For most people, the durable power of attorney is one of the most important estate planning tools available. A power of attorney allows a person of your choosing, known as your proxy or attorney in fact, to act on your behalf for financial purposes if you become incapacitated. It can also be used as a medical power of attorney to appoint someone to make medical decisions on your behalf should you no longer be able to do so on your own. Note that New York State has enacted a Health Care Proxy … [Read more...] about Why You Must Have a Durable Power of Attorney
Advance Medical Directives
Advance Medical Directives and the Family Health Care Decisions Act
In 2010, Governor David Paterson signed into law the Family Health Care Decisions Act. The law allows family members to make health care decisions on behalf of family members who lose their ability to make their own decisions and have not prepared advance medical directives regarding their wishes. Estate planning not only involves creating a will or creating a trust to handle property, but drafting these advance medical directives to state your wishes in the event you are unable to do so on … [Read more...] about Advance Medical Directives and the Family Health Care Decisions Act
Advance Medical Directives Glossary
Are you familiar with a Medical Power of Attorney document? How about a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care? Are they one and the same? The terminology used in law and estate planning can be confusing. Advance medical directives have a number of legal documents with similar names, but different purposes. First, let’s define Advance Medical Directives, which are documents used in estate planning that allow you to convey your decisions about end-of-life care ahead of time, as well as … [Read more...] about Advance Medical Directives Glossary
Why New Yorkers Need a Health Care Proxy
If you are just beginning the estate planning process, you may have seen information advising you to have advance medical directives, which are legal documents that deal with issues relating to treatment preferences, and the designation of a decision-maker should you become unable to make medical decisions on your own. Often, estate planning information advises you to have a ‘Durable Power of Attorney’ to appoint an ‘agent’ or ‘proxy’ to make health care decisions for you if you are unable to … [Read more...] about Why New Yorkers Need a Health Care Proxy
