Paralegal Services: Do You Need A Living Will?

If you're in the middle of planning your estate, you may want to create a living will as well. Living wills provide legal instructions on how to care for you and your estate if you become incapacitated or seriously injured. A paralegal can set up and secure a living will for you. Learn more about living wills and how a paralegal can help you establish one below.

What Does a Living Will Do?

You may already be familiar with last wills and testaments. Last wills and testaments provide instructions on how to manage your burial, assets, and properties after death. Living wills work similarly to last wills and testaments. But instead of giving instructions on how to care for you after death, a living will tells others how to care for you before death.

A living will allows you to create instructions called advanced directives. Advanced directives provide your loved ones and physicians with the means to care for you properly if you become unable to do so yourself. The directives may allow doctors to administer specific medications or treatments, or the directives may prevent your loved ones from taking specific steps to save your life. Advanced directives are legally-binding instructions that other people must follow or respect.

If you're ready to create your living will, contact a paralegal today.

How Can a Paralegal Help You?

Before a paralegal draws up your living will, they'll need to know more about your needs and wants for the future. The knowledge can help determine the content for your will. You want to create a will that doesn't go against your wishes or that causes conflict with members of your family. Some family members can contest a living will if it doesn't appear correct or sound to them.

After you speak to a paralegal, they'll begin the process of creating your will. A paralegal may ask you about the types of care you expect or don't expect to have if you become incapacitated. You want to be candid during this stage. If you don't want to receive specific types of treatments, inform a paralegal immediately. If you don't mention the information in your will, doctors may not know how to treat you in the future.

Also, choose someone you love to oversee your living will. The individual can help reinforce your wishes if the need arises. 

Learn more about living wills and how to create one by calling a living will paralegal today. 


Share