Does Your Estate Plan Include Incapacity Planning?
When you think of estate planning, you probably think about what happens after your death. It is important to include in your estate plan what happens to your assets after your death, but it is also important to prepare for the possibility that you may become incapacitated while you are alive. To help you get started, the Indianapolis attorneys at
Frank & Kraft explain why estate planning should include incapacity planning to protect your wishes and your assets. To help get you started, the Indianapolis attorneys at Frank & Kraft
explain why estate planning should include incapacity planning to protect your wishes and your assets.
Incapacity Can Affect Anyone, Not Just the Elderly
While it is true that the likelihood of incapacity increases with age, it can strike at any time. Unexpected illness or an accident can make you temporarily or permanently incapable, whether you are young or older. You may be faced with a sudden illness or accident that renders you unable to manage yourself. Incapacity can occur at any stage of life, so it is important to include incapacity planning in your estate strategy. Because incapacity can happen at any stage of life, it is essential to include incapacity planning in your estate strategy.
Managing Your Assets During Incapacity
Consider a scenario where a serious accident leaves you in a coma. Someone else will have to manage your finances if you are unable to communicate. Bills need to be paid, medical costs may require the sale of assets and legal action against creditors, landlords or mortgage companies may be necessary. If you’re married, your spouse may have some authority over your finances. However, their powers can still be limited without your explicit authorization. If you’re single, no one automatically has the right to manage your assets. A court may be required to intervene and appoint someone who will handle your financial affairs. Establishing a revocable trust is one way to achieve this. This trust can specify that a successor trustee of your choice takes over the management of your assets in the event of your incapacity. As the creator of the trust, you can specify the conditions that must be met in order to declare you “incapable”. Another important tool is a durable Power of Attorney. By naming a POA you appoint a representative to act on your behalf for legal and financial issues. If the POA is durable, it remains in effect even if you become incapacitated.
Ensuring Your Medical Wishes Are Respected
Incapacity planning also allows you to maintain control over your medical treatment preferences. In the event that you become incapacitated, someone else will have to make your healthcare decisions. Advance directives are necessary to ensure that your healthcare wishes will be honored. A Living Will allows you to make medical decisions about life-sustaining and life-prolonging treatments now, while a Healthcare Power of Attorney enables you to name someone to make healthcare choices on your behalf in the event that you are unable. Without these directives, a court may appoint someone not of your choosing to make healthcare decisions for you.
The Relationship between Estate Planning and Incapacity Planning
Incorporating incapacity planning into your estate plan ensures that you and your loved ones are protected no matter what the future holds. For more information, join us at an upcoming FREE seminar. Call
Frank & Kraft
or (317) 684-500 for an appointment with an experienced Indianapolis estate planner. Read More! Latest Posts by Paul A. Kraft Estate Planning Attorney (see all)
