By Christopher Adkins Living wills, also called an advance directive regarding a natural death, allow a person to express their desires and preferences regarding medical treatments in the event they are unable to communicate their wishes later due to unconsciousness or incapacity. Having a living will is beneficial for a number of reasons: Benefit #1: You are in control of the outcome. Having a living will is advantageous because it allows you to control the outcome in advance. In the event that an accident or disease renders you incapable of making your own medical decisions, with a living will set in place, you can rest assured that decisions regarding your medical treatment will be carried out. Benefit #2: Make decisions easier for your loved ones. Without a living will, your loved ones are burdened with making difficult medical decisions on your behalf. By having a living will, you relieve this burden and stress from them by having already elected what medical decisions you want. Not only does this create less stress for your loved ones, it prevents potential arguments among your family members. Benefit #3: Control what treatments you receive. Not everyone wants the same medical treatments. Having a living will allows you to refuse any medical treatments you may not want. Benefit #4: Insure that medical providers follow your wishes. It goes without saying that your doctor wants to do their best to follow your wishes and desires regarding medical treatments. With a living will set in place, your can insure that your doctor will follow your desires, and not just do what they feel is best. This allows you to retain control of your medical treatment instead of decisions simply being made by your doctor. Benefit #5: Prevent financial burdens for your family. People who suffer from permanent illnesses and medical conditions can require long-term care, which can be extremely expensive. If you are in a coma and require long-term life support, for example, you may incur very large medical bills, which may require your family to help pay for your treatment and care. Having a living will set in place can help manage and prevent any unnecessary financial encumbrances for your family. If you would like to arrange a consultation with an estate planning attorney to discuss living wills, contact Adkins Law. Adkins Law has offices in Huntersville and Ballantyne for your convenience.
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Do you need a will or custom estate plan? Contact Adkins Law to arrange a free estate planning consultation with a Huntersville estate planning attorney. One of our Huntersville estate planning lawyers can help you create a will, trust, power of attorney, and living will suited to your specific needs. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 ("HIPAA") governs, in part, the disclosure of protected health information. HIPPA potentially creates issues for health care agents in that it prohibits the disclosure of protected health information until such agent is acting. Similarly, a patient's family may not receive protected health information without that patient issuing a HIPAA authorization or release authorizing the disclosure. The principal may limit the type of information released and revoke the authorization at any time. Without having a HIPAA authorization on file with the health care provider, the patient's agent, family, friends, and others involved in his or her care, or payment for care, may not receive protected information. If you would like to meet with an estate planning attorney to discuss HIPAA, health care agents, and living wills, contact Adkins Law to arrange a free estate planning consultation. Adkins Law has locations in Huntersville and Ballantyne. A sound estate plan will help guarantee your family's safety and wellbeing. Contact Adkins Law to arrange an estate planning consultation at no charge with a Huntersville wills and estates attorney. One of our Huntersville estate planning lawyers will arrange to meet with you to discuss your will, trust, power of attorney, and living will.
In a recent poll, more than 60 percent of Americans confessed that they did not have a will in place. One third even said that they would much rather do their taxes than think about drafting a will. While it might be a difficult subject to think about, it is extremely important to have an official will in case of emergency. Wills are used to ensure that when you pass your property is properly distributed and that an executor is named to wrap up your estate. It is also important to name a guardian for children so that you can make sure they are taken care of by someone you trust. You can also name a caretaker for your pets so that they go to a good home. In addition, wills act as a backup to a living trust or other estate plan to guarantee that all property is taken care of. If you pass away without a will in place the effects can be devastating. Most importantly, without a will the decision of your children’s guardianship is left up to the courts. This means that the law and an unknown judge will be responsible for choosing who will raise your children. This is an extremely important decision that you should carefully decide for yourself. Next, without a will your assets will be divided up based on a predetermined legal formula. This formula decides who gets what and how much they receive. This means that your estate can go to people that you did not necessarily want it to, including an ex-spouse. Without a will, your estate will end up going to probate court where a large amount of money will be taken out. Estate taxes go to the federal and state government and without a will more is taken out due to legal fees. These taxes cannot be completely avoided, but they can be lessened by properly directing your money your will. Creating a will is a fairly easy process. With the help of an attorney, a basic will can take less than one hour to write and just requires two witnesses to sign. Once the will is written it is important to determine a safe place to store it, such as a safe deposit box at the bank or your lawyer’s office. A will is easy to generate and will greatly aid your friends and family during a difficult time. If you would like to speak with an estate planning attorney about wills, contact Adkins Law. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville and primarily serves Mecklenburg County and the Lake Norman area. |
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