Order of Guardians Over the Child in Jordanian Law

Jordanian law ranks the guardians of the minor clearly in Article 223 of the Personal Status Law, making the minor's guardian: his father first, then the father's appointed trustee, then the true grandfather (the father's father), then the grandfather's trustee, then the court or the trustee the court appoints.

This order concerns guardianship over the minor's person and funds, so if the person whose turn it is is lost or his guardianship lapses, it passes to the next. Note that this order differs from the order of the marriage guardian in Article 14, which rests on the agnates in the Hanafi order; each has its own scope and rules.

Article 224 requires the guardian to be of sound mind, full age, trustworthy, and able; if a condition fails in the person whose turn it is, guardianship passes to the next, or the court appoints a trustee under Article 230.

Assessing who is established as guardian under the order remains within the Sharia Court's competence on the facts of each case.

This is a general explanation based on Jordanian Personal Status Law and does not replace advice from a qualified lawyer in a specific dispute.