3 Reasons to Sign a Living Will Estate Planning Most estate plans include a Will, maybe a trust, a durable power of attorney, and an advance directive. Your advance directive may or may not include a Living Will. It’s totally your choice. However, there are significant reasons to sign a Living Will. In this article, we will consider those reasons and what may happen if you decide not to add a Living Will to your estate plan. #1 – Sign a living will so your loved ones won’t have to make the tough decisions. When you sign a Living Will, you state in writing your beliefs about end-of-life decisions. You can state the circumstances under which you do not want your life to be prolonged and name a surrogate to carry out the provisions of the Living Will. For example, Liza had watched her father linger for months in a persistent vegetative state after a serious brain injury. However, his family did not have the authority to end treatments and, in fact, disagreed on whether to end treatments. Hoping to avoid the same issues, Liza signed a Living Will. In it, she clearly stated that she did not want her life to be prolonged in a similar situation. She chose a surrogate who would honor her wishes. Because of Liza’s Living Will, her family will not be put in a position of having to make those tough end-of-life decisions. #2 – Sign a living will because you want to be able to change your mind. Let’s say you are updating your estate plan and decide to sign a Living Will. Later, you read an article about medical advances for certain terminal conditions and decide you no longer want a Living Will. You can revoke the Living Will or prepare a new one deleting the provision about stopping treatment for a terminal condition. It’s your choice and you can change your mind as often as you like. #3 – Because you want your wishes to be honored. Over the years, maybe you have had conflicting opinions about end-of-life medical treatment. If the time came to make decisions for you, would your family members really know what you want them to do? If you sign a Living Will, you will be letting everyone know, in one document, how you want to handle having a terminal condition, an end-stage condition, or a persistent vegetative state. The best way to make sure your wishes are honored is to make a clear statement. And, as noted above, you can always change your Living Will if your feelings change. Make your decision to sign a living will a priority At Law Offices of John Mangan, P.A., we’ve helped many clients develop comprehensive estate plans that meet their goals and needs. We can set up an appointment for you. Law Offices of John Mangan, PA Palm City – Stuart, FL CALL: 1 (772) 218-0480 Do you question the need for attorney guidance with so many online resources? Because laws and regulations are complex, and because every person has a lot at risk, more people than ever are seeking professional guidance from an experienced, knowledgeable source. That helps explain the rapid growth of our firm. Whether you happened upon this website by accident or are one of the many referrals we receive from a nearly 15-year collection of satisfied clients, our staff can provide customized estate planning guidance for you. Call us. Our number: 1 (772) 218-0480 Written by: John Mangan, JD, MBA
