Missouri Revised Statutes

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 453.025 (2026)

Appointment of guardian ad litem, when

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section MO-REVrevisor.mo.gov Justiaon Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

453.025. Appointment of guardian ad litem, when — fee — duties of guardian ad litem. — 1. The court shall, in all cases where the person sought to be adopted is under eighteen years of age, appoint a guardian ad litem, if not previously appointed pursuant to section 210.160, to represent the person sought to be adopted.

2. When the parent is a minor or incompetent, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem to represent such parent.

3. The guardian ad litem may be awarded a reasonable fee for such services to be set by the court. The court, in its discretion, may award such fees as a judgment to be paid by any party to the proceedings or from public funds. Such an award of guardian fees shall constitute a final judgment in favor of the guardian ad litem. Such final judgment shall be enforceable against the parties in accordance with chapter 513.

4. The guardian ad litem shall:

(1) Be the legal advocate for the best interest of the party he is appointed to represent with the power and authority to cross-examine, subpoena witnesses, and offer testimony;

(2) Initiate an appeal of any disposition that he determines to be adverse to the interests of the party he represents; and

(3) Ascertain the child's wishes, feelings and attitudes regarding the adoption by interviewing persons with knowledge of the child, and if appropriate, to meet with the child.

--------

(L. 1985 H.B. 366, et al., A.L. 1997 H.B. 343, A.L. 1998 S.B. 674, A.L. 2004 H.B. 1453)

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 4 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1989–2021 · leading case: In the Matter of the Adoption of E.n.c., Minor, 458 S.W.3d 387 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

In the Matter of the Adoption of E.n.c., Minor, 458 S.W.3d 387 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014). · cites it 4× “Grandmother has also filed a motion to strike portions of Appellants' Reply brief, arguing that this Court should strike Appellants’ arguments made relating to the GAL’s standing to initiate a cause of action under the authority of the GAL in adoption cases, enumerated in…”

Feinstein v. Feinstein, 778 S.W.2d 253 (Mo. Ct. App. 1989). · cites it 2× “1980); § 453.025, RSMo 1986; § 456.225.4, RSMo 1986.”

In Re: The Adoption of Carl Lee Debrodie Bryan Keith Martin & Mary Elizabeth Martin v. Karen Digh Allen, 452 S.W.3d 644 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014). · cites it 2× “Section 453.025 requires appointment of a guardian ad litem only where the person sought to be adopted is under eighteen years of age and when the parent of the minor adoptee is a minor or incompetent.”

In Re: S.H.P. & A.l.p., A.s., L.M. v. N.b., C.P. (Mo. Ct. App. 2021). · cites it 2× “cites Section 453.025 merely for the proposition that “a Guardian ad Litem is required to ‘[a]scertain the child’s wishes, feelings and attitudes regarding the adoption by interviewing persons with knowledge of the child, and if appropriate, to meet with the child.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.