No one likes thinking about estate planning, but a living will is important to have established in order to properly state your wishes for end-of-life medical care. No one can tell what the future holds. Young and old find themselves in life threatening situations. It is important that you have the proper documents in place so that your wishes are followed, even when you cannot express them to others.
What is a Living Will?
A living will is also known as a “health care directive” or “advanced directive.” This document states your desires for how your end-of-life care should be followed.
Why is a Living Will Important?
Without a document that clearly expresses your wishes, it is your family’s guess that will be used to determine whether you would like to be kept alive on life support, for how long, given tube feeding, etc. This puts enormous stress and pressure on your family who doubt their decisions. Without a living will, there is a risk that you are kept alive under circumstances that you would have preferred to pass peacefully.
How to Create a Living Will
A living will is routinely created in addition to normal estate planning. When you meet with your estate-planning attorney, discuss your desire to have a living will created. They will be able to walk you through the process, the different options you have, and answer any questions you have about your living will. This document will be placed with your other estate-planning documents and will inform your family how to properly use the living will.
If you have questions about creating your own living will, contact Lucé Evans Law online or call (972) 632-1300 to schedule your initial consultation with one of our experienced estate planning attorneys.
