The rest of what we have written about Idaho. Every figure is quoted from Idaho’s own statute or its courts’ own published schedule, and carries the date we last checked it.
Guardians ad litem and child representation in Idaho: who they are, what they owe your child, and who pays
If custody is contested in Idaho, the court can appoint someone to look into your family and report to the judge. This page is what Idaho’s own statutes and court rules say about who that person is, what duty they owe, and — the part almost nobody asks in time — who pays for them.
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Everything below is traced to Idaho’s own statute or court rule, quoted where the wording matters. Where we could not verify something from a primary source, the page says so in plain terms rather than filling the space. This is information, not legal advice. Corrections go up at thecusp.app/corrections.
The short version7 points · tap one to jump to it
- What the role is called here — A guardian ad litem generally argues for what they judge is best for your child and is not your child’s lawyer.
- How an appointment happens
- What duty they owe your child
- Who can be appointed — Rule 118(b) provides that the court may appoint 'an attorney who is qualified through training or experience' as the child advocate (whether serving as attorney for the child or guardian ad litem); Idaho's child-advocate role under Rule 118 is attorney-only.
- Who pays — Idaho Code § 32-704: if both parties are indigent, the costs, fees, and disbursements shall be borne by the county in which the action is pending.
- Custody evaluations — Idaho governs court-ordered custody evaluations and investigations separately from the appointment of a guardian ad litem.
- The thing worth knowing about Idaho
In this subject 9
What the role is called here
The short version7 points · tap one to jump to it
- What the role is called here — A guardian ad litem generally argues for what they judge is best for your child and is not your child’s lawyer.
- How an appointment happens
- What duty they owe your child
- Who can be appointed — Rule 118(b) provides that the court may appoint 'an attorney who is qualified through training or experience' as the child advocate (whether serving as attorney for the child or guardian ad litem); Idaho's child-advocate role under Rule 118 is attorney-only.
- Who pays — Idaho Code § 32-704: if both parties are indigent, the costs, fees, and disbursements shall be borne by the county in which the action is pending.
- Custody evaluations — Idaho governs court-ordered custody evaluations and investigations separately from the appointment of a guardian ad litem.
- The thing worth knowing about Idaho
In this subject 9
Names matter more than they look. A guardian ad litem generally argues for what they judge is best for your child and is not your child’s lawyer. An attorney for the child argues for what your child actually wants. Those are opposite duties. The four roles, explained in full.
How an appointment happens
The court may appoint an attorney or guardian ad litem to represent the interests of a minor or dependent child with respect to his or her support, custody, and visitation.
Source: Idaho Code § 32-704; Idaho R. Fam. L. P. 118 · source
What duty they owe your child
hybrid/dual role — Idaho recognizes two distinct roles with different duty standards under the same rule
The attorney for the child must represent the child’s interests based on the child’s wishes… The guardian ad litem must represent the best interest of the child as specified in Idaho Code § 32-717.
Source: Idaho Code § 32-704; Idaho R. Fam. L. P. 118 · source
Who can be appointed
Rule 118(b) provides that the court may appoint ‘an attorney who is qualified through training or experience’ as the child advocate (whether serving as attorney for the child or guardian ad litem); Idaho’s child-advocate role under Rule 118 is attorney-only.
Who pays
The court shall enter an order for costs, fees, and disbursements in favor of the child’s attorney or guardian ad litem. The order shall be made against either or both parents.
Source: Idaho Code § 32-704; Idaho R. Fam. L. P. 118(c)(3) · source
Idaho Code § 32-704: if both parties are indigent, the costs, fees, and disbursements shall be borne by the county in which the action is pending.
We looked for an official Idaho fee schedule for privately appointed guardians ad litem and custody evaluators, and did not find one. That is true of most states — only a handful publish figures at all, among them Arkansas, Massachusetts and Minnesota, and those are subsidized program rates rather than market ones.
The numbers circulating online come from law-firm marketing pages. We will not repeat those as though they were sourced. Call your county family court clerk and ask what appointees there actually charge. It is local, current, and free.
Custody evaluations
Idaho governs court-ordered custody evaluations and investigations separately from the appointment of a guardian ad litem. An evaluator is a witness, not an advocate — and their recommendation is a recommendation, not a ruling a judge is bound by.
Source: Idaho R. Fam. L. P. 118(d)(2); Idaho Code § 32-717 · source
Before an evaluation begins, it is worth asking which psychological instruments will be used. The peer-reviewed literature is openly critical of several still in circulation — one has interrater reliability reported as ranging from 50% to 100%. The evidence, in full.
The thing worth knowing about Idaho
Idaho’s Rule 118 (‘Child Advocate’) expressly splits the role into two attorney-staffed positions with opposite duty standards operating under the same rule: an ‘attorney for the child’ who must follow the child’s wishes, and a ‘guardian ad litem’ who must follow the child’s best interest — the court chooses which one to appoint, and both must be attorneys.
Other states
Related
- Guardians ad litem, child’s attorneys and custody evaluators — the four roles, the science, and what to ask
- Idaho child custody — how custody is decided here
- Getting your finances in order — including who pays the lawyers
- Co-parenting — after the order is made