Incapacity or Incompetence

DOCUMENTS HANDLING TRANSFERS AFTER YOUR PASSING DO NOTHING DURING YOUR LIFETIME.  IT WILL NORMALLY REQUIRE THAT YOU HAVE A TRUSTEE WHO WOULD HANDLE YOUR AFFAIRS DURING INCAPACITY OR INCOMPETENCY.

In addition to plans involving inheritance when you pass away, plans should also be made for what is to happen in case of incapacity or incompetence. Your normal estate planning documents, such as a will or even some trusts, may not even come into operation until you actually die.  But who will make sure you are properly taken care of if you are still living, but unable to communicate instructions on your financial affairs to anyone?

A normal trust would include provisions as to what to do when you become incompetent, defining how to determine when that has occurred, and specifying what and how payments are to be made for your comfort and living. This is one distinct advantage of a trust over a will or other estate planning document that only operates upon your death.

Paramount to that plan is trusting those responsible for your financial affairs during your incompetence. Absent a trust properly set up, a conservator would be appointed by the local courts. A conservator is a person assigned by a court to manage your financial affairs for you. There is really no way to prescribe in advance who you would like to be your conservator – a will cannot do it since it only comes into operation at your death.

As a corporate trustee, Providence First has experience and associations with care homes, nursing home services, home care services, and assisted living arrangements of all kinds. The financial arrangements necessary in those situations are complex, and assurances from a financial institution to care providers that all bills will be timely paid and properly accounted for helps to aid in the smooth transition, whether it be temporary or permanent.

Let Providence First and its expertise be there in case of incapacity, and rest assured it will be handled by experienced professionals.

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