Many parents will be seeing their children finish high school this summer and begin to plan for them to move away to college or pursue other goals. It can be a very emotional and exciting time. Estate planning is probably not something you (or they) are thinking about right now.
Estate planning should be a priority for you as well as your children.
Here’s why. Once your children turn 18, many areas of their lives that were once in your control will be entirely under their control, regardless of whether or not you take action. If your children don’t have proper legal documentation, they could be subject to a severe and costly lawsuit.
You would not be able to take decisions about your child’s medical care or financial affairs if he or she were in a serious car accident. You wouldn’t be able to access your child’s bank accounts or medical records without legal documentation.
This will help you to deal with your vulnerability and prevent your family from getting stuck in an expensive, unnecessary court process. Before your children leave home, discuss estate planning. Make sure your kids sign the following documents.
1. Medical Power of Attorney
A medical power of attorney is the first document that your child will need. Medical power is an advance directive for healthcare that gives your child the legal authority to make healthcare decisions on their behalf if they are incapacitated or unable to do so themselves.
For example, medical power of attorney would enable you to make decisions regarding your child’s medical care if they are incapacitated from a car accident or fall into a coma because of a debilitating condition like COVID-19.
Suppose your child is hospitalized due to a serious accident or illness, and you need access to their medical records to make treatment decisions. In that case, you must petition the court for legal guardianship. Although a parent is usually a child’s first guardian choice, guardianship can be expensive and slow. In medical emergencies, it is crucial to act quickly.
HIPAA laws also mean that your child cannot legally access their medical records until they turn 18. A properly drafted medical power-of-attorney will include a signed HIPAA authorization so that you can access your child’s records immediately to make informed decisions about their treatment.
2. Living Will
A medical power of attorney lets you make healthcare decisions for your child during incapacity. However, a living trust is an advance directive that gives specific guidance regarding these decisions, especially at the end.
A living will, for example, allows your child to tell you if they would like life support to be discontinued if they need it. A living will not only documents how your child would like their medical care handled, but it can also specify who they should see in the hospital and what food they prefer. These things, such as whether your child is vegetarian, vegan, or uses specific supplements, should be documented in the living will.
Talk to your child about COVID-19 and the unique medical decisions, including intubation, ventilators, and experimental medication, due to the pandemic. Your child’s living will should include their quality of life choices to make sure that their emergency medical treatment does not cause more harm than good.
While you can find many forms of advance directives online, such as living wills, medical power of attorney, and living wills, each child is different and has specific wishes and needs that these documents cannot accommodate. We recommend that you and your child collaborate with us to make or review their advance directives.
3. Durable Financial Power of Attorney
If your child becomes incapacitated, you might need to be able to access their finances and manage their legal affairs. This requires your child to give you durable financial power.
A durable financial power of attorney grants you the right to manage their legal and financial affairs, including paying their tuition, applying and paying for student loans, paying rent, negotiating and renegotiating leases, managing their bank accounts, and collecting any government benefits. You will need to petition the court to obtain this power.
Get your adulthood on the right track
Discuss the importance of estate planning with your children before they leave the nest. Make sure that the appropriate legal documents are in place. This will help your family avoid costly and emotional court proceedings. It also shows your commitment to financial and legal stewardship. Your kids will be on the right track.
Fleurinord Law PLLC can help you draft these documents and organize a family meeting for your children to discuss the importance of estate planning. We hope this will start a long-lasting relationship with your children as they begin their journey into adulthood. Call us now to make an appointment.