law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

, a ward is a

minor Minor may refer to: Common meanings * Minor (law), a person not under the age of certain legal activities. * Academic minor, a secondary field of study in undergraduate education Mathematics * Minor (graph theory), a relation of one graph to an ...

or incapacitated adult placed under the protection of a

legal guardian A legal guardian is a person who has been appointed by a court or otherwise has the legal authority (and the corresponding duty) to make decisions relevant to the personal and property interests of another person who is deemed incompetent, ca ...

or government entity, such as a court. Such a person may be referenced as a "ward of the court".

Overview

The wardship jurisdiction is an ancient jurisdiction derived from the British Crown's duty as ''

parens patriae ''Parens patriae'' is Latin for "father of the nation" (lit., "father of one's country"). In law, it refers to the public policy power of the state to intervene against an abusive or negligent parent, legal guardian, or informal caretaker, and to ...

'' ("parent of the nation") to protect his or her subjects, and particularly those unable to look after themselves. In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and other

Commonwealth realms A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state in the Commonwealth of Nations that has the same constitutional monarch and head of state as the other realms. The current monarch is King Charles III. Except for the United Kingdom, in each of the ...

, the monarch as ''parens patriae'' is parent for all the children in their realms, who, if a judge so determines, can become wards of court. However, the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, in the case of ''Re F (Mental Patient: Sterilisation)'', held that the monarch has no ''parens patriae'' jurisdiction with regard to mentally disabled adults. A

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

may take responsibility for the legal protection of an incapacitated person as well a minor, and the ward is known as a ward of the court or a ward of the state. In Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, the child is termed a ward of the court. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, "the" is not used; the ward is thus termed a ward of court. In Canada, the legal term is permanent ward, except in Ontario, which uses the term

Crown ward Foster children in Canada are known as permanent wards (crown wards in Ontario).Anne Tweddle"Youth Leaving Care Report", September 2005 A ward is someone, in this case a child, placed under protection of a legal guardian and are the legal responsi ...

Foster care

Children who are in the custody of government departments, also known as

foster care Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home ( residential child care community or treatment centre), or private home of a state- certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent", or with a family mem ...

, become wards of the respective government entity, and in the US they are wards of the states in which they reside. The government or state is ''

in loco parentis The term ''in loco parentis'', Contemporary Latin, Latin for "in the place of a parent", refers to the legal responsibility of a person or organization to take on some of the functions and responsibilities of a parent. Originally derived from ...

'' to the child, which generally entails supporting the child and assuming all legal authority to make medical and legal decisions on the child's behalf.

Canada

The

indigenous peoples in Canada Indigenous peoples in Canada (also known as Aboriginals) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples within the boundaries of Canada. They comprise the First Nations in Canada, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis#Métis people in ...

remain wards of the Crown as a result of

Indian Act The ''Indian Act'' () is a Canadian Act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of Indian reserves. First passed in 1876 and still in force with amendments, it is the primary document that defines how t ...

legislation. Some scholars and political organizations, such as the Assembly of First Nations, have argued that this represents an apartheid-like system of governance.

France

In France, a ward of the State () is a

who is under the responsibility of the State. These wards could be the result of any of: anonymous birth (""), found abandoned, unregistered children, children assigned by a court to the care of the (ASE), or minor orphans who suddenly find themselves without parents for whatever reason. Children recognized as wards of the state are eligible for adoption, and continue to be wards until they are. Legal status of wards of the state in France are covered by law 224-4 of the .

United States

In the 1831 Supreme Court case '' Cherokee Nation v. Georgia'', the native peoples were legally made to be wards of the state. One consequence of this was that they were not permitted to sue the US government because of their status as a dependent nation. The

Indian Appropriations Act The Indian Appropriations Act is the name of several acts passed by the United States Congress. A considerable number of acts were passed under the same name throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, but the most notable landmark acts consi ...

was passed on 3 March 1871, with an amendment ending tribal recognition and the treaty system. All Indians were made wards of the state; thus the U.S. government no longer needed tribal consent in dealing with the tribes. In

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, a

juvenile offender Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is the act of participating in unlawful behavior younger than the statutory age of majority. These acts would be considered crimes if the individuals committing them were older. The term ...

may be ordered to be a ward of a

if such juvenile violated any state law, curfew, or from excessive truancies since the juvenile

criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

system in California is geared toward rehabilitation instead of

punishment Punishment, commonly, is the imposition of an undesirable or unpleasant outcome upon an individual or group, meted out by an authority—in contexts ranging from child discipline to criminal law—as a deterrent to a particular action or beh ...

References