Articles Posted in Wills

Most people live long healthy lives and face severe illness in the final days of old age. That scenario doesn’t always happen. An unexpected accident or medical emergency such as a stroke can throw a person into limbo. He or she may be stuck on life support systems that will keep a person alive, but strip individual of any quality of life. It is made much worse by an inability to communicate. The patient is in a coma and cannot give any instructions on what to do about medical care. This means that life is maintained only by the calibration of the support systems. Medical staff can do nothing but watch and wait. The same is true for the loved ones. A living will, which is one of the benefits of a good group legal plan, can bring this indefinite period of time to close.

The Instructions and the Wishes

The unexpected death of an employee doesn’t just cause a disruption in the workplace; it creates a domestic crisis. There is an estate which has to be administered and properly divided among the legal heirs. Estate administration is where some real problems can bubble up.

Not everybody thinks about wills and estates. A number of people will not prepare a will, thinking that because there are only one or two survivors the estate process will not be difficult at all. That isn’t true. Estates of those who die intestate, i.e. without leaving a will, must be handled by an administrator appointed by a public entity such as probate court and this person is under very close supervision (The duty of overseeing the administration of estates is performed by the Register of Wills in Maryland). An administrator is limited to what the law permits that person to do, and it is better to have an executor who is named in the will as the one tasked with administering the provisions of the document.

Anyone drafting a will should seriously consider what individual will be the executor. Unlike an administrator, the executor has both authority granted by law and additional powers granted by the will itself, allowing for greater flexibility in matters such as the sale of property. The executor does need to be somebody who is responsible and willing to take on the task. However, there is a lot of work in seeing to it a will is properly administered and survivors receive their allotted shares. A critical activity is to educate the executor beforehand and even prepare things so that his or her job is made as easy as possible. The challenge is that someone who is not well-versed in probate law does not quite know how to best instruct that very important person.

Medical tragedies come as fast as a speeding car out of the dark. A person is on a life support system with no chance of recovery, but because he or she cannot communicate instructions that medical state of limbo is maintained indefinitely. The family is aware that hope is gone, but the hospital is required to do everything possible to keep the person alive. This prolongs grief and isn’t necessary. A voluntary benefit that provides good legal services can end this situation.

Living Wills and Medical Power Of Attorney

Some may think it is macabre, but an excellent New Year’s resolution is the preparation of a will. A last will and testament is not something that should be delayed until an individual reaches senior years. Catastrophic accidents can happen at any time in a person’s life. The disaster is much worse when a person has dependents who are suddenly cast into an emergency, wondering what to do financially because the breadwinner has died unexpectedly. Human resources fully understands the problems that can arise from a person dying intestate. A voluntary benefit that would allow a person to be able to put their financial affairs in order is the kind of service that is invaluable to an employee, regardless of that person’s age.

An Attorney Ought to Draft the Will

Living Wills and Medical Powers of Attorney eliminate uncertainty

Death or catastrophic illness is not something anyone wants to think about. These are topics that usually are considered discussions for senior citizens, but a traffic accident can change everything. It is possible due to a collision on the road, or a debilitating stroke at home, that an individual may become mentally incapacitated or descend in to a comatose state. A rather nasty set of consequences rise up when this happens. The family doesn’t know what the wishes are of a person who is no longer able to communicate, and that can mean having the patient being on life support systems indefinitely. This increases the anguish of loved ones, but also presents a very expensive dilemma for human resources.

The Torment of Uncertainty

There are those who believe a will is not necessary if there are only one or two beneficiaries. After all, everything does seem fairly cut and dry if the estate is divided evenly among those few survivors. That, unfortunately, is rather faulty logic. It is rare that an estate can be settled in such a straightforward fashion; there can be disputes. This is why a will is so critically important. The wording of the will is intended to stop some very nasty family feuds, while at the same time making certain that the wishes of the deceased are followed to the letter.

The Perils of Intestate

The future is rarely certain and crisis can come unexpectedly. A major auto accident or a cardiac arrest can place a person into a state of coma, where his or her instructions are not possible to be received. This poses a very serious medical problem, because the healthcare center does not know what else to do but keep a person on a life-support system. If there is written indication beforehand of what to do when a person cannot effectively communicate, that makes things a lot easier. Drafting a living will is a legal benefit that is ordinarily part of a group legal plan. It helps a plan member prepare for the worst.

Providing Needed Instructions

Young parents hope to live for many years and pass away only after their children become adults. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen. People can just as easily die in auto accidents as from age-related disease, and leave behind survivors who are minors. That can cause very serious problems if there is not a will in place.

The Control of the Courts

A tough job can be made easier

Preparing a will is not easy because it makes a person confront his or her mortality. Still, it ought to be done for the sake of both spouse and dependents. People have to remember that death doesn’t always come at the end of a period long life. It is sad but it happens too often that a person in the prime of life will be cut down by terminal illness or traffic accident. No one should assume that probate court will be easy on any estate that is found to be intestate (without a will). Without the document, the courts can assign distributions that were not truly the wishes of the deceased. If an individual has a group legal plan that covers the creation of that final document, he or she ought to make use of it to protect loved ones. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services has a voluntary benefit that will help a person put affairs in order.

A Delicate Situation

Medical technology has advanced to a point where death can be delayed for extended periods of time. That is good news if the patient is fully conscious. However, there are regrettably situations where the individual is brain-dead, but life support systems maintain life. This means an individual could be placed on a life-support system long after he or she has lost consciousness, with no hope of revival. This is not always something that a person wants but being unconscious cannot control. That is the essential reason for living wills and medical powers of attorney.

Allowing for Direction