If you have not included an incapacity arrangement in your estate plan you should do so immediately. Every person needs an incapacity plan to care for their financial assets and medical needs in the event of a mental disability or major physical ailment.

Advance Health Care Directive

An Advance Health Care Directive allows you to plan for your medical needs if you become disabled. This document allows you to name the person(s) you wish to make medical decisions for you if you can’t make them for yourself. It also allows you to state your wishes regarding life support and organ donations.

Financial Power of Attorney

If you should become disabled, someone must be available to manage your finances. A financial power of attorney (POA) allows you to name an agent to sign documents on your behalf, use your funds and income to pay bills, manage your personal and retirement accounts, and invest your accounts for extra income. With the help of your attorney, you can tailor your POA to fit your financial needs.

When you create a POA, you can choose between an Immediate and a Springing POA. An Immediate POA allows your financial attorney-in-fact to assist with your assets immediately. With a Springing POA, your attorney- in-fact can only manage your affairs after you become incapacitated.

Revocable Living Trust

A Revocable Living Trust has many benefits including the fact that it can be used for incapacity planning. Every asset that you fund into your Trust can be handled by your successor trustee during your time of disability.

Armstrong, Fisch & Tutoli is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

An Advanced Medical Directive is a legal device commonly used in incapacity planning that allows you to name a person to make medical decisions for you in case you should become disabled. You may have also heard this legal document referred to as a Medical Power of Attorney or a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care. The person that you name to make medical decisions for you may be called your agent or advocate.

Along with your medical decisions, the Directive also lets your health care advocate and doctors know your wishes regarding how long you should be left on life support, if it is needed.

Helps Avoid Conservatorship

The main benefit of a medical directive is that it helps you to avoid a conservatorship, which is a court decision that declares you mentally disabled and names someone to make choices for you. A conservatorship takes your choice of medical agent out of your hands and places in the hands of a court who may not know you and therefore may not be able to decide what it best for you. Often in a conservatorship, your chosen guardian may make a medical decision such as leaving you on life support, when you would prefer to be removed from it. To avoid this, make sure to legally document your medical wishes.

Must Comply With State Laws

In order to create an advanced medical directive, you must be an adult and mentally stable at the time that you sign. If a court deems you were already mentally disabled when you created your Directive, a conservatorship may be instituted instead.

You should speak with your attorney to determine what other rules apply including: who can sign as a witness and what provisions you can include.

Armstrong, Fisch & Tutoli is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.