Although I haven’t experienced it yet, I’ve seen clients, friends, and family watch their kids leave home to attend college or start their career. It can be an emotional time as a parent. On one hand, moving out on their own is a major accomplishment that makes parents proud. On the other hand, having your kids leave the nest and face the world can also induce anxiety and fear.
And it is critical to know that once they reach age 18, your kids become legal adults, and many areas of their lives that were once under your control will be solely their responsibility. Make sure they know that one of the very first items on their to-do list as new adults should be estate planning.
While you may believe that planning is the last thing your kids need to be thinking about, it’s actually the first, because once they turn 18, you no longer have automatic access to their medical records and/or financial accounts should anything happen to them.
Before your kids head out on their own, you should discuss and have them sign the following three documents:
1. Medical Power of Attorney
Medical power
of attorney is an advance directive that allows your child to grant you (or
someone else) the legal authority to make healthcare decisions for them in the
event they become incapacitated and cannot make such decisions for themselves.
For example, a medical power of attorney would allow you to make decisions
about your child’s medical treatment if he or she is knocked unconscious in a
car accident or falls into a coma due to an illness. And with a properly
drafted medical power of attorney, you will be able to access your child’s
medical records, whereas without one you would not.
Should they become incapacitated without a properly executed medical power of attorney, you’d have to petition the court to become their legal guardian. While a parent is typically the court’s first choice for guardian, the court process can be slow (not to mention expensive)—and in medical emergencies, every second counts.
2. Living Will
Whereas
medical power of attorney allows you to make healthcare decisions on your
child’s behalf during their incapacity, a living will provides specific guidance about how your
child’s medical decisions should be made while they’re incapacitated,
particularly at the end of life.
For example, a living will allows your child to let you know if and when they
want life support removed, if they ever require it. In addition to documenting
how your child wants their medical care handled, a living will can also include
instructions about who should be able to visit them in the hospital and even
what kind of food they should be fed.
If your child has certain wishes for their medical care, it’s important you discuss these decisions with them and have those wishes documented in a living will to ensure they’re properly carried out.
3. Durable Financial Power of Attorney
Should your
child become incapacitated, you’ll also need the ability to access and manage
their finances, and this requires your child to grant you durable financial
power of attorney.
Durable financial power of attorney gives you the immediate legal authority to
manage their financial and legal matters, such as paying bills, applying for
Social Security benefits, and/or managing banking and other financial accounts.
Without this document, you’ll have to petition the court for such authority.
Start adulthood off right
As parents, it’s natural
to experience anxiety when your kid leaves home. But with the support of a
trusted attorney, you’ll at least have peace of mind knowing that he or she
will be well taken care of in the event of an unforeseen accident or illness.
Contact us today to discuss our Young Adult Estate Planning Package to ensure
that if your child ever does need your help, you’ll have the legal authority to
provide it.
Dedicated to empowering your family, building your wealth and defining your legacy,
