Before a natural tutor enters upon the performance of his official duties, he must take an oath to discharge faithfully the duties of his office, cause an inventory to be taken or a detailed descriptive list to be prepared, and cause a legal mortgage in favor of the minor to be inscribed, or furnish security, in the manner provided by law.
Art. 4061.Natural Tutor; General Obligations
Book VII. Special Proceedings · Title VI. Tutorship · Chapter 2. Appointment of Particular Tutors · Enacted 1983 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 4061 requires a natural tutor — a parent serving as tutor by virtue of that status alone — to take an oath, cause an inventory or descriptive list of the minor's property to be made, and either record a legal mortgage or furnish security before performing the duties of tutor.
Full Text of Art. 4061
Amendment History
Acts. 1983, No. 344, §1.
Plain-English Summary
A natural tutor is a parent. Louisiana treats a surviving or custodial parent as tutor of a minor child by operation of law, without a court needing to appoint anyone — the parental relationship itself carries the tutorship. This is the most common form of tutorship in Louisiana and the default against which the rest of Chapter 2's appointed-tutor categories operate.
Status as natural tutor and authority to act as one are not the same thing. Article 4061 conditions the actual performance of a natural tutor's official duties on three formalities: taking an oath to faithfully discharge the office, causing an inventory to be taken or a detailed descriptive list to be prepared of the minor's property, and either recording a legal mortgage in the minor's favor or furnishing security, all in the manner the later articles of this Title spell out.
Those formalities exist because a parent's authority over a child's property is not unchecked. Chapter 3 works out how the inventory or descriptive list gets made; Chapter 4 works out the security and legal mortgage requirements, including the special rules that let a natural tutor satisfy them through a recorded legal mortgage rather than a bond. And a second official, the undertutor, is appointed alongside every tutor specifically to watch over how the tutor carries out these duties.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is a natural tutor under Louisiana law?
A parent — the surviving parent, or the parent with custody after divorce or separation — who serves as tutor of a minor child by virtue of that parental status, without needing a court to appoint them.
Does a natural tutor need a court order to become tutor?
No. Natural tutorship arises automatically from the parental relationship. What Article 4061 requires before the natural tutor can act is an oath, an inventory or descriptive list, and a legal mortgage or security.
What must a natural tutor do before managing a child's property?
Take an oath to faithfully perform the duties of the office, arrange for an inventory or detailed descriptive list of the minor's property, and either record a legal mortgage in the minor's favor or furnish security.
Why does Louisiana require a parent-tutor to post security or a legal mortgage?
To protect the minor's property against the risk of mismanagement, even by a parent, and to give the undertutor and the court a way to measure what the tutor is accountable for.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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