Watching a parent struggle with memory loss or cognitive decline is emotionally challenging—and it also raises important legal and financial questions. If your parent hasn’t updated their estate plan recently, decisions about healthcare, finances, and daily care could become complicated or fall into the wrong hands if left unaddressed and your parent becomes legally unable to make necessary changes. That is why it is crucial to make any desired changes to the estate plan before incapacity occurs.
Planning for Incapacity:
As life expectancies grow, it is becoming more and more likely for elderly parents to suffer cognitive decline prior to passing. If your parent loses capacity, they may no longer be able to make legally informed decisions. If you are named as a successor trustee, it might be time to step-up and serve as co-trustee to help manage trust assets and your parents’ financial affairs with them as they age. In addition to being named as a healthcare agent and financial power of attorney, serving as a co-trustee is a great way to ensure their estate is managed well.
Financial Matters Require Oversight
Dementia can make paying bills, managing investments, or handling property overwhelming. A financial power of attorney designates a trusted person to manage these responsibilities, preventing mistakes or even fraud. Through a financial power of attorney, it is possible to start working collaboratively with an aging parent to manage their financial matters. This allows you to learn their system and preferences, and avoids frustrating searches for assets after incapacity.
Avoid Costly Court Intervention
Without updated documents, your family might face expensive, stressful court proceedings like guardianship or conservatorship just to make basic decisions. Updating the plan proactively keeps everyone out of court.
Incapacity planning for your parents ensures that their future is handled exactly the way they want, by the people they trust most. Contact the experts at Deka Law today to get started.
