Are you like the groundhog? Are you the type to peek-out, see your shadow, and go back in to your safe warm place?  Or do you step out and face the day head on?

Interestingly enough, the tradition of the groundhog being afraid of seeing his shadow is a recent phenomenon.  The tradition started as a medieval superstition that all hibernating animals (not just the groundhog) came out of their caves and dens to check the weather in early February.  If the animal could see their shadow, it meant winter could go on for another 6 weeks (which meant they could go back to sleep!)  A cloudy day meant spring was just around the corner and they could venture out.  As you can see, shadow didn’t “scare” the animal back into the safety of their den.  It was simply an alarm clock of sorts!

So with that myth dispelled, I also want you to stop using the fear of your mortality as a reason for postponing doing your own will or trust or putting a plan in place (health care power of attorney and living will) for your medical care in the event you cannot make these decisions for yourself.

Simply think of estate planning as a way to ensure that your legacy will go to the people you want, in the way you want, when you want.  It will also allow you to save your loved ones potential court costs, attorney’s fees and most importantly, will allow them to mourn your loss without the added burden of the distribution of your estate being uncertain.

So, as we see all the news and excitement surrounding Punxsutawney Phil this year, take a long look at yourself and see if you are ready to make sure your family is taken care of no matter what.  If your plans are lacking, I invite you to give me a call to discuss your options.

By simply mentioning this article, you can come in for a Peace of Mind Planning Session for only $250 (normally $750).  However, this offer is limited to 5 per month so call 704-843-1446 to reserve your space today.

Radaronline.com somehow got a hold of her Trust (which technically is a private document…one of the many reasons people choose a Trust over a Will).  Just for kicks to those who think a viable option is a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) estate plan or that it isn’t worth the money to pay an attorney to put a plan in place for you, read Fawcett’s Trust and see the type of language that a proper estate plan needs to include.

If you don’t have an estate plan in place and even if you don’t have anywhere near the assets that Farrah Fawcett had, call our Charlotte Wills and Trust Law Firm in Charlotte, North Carolina at (704) 843-1446 and schedule your Planning appointment.  I am certain you will be surprised at how much you will learn!

1.  Durable General Power of Attorney:  This Power of Attorney is created so that someone can manages finances for you.  For the most part, this takes affect the minute it is signed.  It does not matter if you become incapacitated the next day.  There is typically a statement in the document that says something along the lines of: “This power of attorney is a durable power of attorney, and it shall not be affected by my becoming disabled, incompetent or incapacitated or the lapse of time.  It is my intent that the authority conferred herein shall be exercisable notwithstanding my physical disability or mental incompetence.”

Often times this is what a husband and wife will use for each other.  I do recommend to my clients to check with the banks they maintain their accounts with if they require their own form to be signed in addition.  Although it is not statutorily required, I have occasionally seen some local branches of banks require an in house form to be executed as well.  If you need to do this please remember to put the agents in the same order.  It is going to potentially create some serious problems if your daughter is named as first in one and second in the other!

2.  Springing Power of Attorney: This takes effect when the person creating the document becomes incapacitated.  It can be signed today and in three years from now when the person is incapacitated it becomes a document that can be used by the agent but not before then.  Typically two doctors are needed to certify incapacity.  If you no longer are incapacitated, the authority is revoked until the future if it is ever needed again.

3.  Healthcare Power of Attorney: This document names a person to make medical decisions.  This person is called an agent whom is essentially stepping into the shoes of the person signing the HCPOA and makes the decision that person would have normally made for him or herself.  I always suggest to make certain you tell everybody that is close to you, family, friends, even the agent that you appoint, what your wishes are.  Even though it is in the document it’s a tough decision to make.  So if they know and everybody else knows it’s a much more comfortable decision to be able to make.

This authority typically kicks in when either a doctor that has been named (or if left blank the doctor attending to you), determines that you lack capacity. The duration of the authority granted via the power of attorney can also be limited.  The language would read similar to this:  “If I am unable to make health care decisions for myself when this power of attorney expires (on the date I may have inserted above), the authority I have granted to my agent and attorney-in-fact continues to exist until the time I become able to make health care decisions for myself.”

Every estate plan should include both a Power of Attorney for finances as well as medical decisions.  It is important that your estate be managed after your death, but you may also need assistance while you are still alive.

If you need to revise these documents or create them for the first time, call our Estate Planning firm in Charlotte, North Carolina at 704-843-1446 and we will be happy to assist you in getting your affairs in order.

1. Executor  (to handle the collection and distribution of your estate);
2. Guardian of minor children (to raise your minor children);
3. Trustee of a trust for your children (to manage any assets left to your children);
4. Trustee of a Revocable Living Trust  (in case you become incapacitated);
5. Agent to make health care decisions  (make medical decisions for you when you cannot do it yourself);
6. Agent to make financial decisions (to help you with your finances)

Prior to naming any individual you should always first speak to him or her.  Ask if they want to have the responsibility should they ever need to step in.  If you know their feelings before you put your plan into place you have saved yourself and your loved ones a great deal of heartache.

Ask the person you wish to be the guardian of your children if they are comfortable doing that.  Have an open discussion with them on how you would like your children raised; what values are important to you that your children be taught.  A very good friend of mine asked if I would be the guardian of her two boys if something happened to both her and her husband.  As much as I loved her and her family, I could not do it.  I was already named as the guardian for my sister’s two boys and my sister in law’s two girls.  If something happened to my friend first then how could I possibly be able to care for  an additional 4 children?

Ask your Health Care agent if they would feel comfortable withholding certain treatments that you want withheld.  I did not think that I could be able to make those decisions for my parents and I was honest with them when we put their plan together.  We named my other sibling who said she would be comfortable making those types of decisions for them.

In order for you to get an honest answer you have to be able to explain to them what their actual role would entail.  If you need help in figuring out what everyone’s role is and how to have the discussions, call our Charlotte Wills and Trust Firm at (704) 843-1446 and we will help either facilitate a Family Meeting or assist you figuring out who to name.  This isn’t the time for saying the right thing; it is the time for honesty and openness.

The following persons (summarized from the statute), in the order indicated, are authorized to consent to medical treatment on behalf of a patient who is comatose or otherwise lacks capacity to make or communicate health care decisions:

(1) Parent or guardian if patient is a minor;

(2) Health care agent;

(3) Legal Guardian of the Person;

(4) Attorney in Fact with power to make health care decisions;

(5) Spouse

However, if you take the time today to execute your Health Care Power of Attorney then you are in control of who makes your medical decisions if you cannot. You can move your Spouse to the top by naming him or her as your health care agent…if that is your choice.

If you do not have this document in place, please contact our office at 704-843-1446 so that we can help you put the proper person in place to help you.  The important point here is to keep control!

When we finally spoke she told me that she had been in a pretty serious car accident two days prior.  She was driving and her 15 year old daughter was in the front passenger seat.  She was making a left hand turn at the green light and someone who was not paying attention ran the red light and hit her car in the passenger side where her daughter was sitting.  They thankfully are both fine, some bumps and bruises and certainly some sleep less nights will be part of their future.

She was able to get out of the car, but her daughter was pinned in the car and having trouble breathing. I asked her if anyone helped her out of the car and she said she was not going anywhere until her daughter was out of the car.  It took the paramedics 30 minutes to get her daughter out.

At first I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t one of the first people she would have called.  I mean, this was a big deal and we have called each other for such trivial things in the past.  After she explained further the details of the car accident, I understood why. She was struggling with her own mortality and leaving her children behind.  How could she share those feelings with anyone when she was struggling to process it on her own?

The worst part of the accident she told me was being so helpless and having to watch as the paramedics struggled to remove her daughter from the car.

My reason for sharing this story is to remind us all that none of us know our own destiny.  We cannot predict the future and at any time, something could happen to us. It doesn’t always depend on age, how careful we are or how healthy we are. There are always things that are out of our control…to some degree.

Get your Will or Trust and nomination of guardians for your minor children and advanced directives in place TODAY! Tomorrow may be too late!

I tell my clients who have minor children all the time to make certain that whomever is caring for your child, that they have the proper forms to present in case your child needs something while you are not there to do it yourself. There is also information that should be immediately known when asked.

1. Health Care Power of Attorney for Minor: This document allows you as the parent of a minor child to name a person to make medical decisions for your child when you are not available to do so yourself. It can be as inclusive or limiting as you would like it to be. If you have multiple children, they each should have one. It should be on file with your pediatrician. I would suggest naming whatever family member typically watches your child. When it comes to naming a nanny or babysitter, I would hesitate doing so until you have had a full discussion with your Charlotte estate planning attorney. There could be some decisions you don’t want them making.

2. Complete the forms that your pediatrician requires: I asked my pediatrician what they required. Or course they said the Health Care Power of Attorney for Minors would be enough. But, if I did not have that, then they have a Parental Consent to Treat for Minor or Incapable Adult form as well as more permanent authorization. Each form has specific details to include and should be read very carefully before submitting it. Of course each pediatrician will have there own form, so ask yours directly.

3. Every possible phone number to contact you. In this case, too much information is a good thing.

4. Child’s blood type: Many parents don’t even know this off the top of their head. In case of a serious accident, this would be some big information to know immediately.

5. Medical and or food allergies: If your child ends up in the emergency room, whoever takes them should know what allergies to medication the child has and or any food allergies. There are some medications that cannot be given if the child has a food allergy.

If you would like additional information on how we can help put together a complete plan so that you child is protected, contact our Charlotte estate planning office at 704-843-1446 and we will be glad to chat with you!

My father lost his brother years ago and I held my father’s hand from the moment my uncle took his last breath through planning the funeral right up to the day the last relative left to go back home.   I also sat with my husband and his sister four years ago when they lost their dad.  We were by mom’s side making heartbreaking decisions at the funeral home. It was obvious (to me anyway) that the daughter didn’t really know how difficult the experience of planning someone else’s funeral could be.  If she did, she would have been encouraging her mother and not discouraging her.

Did the daughter really know how difficult these decisions would be to make, especially during the time in which she is grieving their loss?    Would she know her parent’s preference on burial or cremation and could she ultimately make this decision easily?  Does she realize that she would have to pick the casket?  That this would entail either walking through a room or view pages and pages of pictures of caskets and decide on type of wood, color, interior finish and handles?  Did she really understand that she would have to make all the decisions on which thank you notes to use and what saying to put inside, and mass cards, and limos, and viewing dates and times, and head stones?  Who is going to pay for this?  If she doesn’t have the money could this affect the way in which she makes her decisions?

I don’t want to think about my parents dying or getting sick and having to make the decisions for them, I don’t think anyone really does.  But, if she could step back and see the bigger picture of why her parents want to plan, then I believe she would have been grabbing those brochures off the table.

Sometimes our parents know best and maybe when it comes to difficult decisions we as children need to act a little more -grown-up and deal with reality.  It’s not easy- it never is but when making a difficult life decision we must remember that it is ultimately ALL ABOUT YOU! It is about making these decisions today so that your children and family don’t have to.

Full article: Financial Elder Abuse – BBB Has Warning Signs and Offers Prevention Tips.

If you think that someone you love has been a victim, contact our office at (704) 843-1446 so we can help stop the scammers and protect our seniors!

As an athlete, you can imagine how in tune Summit must need to be with her body. She knew something was wrong. After wrapping up her 37th year coaching the University of Tennessee’s Lady Vols basketball team, she decided to seek medical attention. “I just felt something was different,” she explained in an interview with the Washington Post’s Sally Jenkins. After months of erratic behavior Summitt headed north to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. In early May, she was diagnosed with early-onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type.

ESPN medical analyst, Dr. Michael Kaplan, has commented that her biggest challenge may be her lack of control. But for right now, she is feeling strong and will continue to coach.

I am not certain whether Summitt has her estate plan in order. However, if she doesn’t I would certainly advise her that for right now at least, she has the ability to control her treatment and how she will be cared for in her final days, and should absolutely get those advanced directives in place TODAY!

She was divorced a few years ago, has a 20-year-old son Ross “Tyler” and mother-daughter yellow Lab retrievers, Sally-Sue and Sadie. Knowing her condition, she needs to make provisions for her son via a Will or a Revocable Trust. It is also imperative that she put in writing what her medical wishes are. I am certain that her heart is breaking with the thought that her son has to watch her as her health deteriorates at some point. It is heart wrenching to think that a child may need to make these medical decisions for a parent. But, if she does not want this, then she needs to nominate someone to make these decisions for her.

This is a difficult time in her life for her and her family.  I know because I have personally had family members afflicted with this. She is probably wanting to deal with this head on. Right now is the time for her to put these plans into place while she still has the capacity to do so.

I wish her and her family many well wishes not only during this time but also for the future. If you have elderly parents or loved ones that do not have these plans in place, call our office at 704-843-1446 and we can help implement an estate plan that will work.