Some of us are getting to the age where our friend's parents are suffering with dementia or dealing with other illnesses. We have seen the roles reversed from a parent taking care of a child to the child taking care of the parent. Apart from the emotions that people go through, grieving, and seeing their parents less capable than they used to be, they have to jump through some legal hurdles, take out loans and place stress on their own family finances if they cannot just sell their parents house in order to fund a place in a retirement village or other care facility.
Unfortunately, often people come to see us when it is too late and a parent is no longer able to sign legal documents.
While none of us want to think about our parent's or our own demise it is important to get a few legal things in place now to reduce the stress later:
- Do you and your parents have a current will?
- Do you and your parents have an enduring power of attorney which names each other as attorneys but also names trusted substitutes attorneys which may be one or more of their children?
- Do you and your parents have an enduring guardianship and advanced care directive to make medical decisions?
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.