Elder Law Attorneys
Elder law is a legal term coined to cover an area of legal practice that places an emphasis on those issues that affect the growing aging population. The major areas of elder law are:
- Estate planning, wills and administration, including taxes and real estate;
- Retirement planning, Social security, Medicaid (United States), disability and other long-term care issues; and
- Guardianship, power of attorney, conservatorship and commitment matters, including fiduciary administration.
- Elder protection including abuse, neglect, fraud and discrimination.
Elder law attorneys offer various levels of advice, counseling and advocacy of rights, helping you to ascertain your wishes regarding both financial and health care choices. In the case of your health care preferences, they can help you prepare your medical care directives which would document how your health care decisions would be made in case you are unable to communicate on your own behalf. In the case of estate, an elder law attorney can help you plan your estate and how your estate would be treated when you cannot make the decisions or gone. Elder law attorneys also aid seniors facing legal issues related to their age, including discrimination.
Dealing with an Elder Law Attorney
For most seniors, contact with an elder law attorney is usually to discuss and arrange advance care, estate planning and financial directives. You can save a lot of money in billable attorney hours to think and plan your wishes before meeting with an elder attorney to draw up the papers.
Advance Care Directives
An advance care plan establishes directives about the care you would want to receive should you become unable to speak for yourself. A living will, one type of advance directive, provides directions to health care providers on the treatment you would want (and would not want) if you are faced with an end-of-life situation. A health care power of attorney, also referred to as durable power of attorney, is another type of advance directive that appoints a person of your choice to speak on your behalf should you become unable to do so. Issues in advance health care include do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders, intravenous feeding, prolonged use of a respirator, organ donation and the steps you wish to be taken in the event that you are unable to communicate on your own.
Financial Directives
Once you designate another person as your financial power of attorney, that person can make financial decisions on your behalf. Power of attorney is triggered once the document is signed by all parties; however, some people choose to have the document written in such a way that it delineates exactly when the power of attorney is turned over-usually by specifying the point at which they would consider themselves incapacitated or unable to make decisions. Check with your financial institutions to see whether they require additional documentation. If you have granted guardianship to the person making financial decisions on your behalf, then probate courts will oversee the person handling your affairs. For more on guardianship, also known as conservatorship, click here.
If you don't want a power of attorney acting on your behalf, then careful estate planning such as a trust can protect your assets, taking care of your own expenses and/or any inheritance you choose to leave. Possible trust benefits include avoiding probate and lessened estate taxes.
Finding an Elder Law Attorney
Choosing an attorney who is aware of all the issues surrounding your estate is imperative. A starting source for finding a capable attorney specializing in elder law is the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, which maintains an online database
that allows you to search for an attorney in your area.
Related Articles
- Conservatorship or Guardianship
- Understanding Advance Directives, Living Wills and Powers of Attorney
- 10 Frequently Asked Questions about Power of Attorney
- Advance Care Planning Explained
- 8 Things a Proxy can do to Obtain Good Care for the Patient
- Guide for the Health Care Proxy
