Why the Holidays are a Good Time to Think About Your Family’s Legal Health
By Paramus Post Thursday, November 20, 2008, 08:04 PM EST
(November 20, 2008: Hackensack, NJ) As families gather for the holidays, children return from college and present parents with a perfect opportunity to contemplate their legal healthcare rights. “Creating a living will is perhaps the single most important step parents can take in ensuring the wellbeing of their children,” said Amie Gartenberg, a partner at Kirsch Gartenberg Howard, a boutique law firm specializing in estate planning.
“Health care directives for even the most youthful and healthy are critical. A college student I know, who was a legal adult, was skiing during his winter break when he was injured and rendered unconscious. Unfortunately, no one was legally able to make decisions for him, or even speak with and get medical information from his doctors – his care was compromised by delays in getting the best possible care.”
A poll by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press reported that only 29 percent of Americans have a living will. (A living will is one form of advance directive, leaving instructions for healthcare treatment in the event that an individual is no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity.) While the concept of planning for unpleasant situations may not be a comforting one at any time, many legal and medical professionals consider such preparation even more valuable than an insurance policy or long-term financial planning.
Ms. Gartenberg, who helps individuals prepare legally for the affairs of the family on both ends of the age spectrum, from children to aging parents, can unfortunately list a range of similar examples of how the law and a family’s good intentions can come in conflict. Having represented victims’ families as a participant in the Volunteer Lawyers for Justice program for victims of September 11th, she has seen the impact sudden, unforeseen events can have.
“A new grad we know had recently started her first job,” said Ms. Gartenberg. “While she was crossing the street near her office, she was struck by a taxi. She was unable to communicate her medical decisions and privacy law prevented her doctors from speaking with her parents to even discuss her condition.”
Ms. Gartenberg encourages her clients to consider their legal obligations for themselves and their loved ones at every milestone of life to ensure, as Ms. Gartenberg refers to it, their “control of choice.”
“Injury, illness and death are not easy subjects to discuss,” said Ms. Gartenberg. “But the fact of the matter is that by planning ahead, you can at least have the peace of mind that you or your loved one will receive proper medical care.”
A frequent lecturer on estate planning practices, Ms. Gartenberg recommends that once children reach age 18, before they head off to the wider world college, the military, or other endeavors, parents should address estate planning issues. She recommends the same for parents contemplating relocation to senior housing or assisted living facilities. Changes in marital status, the birth or adoption of a child, relocation to another state, and substantial adjustments in financial assets are also good times to consider updating one’s own legal documents.
At minimum, Ms. Gartenberg advises her clients to take the following basic steps, which her firm helps to guide them through:
Planning Steps ----------------> What does it do?
Make a list -----------------------> Creates a document that others can use to locate your financial affairs, including the names of the professionals they can contact to find out where you keep your information. The goal is to provide a road map to enable someone to trace your steps. Ms. Gartenberg provides her clients with a Personal Information Form that outlines the most important information.
Sign a will and a living will-----------------------> These documents enable you to choose and direct your personal health care choices, and who will make them for you if you become unable, and then how, and by whom, your personal affairs will be disposed of upon your death. Additionally, your will enables you to control the tax implications of your choices, as well as the terms under which your children, your grandchildren, and sometimes even your parents will be cared for. They also can govern the terms under which your spouse will receive your assets.
Sign a Power of Attorney -----------------------------> The “power of attorney” (POA) is simply the legal authorization given by one person to another to conduct the first person’s affairs on their behalf. The term “durable” refers to the fact that the POA survives the incapacity of the principal.
The alternative to having a power of attorney could result in having a court intervene in one’s personal affairs, declare the principal incapacitated by the opinion of two doctors and an unrelated, court-appointed attorney, and have another individual – possibly an unrelated individual – appointed by the court to handle the principal’s affairs.
"In the absence of advance health care directives, families can be pulled apart trying to decide what is best for the family member," says Ms. Gartenberg. "Discussing and determining what one’s wishes are in advance, can take the burden off the family, ensure prompt medical decisions, and ultimately prevent the court from being the final arbiter of one’s fate."
Ms. Gartenberg suggests that even taking a few moments this holiday to start the conversation with loved ones about getting their estate planning affairs in order and having a lawyer prepare a few simple documents, before children and parents go back off their separate ways, would be a valuable opportunity to help protect them and give you a little peace of mind.
About Kirsch Gartenberg Howard LLP
A boutique law firm founded in 1984, Kirsch Gartenberg Howard LLP (KGH) assists with trials, appeals, motions, injunctions, arbitrations, and mediations involving all areas of business disputes, together with other complex litigated matters, including medical malpractice, nursing home abuse and neglect, and products liability.
In the areas of estate planning and administration, KGH enables its clients to identify and implement their plans for transfer of assets with a minimum of family conflict and a maximum of tax avoidance.
KGH has been recognized by Martindale-Hubbell as a pre-eminent firm, displaying the highest levels of skill, integrity, and intelligence, as indicated by the prestigious "AV" rating.
KGH clients enjoy personalized service and vigorous, yet efficient representation. KGH has extensive experience in civil litigation throughout New Jersey and in New York at all levels of the state and federal court systems.
KGH offices are located at Two University Plaza, Suite 400, Hackensack, NJ 07601 and 11 Penn Plaza Fifth Floor, New York, NY 10001.
For more information, please visit www.kghlaw.com or call 201-488-4644.
“Health care directives for even the most youthful and healthy are critical. A college student I know, who was a legal adult, was skiing during his winter break when he was injured and rendered unconscious. Unfortunately, no one was legally able to make decisions for him, or even speak with and get medical information from his doctors – his care was compromised by delays in getting the best possible care.”
A poll by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press reported that only 29 percent of Americans have a living will. (A living will is one form of advance directive, leaving instructions for healthcare treatment in the event that an individual is no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity.) While the concept of planning for unpleasant situations may not be a comforting one at any time, many legal and medical professionals consider such preparation even more valuable than an insurance policy or long-term financial planning.
Ms. Gartenberg, who helps individuals prepare legally for the affairs of the family on both ends of the age spectrum, from children to aging parents, can unfortunately list a range of similar examples of how the law and a family’s good intentions can come in conflict. Having represented victims’ families as a participant in the Volunteer Lawyers for Justice program for victims of September 11th, she has seen the impact sudden, unforeseen events can have.
“A new grad we know had recently started her first job,” said Ms. Gartenberg. “While she was crossing the street near her office, she was struck by a taxi. She was unable to communicate her medical decisions and privacy law prevented her doctors from speaking with her parents to even discuss her condition.”
Ms. Gartenberg encourages her clients to consider their legal obligations for themselves and their loved ones at every milestone of life to ensure, as Ms. Gartenberg refers to it, their “control of choice.”
“Injury, illness and death are not easy subjects to discuss,” said Ms. Gartenberg. “But the fact of the matter is that by planning ahead, you can at least have the peace of mind that you or your loved one will receive proper medical care.”
A frequent lecturer on estate planning practices, Ms. Gartenberg recommends that once children reach age 18, before they head off to the wider world college, the military, or other endeavors, parents should address estate planning issues. She recommends the same for parents contemplating relocation to senior housing or assisted living facilities. Changes in marital status, the birth or adoption of a child, relocation to another state, and substantial adjustments in financial assets are also good times to consider updating one’s own legal documents.
At minimum, Ms. Gartenberg advises her clients to take the following basic steps, which her firm helps to guide them through:
Planning Steps ----------------> What does it do?
Make a list -----------------------> Creates a document that others can use to locate your financial affairs, including the names of the professionals they can contact to find out where you keep your information. The goal is to provide a road map to enable someone to trace your steps. Ms. Gartenberg provides her clients with a Personal Information Form that outlines the most important information.
Sign a will and a living will-----------------------> These documents enable you to choose and direct your personal health care choices, and who will make them for you if you become unable, and then how, and by whom, your personal affairs will be disposed of upon your death. Additionally, your will enables you to control the tax implications of your choices, as well as the terms under which your children, your grandchildren, and sometimes even your parents will be cared for. They also can govern the terms under which your spouse will receive your assets.
Sign a Power of Attorney -----------------------------> The “power of attorney” (POA) is simply the legal authorization given by one person to another to conduct the first person’s affairs on their behalf. The term “durable” refers to the fact that the POA survives the incapacity of the principal.
The alternative to having a power of attorney could result in having a court intervene in one’s personal affairs, declare the principal incapacitated by the opinion of two doctors and an unrelated, court-appointed attorney, and have another individual – possibly an unrelated individual – appointed by the court to handle the principal’s affairs.
"In the absence of advance health care directives, families can be pulled apart trying to decide what is best for the family member," says Ms. Gartenberg. "Discussing and determining what one’s wishes are in advance, can take the burden off the family, ensure prompt medical decisions, and ultimately prevent the court from being the final arbiter of one’s fate."
Ms. Gartenberg suggests that even taking a few moments this holiday to start the conversation with loved ones about getting their estate planning affairs in order and having a lawyer prepare a few simple documents, before children and parents go back off their separate ways, would be a valuable opportunity to help protect them and give you a little peace of mind.
About Kirsch Gartenberg Howard LLP
A boutique law firm founded in 1984, Kirsch Gartenberg Howard LLP (KGH) assists with trials, appeals, motions, injunctions, arbitrations, and mediations involving all areas of business disputes, together with other complex litigated matters, including medical malpractice, nursing home abuse and neglect, and products liability.
In the areas of estate planning and administration, KGH enables its clients to identify and implement their plans for transfer of assets with a minimum of family conflict and a maximum of tax avoidance.
KGH has been recognized by Martindale-Hubbell as a pre-eminent firm, displaying the highest levels of skill, integrity, and intelligence, as indicated by the prestigious "AV" rating.
KGH clients enjoy personalized service and vigorous, yet efficient representation. KGH has extensive experience in civil litigation throughout New Jersey and in New York at all levels of the state and federal court systems.
KGH offices are located at Two University Plaza, Suite 400, Hackensack, NJ 07601 and 11 Penn Plaza Fifth Floor, New York, NY 10001.
For more information, please visit www.kghlaw.com or call 201-488-4644.
