Estate Plan Requires Careful Thought and Planning

Carrying out an estate plan requires more than the proper legal documents.

A general durable power of attorney, a health care power of attorney and living will are all very necessary documents needed in place for end-of-life care but there are a few more pointers that can help make the plan successful, according to Barron's points in "Three End-of-Life Estate Plan Lessons."

The other tips include:

• If you have an estate plan, then it is important to let your family know what state you want to be in at the end of your life. Your estate plan should be tailored to the individual laws in your state. If you are moved to another state, the plan might not be as effective.
• You need to pick the strongest surrogates for your powers of attorney as possible. They need to be people who know how to handle things. They also need to be people who have the willpower to stand up to other loved ones who might disagree with the decisions being made.
• If you think your child might be overly emotional or too heartbroken, do not put that child in the position to tell the doctors when to remove you from life support. Pick someone else to do that.

An estate planning attorney can guide you through the process of creating an estate plan that best fits your individual circumstances.

Reference: Barron's (Nov. 8, 2016) "Three End-of-Life Estate Plan Lessons."