What can you do now in case you lose mental capacity in the future?
What if you get dementia, brain injury through illness or trauma?
How can you help your future-self?
Of course you should draw up your Will, Power of Attorney, Health Care Directives and so on, but the implementation of these mechanisms will be thwarted without information. Without providing to your family vital information that only you can provide, you may inadvertently cause possible conflict within your family.
Information is king.
The Consolidation of relevant information is what is most important, even with or without the Powers of Attorney and so on. Your decision makers, be it your executors, next of kin, attorney, will need to know:
- where to find your assets;
- any issues relating to your assets;
- what are your liabilities;
- what should they do about your tax liability or capital gains and how can they minimise it;
- what should happen to your pets;
- what about the kinds of medical decisions they may need to make – what would you want;
- your medical history that may be relevant to you or your family;
- where would you like to be buried… or cremated;
- what should happen to your personal possessions;
- how would you like them in invest your money;
- what do you recommend that they do with their inheritance;
- what messages would you like to leave them;
- what your wishes are should you say need to be placed in an aged care facility;
- how would you like to spend your time and with whom if you are unable to say so yourself.
How can you make life easier for your family???
Importantly, providing this information, by leaving a file or record along side your important documents, will not only be of benefit to you, but also to your family. This is the reason that I wrote my book, ‘My Life Manual: Estate Planning, Information and Messages for my Executors and Loved Ones.’ to guide the reader in planning their affairs, to prompting the reader and providing the space for them, to make a note of what information they should provide.
My apologies for the promotion of my book, but I wrote it because I know how hard it was when my father passed away, and I don’t want that for my own children. And perhaps you don’t want that too. Or maybe you just want to ensure that none of your assets get overlooked.
Anyone who has ever lost someone, be it in death or mental incapacity, knows the regret of those unanswered questions.
In a Nutshell consolidate and keep updated vital information that will aid your future decision makers. Help them to help you. It’s all very well having all the legal mechanisms in place, but without the tools and information to implement them, they lose their efficacy.
So why not put together a file or list of all the things that you would like to tell your family before it is too late.
Image: Copyright: <a href=’https://www.123rf.com/profile_endomedion’>endomedion / 123RF Stock Photo</a>
Leave a Reply