Wills & Probate

• Last Will and Testament
• Power of Attorney
• Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care
• Directive to Physicians
• Disclosure to Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care

Health Law Attorney and veteran Robert B. Goss, P.C. understands the need for a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care in addition to a Last Will and Testament. Without preparing a Last Will state laws determine where, how and to whom your possessions and estate are distributed.

Last Will & Testament

Wills allow you to determine and provide the instructions for passing your estate and property along. A will allows you to provide your intent and the court will enforce a valid will based upon the language found within the 4 corners of the will.

Power of Attorney

A power of attorney enables someone to represent your person and / or estate if you become disabled or are unavailable. Typically powers of attorney can be used if you deploy by your spouse or whoever you designate to manage your property and affairs.

Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care

To avoid the state or a court deciding your medical fate should you become unable to represent yourself, you need a Durable Power of Attorney. An incompetent, like a minor child, is a ward of the State. And the state's parens patriae power supports the authority of its courts to allow decisions to be made for an incompetent that served the incompetent's best interests, even if the person's wishes cannot be clearly established.

Durable power of attorney—the proxies agency survives the incompetence of the patient (takes effect while the principle is still competent and continues to have effective the principal becomes incompetent)

Directive to Physicians

A Directive to Physicians allows you to state your desires about your medical treatment while you were capable of expressing your desire for a future event where you may be incapable. The Directive to Physicians may include things such as do not resuscitate or other directives to the physician that directs medications to prevent you from suffering. The Directive may state to continue to support your life through artificial means too. The Directive is you stating your desires to what is to happen to you in the event you cannot state them.

Disclosure to Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care

This document gives the person you name as your agent the authority to make any and all health care decisions for you in accordance with your wishes, including religious and moral beliefs, when you are no longer capable of making them yourself.

This document explains the information concerning the durable power of attorney for Health Care to you and your agent.

The famous 2005 case of Terry Schiavo illustrated how important having a Directive to Physicians and a Durable Power of Attorney is to an individual.