why you should include incapacity planning in your estate plan

INCAPACITY PLANNINGWhy You Should Include It in Your

Estate Plan

INCAPACITY BY THE NUMBERS

Incapacity doesn’t just refer to age related dementia

diseases such as Alzheimer’s

A tragic car accident, for example, or a

debilitating illness could cause incapacity

at any age

You have a 1 in 5 chance of becoming disabled

before age 65

After 65 your risk jumps to 1 in 2

After age 80 you have a 3 in 4, or 75 percent chance of becoming incapacitated

INCAPACITY DEFINED

“if you cannot make decisions well enough to get health care,

food, shelter, and other care necessary to avoid serious

physical injury or illness and, therefore, need continuing care

and supervision”

According to the laws of Oregon, you are considered incapacitated

ORS 125.060 through ORS 125.080

CONSEQUENCES OF NOT PLANNING AHEAD

If you become incapacitated and failed to create an

incapacity plan there could be a number of negative

consequences that follow, such as:

HEALTHCARE DECISIONSa

In the absence of an advance directive indicating what your

wishes are with regard to end of life decisions, the

physicians treating you don’t know

what your wishes are

In addition, without the proper advance directive it may be

unclear who has the authorityto make those decisions for

youif you are incapacitated

What could happen is your family members could wind up

in a protracted legal battle for the right to make

healthcare decisions for you

CONTROL OF ASSETS AND FINANCES

b

If you remain incapacitated for more than a few days someone will have to take

control of your assets and finances

In the absence of an incapacity plan this will require court

intervention through a petition for guardianship

DAILY DECISIONSc

Just as someone will need to control your finances, someone

will need to make daily decisions

for you which will also require the appointment of a guardian unless you have planned ahead

INCAPACITY PLANNING TOOLS

A number of incapacity planning strategies and tools can be incorporated into your

overall estate plan, including:

ADVANCED DIRECTIVES1

Oregon allows you to execute an advance directive, commonly referred to as a

“living will” which allows you to (i) appoint a healthcare representative who can make healthcare decisions for you in the event

you are unableto do so yourself, and (ii) gives you the

abilityto express your wishes now regarding life-

sustaining treatment in the event youever become incapacitated

LIVING TRUST2

Creating a revocable living trust is an excellent way to provide

your spouse, or anyone else, with immediate access to, and control over, assets in the event of your

incapacity

POWER OF ATTORNEY3

A traditional power of attorney terminates upon the incapacity

of the principal

If you execute a durable POA

it will survive your incapacity

A POA allows you to appoint someone as your agent to act

on your behalf in legal transactions

CO-OWNERSHIP4

By titling your assets, such as your home, vehicle, and bank

accounts jointly with your spouse (or other loved one),

the co-owner will at least have access to the asset

LEARN MORE ABOUT INCAPACITY PLANNING IN

PORTLAND OREGON

LEARN MORE ABOUT INCAPACITY PLANNING IN

PORTLAND OREGON