Legally Binding Documents Outlining Provisions:
Preparing for the Future: Securing Your Legal Affairs with Seven Crucial Documents
For those intent on planning ahead, it's essential to create several vital documents in a timely manner. Particularly crucial are a will and healthcare directive, but there is more to consider.
Often, people tend to procrastinate when it comes to administrative tasks. However, when it comes to legal planning documents, it's essential not to be negligent. These documents help clearly and unambiguously express wishes about what should occur in case of incapacity due to illness or accident, or after death.
The necessary planning documents depend on personal life situations, and those uncertain should seek advice from notaries, estate planning attorneys, or consumer centers. Below are seven crucial planning documents:
- Will
According to Dietmar Kurze, an estate planning attorney and CEO of the Association of Estate Planning Attorneys, everyone should have a will as early as possible in life. A will can be either handwritten or drafted by a notary, but handwritten versions must be written and signed by hand to be valid. A notarial will, on the other hand, must be notarized.
The advantage of a notarial will lies in the notary's clear and unambiguous recording of the testator's wishes, making interpretation in case of inheritance usually straightforward. If a deceased person has no will, the law of intestate succession applies.
Hülya Erbil, a notary and spokesperson for the Federal Chamber of Notaries, explains that there are often false assumptions about intestate succession. For instance, many couples believe that the family home belongs exclusively to the surviving spouse after one spouse's death. However, other persons also become heirs under intestate succession and must be involved in the ownership of the couple's home. To deviate from intestate succession and determine who inherits, a will is necessary - or an inheritance contract.
- Inheritance Contract
An inheritance contract records a person's last wishes, similar to a will but in contract form between at least two parties. This can be, for example, unmarried couples or siblings, or entrepreneurs who want to ensure a clear succession and prevent any damage to the business after their death. An inheritance contract must always be notarized.
"The provisions regarding succession made in an inheritance contract can only be changed with the consent of both contracting parties," says Hülya Erbil. After the death of one of the two partners, no changes are possible. This binding nature is often a useful means of controlling the estate of the first to die according to their wishes, even after their death, says Erbil.
- Healthcare Directive
With a healthcare directive, everyone can determine which medical or nursing care they want in case they are unable to express themselves, for example, after an accident or stroke. Attorney Kurze advises that it's essential to formulate one's own wishes as precisely as possible to avoid vague statements that may allow different interpretations, which could make the directive invalid.
By using online platforms like Consumer Centers' Online Patient Directive, individuals can create a healthcare directive directly on a tablet, PC, or smartphone. A personal signature renders the document valid.
- Power of Attorney
A power of attorney allows anyone to authorize one or more trusted persons to act on their behalf in case of incapacity to conduct business and/or give consent. Erbil explains that a power of attorney typically covers two areas, health, and property, but these can also be separated, and different persons can be named as attorneys for both areas.
A power of attorney can, but does not have to, be established in a notarial form. It can also be created online. However, if the power of attorney is to also authorize the performance of real estate transactions, it must be publicly certified and notarized.
- General Power of Attorney
A general power of attorney enables caregivers to authorize attorneys to represent the principal in almost all legal and economic matters. While a power of attorney is often limited to specific areas, such as health or care, a general power of attorney is broader.
"A general power of attorney is particularly important for business owners," says Kurze, who suggests protecting a company from economic damage or even bankruptcy by issuing a general power of attorney equipped as an entrepreneurial power of attorney for a representative at an early stage.
- Guardianship Directive
A guardianship directive instructs the person making the directive to specify who the guardianship court should appoint as guardian in case of guardianship (e.g., in case of dementia). Generally, caregivers choose trusted persons such as spouses or relatives for this role. The same person can also be named as guardian who has been authorized in a power of attorney.
- Parental Affidavit for Children (Optional)
In addition to the above documents, a parental affidavit can be included to designate a guardian for children. This is particularly advisable for parents who wish to specify a preferred guardian for their minor children in the event both parents die.
In summary, proactively preparing for life's uncertainties by creating essential planning documents can provide peace of mind and help ensure that the testator's wishes are carried out. By consulting legal professionals, individuals can determine which documents best suit their personal circumstances.
In the context of securing legal affairs, it's crucial to consider community policy and health policy, especially while planning health-and-wellness and mental-health therapies-and-treatments, alongside other crucial documents. For instance, a health policy could cover an individual's wishes for healthcare directives, while science plays a significant role in the development and understanding of various treatments and therapies. Seeking advice from notaries, estate planning attorneys, or consumer centers can help individuals make informed decisions about the appropriate planning documents based on their personal life situations.
