Estate Planning

Divorce is rough enough, and post-divorce, the last thing you may want to deal with is more legal documents. However, it is critical to review your estate plan (or lack of one) when you have significant life events, such as the birth of a child, a death in the family,…

Who can make health care decisions for you if you are in an accident or suddenly incapacitated? You might think the logical choice is for doctors to contact your family, but are hospitals required to notify and consult with immediate family members (next of kin) before they administer any treatments?…

End-of-life decisions are the choices you have to make about what life-sustaining measures you want to receive if you have a terminal illness or some other end-stage condition from which you will not recover. End-of-life wishes are often put on the back burner. You may think this is something to…

It is devastating to lose your spouse. But if they die without a will, it can cause even more grief and stress. Many people assume that they automatically inherit all of their spouse's property; however, that is not the case. When you die without a will, you are “intestate," and…

A power of attorney document is an important estate planning tool if you face an incapacity during your lifetime. It allows you (the "principal") to name someone (the "agent" or "attorney in fact") to step in and handle your affairs when you can't. You may do this, for example, in…

Until recently, hospice programs generally enjoyed reputations for integrity and reliability. That distinction is fading fast. Born in the 1960s as a holistic movement to provide compassionate care for dying people, hospice gradually became ingrained in the health care system. In 1983, the movement achieved a major milestone when …