When it comes to estate planning, one should prepare for the expected and the unexpected.
Everyone expects to make decisions about who and how their estate will be handled at the time of their death in their estate planning. However, it is also important to make decisions about how your estate will be handled when you are still alive but can no longer make decisions for yourself due to a mental or physical disability.
Incapacitated planning is not only for when you become older and have a higher risk of mental health disablement but also if you were ever to sustain an illness or injury that could impact your ability to make medical decisions or handle your financial and estate affairs.
If you were to suffer from a severe illness or injury in which you could not make decisions yourself, you would not want those around you to have to guess your wishes. Not only would it be time-consuming and could involve the court’s interference, but it could also run the risk of your estate and healthcare not being handled how you would have liked. This is why your estate planning should include decisions about who will handle such decisions and what will happen with your estate upon your incapacitation, such as a severe illness or injury.
Important legal documents that are a part of your incapacitated planning will be your Financial Power of Attorney, Medical Power of Attorney and Living Will (known in Maryland as a “Health Care Advance Directive), Revocable Living Trust, and Parental Designation and Consent to the Beginning of Standby Guardianship.
Financial Power of Attorney
A Financial Power of Attorney allows you to designate an agent to manage your real property and financial affairs. You can name multiple agents and successor agents if your primary agent is unable to or unwilling to act for you.
Medical Power of Attorney (Advance Directive)
A Medical Power of Attorney and Living Will (Health Care Advance Directive) allows you to designate an agent to make health care decisions for you if you cannot make such decisions for yourself. This document also allows you to provide specific instructions that your agent must follow regarding decisions about your health. You can name multiple agents and successor agents if your primary agent is unable to or unwilling to act for you.
Revocable Living Trust
A Revocable Living Trust allows you to designate a Trustee, as a successor to yourself, that will be able to have control of your Trust and follow the Revocable Living Trust provisions should you ever become unable to serve as Trustee. You can name more than one successor Trustee if your first choice as alternate can no longer serve as Trustee.
Parental Designation and Consent to the Beginning of Standby Guardianship
A Parental Designation and Consent to the Beginning of Standby Guardianship allows you to designate an adult as a standby guardian of your minor child(ren) if you become mentally or physically incapacitated. If you elect such a standby guardian, they will automatically become the guardian of the child(ren) for 180 days.
Don’t Wait!
The time to plan for when you might become incapacitated is when you have the capacity to do so! Make sure to discuss with your attorney about the preparation of what will happen to your estate and the persons you want to care for your medical, financial, and legal needs should you ever become unable to make such decisions for yourself, whether temporarily or permanently. Incapacity planning is an important part of estate planning that you want to ensure you prepare.
About Andalman & Flynn, P.C.: Founded in 1998 in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland, Andalman & Flynn has forged a distinguished reputation for legal excellence. The Firm practices family law, estate planning, and probate throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia, and represents individuals seeking disability benefits throughout the country. The Firm focuses on cases that impact the rights of everyone and is there for clients when responsive legal help is most critical. The Firm has provided legal analysis on national and local television and radio, and its attorneys often testify before legislative bodies and are routinely invited to contribute to prominent legal publications. For more information about Andalman & Flynn, please visit the website at andalmanflynn.com or call 301.563.6685.