The rest of what we have written about Maine. Every figure is quoted from Maine’s own statute or its courts’ own published schedule, and carries the date we last checked it.
Guardians ad litem and child representation in Maine: who they are, what they owe your child, and who pays
If custody is contested in Maine, the court can appoint someone to look into your family and report to the judge. This page is what Maine’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 Maine’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
- Who pays — We looked for an official Maine fee schedule for privately appointed guardians ad litem and custody evaluators, and did not find one.
- Custody evaluations — Maine governs court-ordered custody evaluations and investigations separately from the appointment of a guardian ad litem.
- The thing worth knowing about Maine
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
- Who pays — We looked for an official Maine fee schedule for privately appointed guardians ad litem and custody evaluators, and did not find one.
- Custody evaluations — Maine governs court-ordered custody evaluations and investigations separately from the appointment of a guardian ad litem.
- The thing worth knowing about Maine
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
In contested proceedings under sections 904, 1653 and 1803 in which a minor child is involved, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem for the child. … The court may appoint a guardian ad litem when the court has reason for special concern as to the welfare of a minor child.
Source: 19-A M.R.S. § 1507(1) · source
What duty they owe your child
best interests, with mandatory disclosure of the child’s wishes
The guardian ad litem shall use the standard of the best interest of the child as set forth in section 1653, subsection 3. The guardian ad litem shall make the wishes of the child known to the court if the child has expressed them, regardless of the recommendation of the guardian ad litem.
Source: 19-A M.R.S. § 1507(4) · source
Who can be appointed
Guardian ad Litem Rule 2(b)(2)(A), adopted by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court under 19-A M.R.S. § 1507(2), qualifies an applicant who holds either ‘a current valid license to practice law in the State of Maine’ OR a current license as an LCSW, LPC, LCPC, LMSW, LMFT, LPaC, psychologist, or psychiatrist — so an attorney license is one of several qualifying credentials, not a universal requirement. A third route, ‘a Certification of Qualification by the Director of the CASA program,’ is expressly narrower: the rule provides that ‘a CASA Certification qualified individual may be appointed a guardian ad litem only pursuant to 22 M.R.S. § 4005,’ which is child protection, not a divorce. Read in the Maine Rules for Guardians ad Litem (effective 31 March 2022) on 25 October 2026.
Who pays
Payment for the services of the guardian ad litem is the responsibility of the parties, as ordered by the court. In determining the responsibility for payment, the court shall consider: A. The income of the parties; … D. Which party requested appointment of a guardian ad litem; and E. Other relevant factors.
Source: 19-A M.R.S. § 1507(7) · source
No statutory fee waiver was found in 19-A M.R.S. § 1507 itself, but GAL Rule 2(b)(5) provides that a guardian ad litem ‘is expected to accept at least one Title 19-A pro bono or reduced-fee referral from the Judicial Branch per calendar year and shall do so to the extent consistent with the guardian ad litem’s other professional, personal, and public interest service.’
We looked for an official Maine 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
Maine 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: 19-A M.R.S. § 1507 (guardian ad litem investigation/report duties, subsection 3) · 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 Maine
Maine’s guardian ad litem is expressly required to report the child’s stated wishes to the court even when they conflict with the guardian’s own best-interest recommendation — 19-A M.R.S. § 1507(4): ‘The guardian ad litem shall make the wishes of the child known to the court if the child has expressed them, regardless of the recommendation of the guardian ad litem.’ Complaints about a guardian ad litem run through the Board of Overseers of the Bar, the state’s attorney-discipline body, which the Supreme Judicial Court designated to house the Guardian ad Litem Review Board. The Roster itself is the judicial branch’s: Rule 2(b) puts qualification, placement and removal with the Chief Judge of the District Court, and applications are ‘obtained from the Family Division of the Maine District Court.’
Other states
Related
- Guardians ad litem, child’s attorneys and custody evaluators — the four roles, the science, and what to ask
- Maine child custody — how custody is decided here
- Getting your finances in order — including who pays the lawyers
- Co-parenting — after the order is made