Tips on Choosing the Power Holders for your Estate Planning Documents (Health Care Surrogate)

So you are finally ready to talk about your estate planning documents, now what? Well, the biggest question I ask (other than who the beneficiaries should be) is who should have the “power.” Estate planning professionals commonly refer to these people as the power holders in the estate planning documents. Each estate planning document has its own appointed power holder and each power holder has different duties (depending on the purpose of the document).

For instance, the Designation for Health Care Surrogate (incapacity planning document) names surrogates who are appointed to make medical-related decisions on your behalf in the event you become incapacitated. Often times, the original health care surrogate is a spouse followed by children and/or other family members. Other individuals who do not have many close family members, name a close friend or trusted advisor. Choosing the health care surrogate is a complicated process and requires an individual to consider their power holder’s strengths and weaknesses. For instance, a person who does not handle emergency medical situations and/or is very emotional whenever sickness falls on a family member is probably not the best surrogate for medical-related decisions. A rational, clear person, who acts well in crisis, is a great option to be named as a health care surrogate for a medical-related power holder.

If you are still uncertain as to who to name as your power holders, a complimentary consultation with Yelena Sverdlova, Esq., Managing Member of Capital Planning Law, PLLC ([email protected]) can definitely help with the decision-making process and establishing the pros and cons of each power holder option.

Contact Capital Planning Law, PLLC for your complimentary consultation to discuss your estate planning, business law, probate, guardianship and/or real estate needs.