Will, Living Will & Power of Attorney

The four documents every adult should have.

You don’t need to be wealthy or elderly to need an estate plan. You need to be alive and an adult. These are the four documents that should be in place:

• Last Will and Testament. Directs who gets your assets, names guardians for minor children, and appoints an executor to handle the estate.
• Living Will / Advance Directive. Spells out your wishes for end-of-life medical care—when you can no longer speak for yourself.
• Durable Power of Attorney (financial). Lets a trusted person handle financial matters if you’re incapacitated.
• Health Care Surrogate / Medical POA. Lets a trusted person make medical decisions if you can’t.

Where I fit in

I’m not the attorney who drafts these—but I make sure the rest of your financial picture matches them. That means:

• Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance reflect your wishes
• Account titling (joint, individual, trust) lines up with the plan
• The named agents and executors actually know they’ve been named, and have what they need to act
• The family conversation has been started before it has to be had under stress

A perfect set of documents is useless if the financial accounts contradict them or no one can find them. That coordination is where most plans break down.