Basic Documents Needed by Clients in Estate Planning

It is time to summarize some basic concepts with respect to documents needed for estate planning.

There are several basic documents that I discuss with every older client whom I represent. However, many of these ideas also apply to younger individuals.

The basic documents for every person, particularly the elderly, are a will, a living will and a power of attorney.

A will is a document that directs how the assets in the name of the individual shall pass upon their death. The nature of the will depends upon the person's situation. For example, the purpose of the will might be to minimize death taxes, which can involve complicated estate planning. Or, the will might be that of a healthy spouse whose partner is in a nursing home, which has rather complicated considerations also.

However, one must keep in mind that a will is not the only document that disposes of assets upon an individual's death. Assets that pass under a will are known as probate assets and those that pass outside of a will are known as non-probate assets. Non-probate assets are those that may pass by beneficiary designation, such as life insurance, retirement plans or annuities. The beneficiary designations of such non-probate assets should be coordinated with the plan under the will.

It is my practice not to dictate to a client the terms of a will. I point out the alternatives, discuss advantages and disadvantages of different approaches, review the assets with the client and let the individual decide what is the best course to follow from a personal point of view. That is, in addition to the objective legal reasons for a will, it is the client's subjective intent (after understanding all possibilities) that should govern the overall estate plan.

It must be kept in mind that a will performs two functions. One is to dispose of one's assets in the appropriate manner. A will is also a legacy. That is, an individual often feels that his or her child has not met expectations and desires to "disinherit" such child. I point out to the individual that such language will be the individual's "legacy" and must be carefully considered before undertaken.

With respect to a power of attorney, the first point of significance is that the document must be "durable". That is, at law, a power of attorney is a consensual agreement by the person granting the power (the principal) and the individual given the power (agent). If an individual becomes incompetent, the ability to consent ceases. Therefore, it is necessary that the power of attorney be "durable" and, therefore, survives the incompetence of the principal. That is, for an elderly person, there is a need for someone to act on one's behalf if such individual becomes incompetent.

There is a form of power of attorney known as a "springing" power of attorney, which becomes effective only if a person is incompetent. I do not recommend such a power since a durable power of attorney avoids the issue of incompetence and a springing power of attorney would only be effective if an individual becomes incompetent. Therefore, the "springing" power of attorney has no benefit.

The key to a power of attorney is that it has language so that all assets of the principal are "accessible" to the agent. In this way, if the principal needs money for any reason, including a nursing home, and is not competent, the agent can "access" these funds.

Also, a power of attorney should have special language, such as the ability to access medical records if the principal (who generally is an elderly person) is unable to do so. The durable language allows this result. Also, a power of attorney should include planning language to cover a situation in which a person may enter a nursing home in the future. The language dealing with Medicaid planning depends upon the situation of the principal and will be discussed more fully in another blog.

It is my practice to reference any type of asset an applicant may have to make sure the power of attorney can be used to liquidate such asset. However, not all companies will require that the power of attorney have language relating to the specific asset. It is important that the power of attorney be done as soon as possible, particularly if the individual is failing. A power of attorney can only be done if the individual is competent.

A living will is a document which provides as to whether extraordinary methods be taken in case an individual cannot make the decision by himself or herself. There are several types of living wills. One form known as an "Appointment of Health Care Representative" gives the individual appointed under a living will the general authority to carry out the wishes of an individual based upon the individual's intent as conveyed to the appointee during lifetime. A second type of living will known as an "Advance Directive for Health Care" sets forth the desires for the individual in advance. For example, this document provides that treatment be withheld if it is "experimental". Such language creates an ambiguity as the definition of "experimental" can vary from medical institution to medical institution. Therefore, it is my recommendation that if an elderly person has someone that he or she trusts, the general grant of authority under the Appointment of Health Care Representative is preferable.

As can be seen, pro-forma language is not suitable for any of the documents discussed, and must be discussed individually in detail. That is, the client makes the final decision with respect to the format of each document, after being fully informed.


Disclaimer: This article does not constitute legal advice and each person may have unique facts for which legal consultation may be necessary.
© November 2010, Post 124