An Analysis of the Institution Guardianship of the Child: Its Voids and Challenges in Jurisprudence and Law

The legal guardianship of a child is one of the issues of family law which can create problems for families. Civil law grants guardianship of children exclusively to father and paternal grandfather, while depriving the mother of this legal right. Now, the main question is that whether the current laws regarding legal guardianship of children provide a family needs and in accordance in the best interest of the child and family or not? 
In the present paper, through studying the current status of families, observing the child’s interests and the duration of mother’s right to custody of a child until it reaches the age of seven, the author believes that if custody be granted to mother and legal guardianship be transferred to father and paternal grandfather, this will cause additional problems in families and consequently be against the best interests of the child. Thus, by considering cultural development of the society and the active presence of women in Iran’s present-day society and also by considering all related aspects, the author suggests that the law should grant mothers the right of guardianship as well, and like child custody, this right should be reserved for both parents. The author believes that this way of distributing guardianship between the father and the mother will lead to the strengthening of the family and it will secure the child’s interests.