Published on All About Estates
By Susan J. Hyatt, November 18TH, 2024
While a Will may anchor an estate plan for distributing assets after you have passed, you will need a substitute decision-maker in place if you lose the capacity to act for yourself. Your Attorney may need to make personal and sensitive decisions on your behalf, so how does one choose wisely?
Acting as an Attorney for Personal Care can be a demanding, time-consuming, and emotionally charged role. In our experience, there are some common situations in which Attorneys find it difficult to act. For example, multiple Attorneys may have been appointed, such as several siblings or a group of friends, but they do not agree on the grantor’s wishes. When their decision-making is most needed, they are unable to decide. Another example is where the grantors’ wishes are vague or not documented at all, and they have said in the past, “I hope my kids will figure it out.” Unfortunately, hope is not a plan.
From a smart ageing perspective, the best practice is to create a post-retirement lifestyle plan that takes an integrated approach to your life, health, and well-being. Ideally, this is a written plan based on your values, beliefs, and wishes shared with your POAs and trusted support network well in advance. Using scenario planning is an effective way to identify a person’s lifestyle wishes and to cost out future scenarios to determine how their financial resources would support and implement their wishes.
A well-thought-out lifestyle plan provides a written roadmap of personal wishes.
Ultimately, choosing your Power of Attorney for Personal Care is about making a thoughtful decision on who you believe will be an effective substitute decision-maker if you cannot act for yourself. It’s not a popularity contest or a way to recognize someone—it’s about ensuring you have selected someone who will advocate for you in good faith, collaborate when needed, and stay true to your wishes. With the right person in this role, you can have peace of mind knowing your lifestyle plan will be carried out as you intended. Choose wisely; your future quality of life may depend on it.
Susan J Hyatt, Chair & CEO, Silver Sherpa Inc.
