Their Property
Section 45a-604 - (Formerly Sec. 45-42a). Definitions.

As used in sections 45a-603 to 45a-622, inclusive:

(1) “Mother” means a woman who can show proof by means of a birth certificate or other sufficient evidence of having given birth to a child and an adoptive mother as shown by a decree of a court of competent jurisdiction or otherwise;

(2) “Father” means a man who is a father under the law of this state including a man who, in accordance with section 46b-172, executes a binding acknowledgment of paternity and a man determined to be a father under chapter 815y;

(3) “Parent” means a mother as defined in subdivision (1) of this section or a “father” as defined in subdivision (2) of this section;

(4) “Minor” or “minor child” means a person under the age of eighteen;

(5) “Guardianship” means guardianship of the person of a minor, and includes: (A) The obligation of care and control; (B) the authority to make major decisions affecting the minor's education and welfare, including, but not limited to, consent determinations regarding marriage, enlistment in the armed forces and major medical, psychiatric or surgical treatment; and (C) upon the death of the minor, the authority to make decisions concerning funeral arrangements and the disposition of the body of the minor;

(6) “Guardian” means a person who has the authority and obligations of “guardianship”, as defined in subdivision (5) of this section;

(7) “Termination of parental rights” means the complete severance by court order of the legal relationship, with all its rights and responsibilities, between the child and the child's parent or parents so that the child is free for adoption, except that it shall not affect the right of inheritance of the child or the religious affiliation of the child;

(8) “Permanent guardianship” means a guardianship, as defined in subdivision (5) of this section, that is intended to endure until the minor reaches the age of majority without termination of the parental rights of the minor's parents; and

(9) “Permanent guardian” means a person who has the authority and obligations of a permanent guardianship, as defined in subdivision (8) of this section.

(P.A. 79-460, S. 1; P.A. 81-472, S. 100, 159; P.A. 96-130, S. 1; P.A. 99-84, S. 4; P.A. 00-5; 00-157, S. 7, 8; 00-196, S. 31; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1, S. 274.)

History: P.A. 81-472 made technical changes; Sec. 45-42a transferred to Sec. 45a-604 in 1991; P.A. 96-130 added Subdiv. (7) defining “termination of parental rights”; P.A. 99-84 amended definition of “father” in Subdiv. (2) to include “a man who, in accordance with section 46b-172, executes a binding acknowledgment of paternity”; P.A. 00-5 added Subdiv. (5)(C) in definition of “guardianship” re authority, upon the death of minor, to make decisions concerning funeral arrangements and disposition of minor's body; P.A. 00-157 amended Subdiv. (5)(B) to add education, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 00-196 made technical changes in Subdiv. (1); June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1 made definitions applicable to Sec. 45a-616a, made technical changes in Subdiv. (6) and added Subdiv. (8) defining “permanent guardianship” and Subdiv. (9) defining “permanent guardian”.

Annotations to former section 45-42a:

Cited. 193 C. 393.

Cited. 6 CA 707.

Annotations to present section:

Cited. 231 C. 1.

Taken together, under Subdiv. (5) and Secs. 45a-605(a) and 45a-606, authority to make major decisions affecting child's welfare intended to effectuate child's best interest includes authority to make legal decisions on behalf of the minor and would include, in this case, authority to assert child's legal rights in a court of law. 76 CA 693.

Cited. 44 CS 169.