Incapacity Planning

The Alzheimer's Association is a fantastic source of information about this horrible disease. According to their website, around 45 percent of people who are 85 years of age and older are suffering from the disease.  Alzheimer's disease causes dementia, and people with dementia are typically going to become unable to make sound decisions on their own at some point in time. Topics covered in this report include: Impact of Aging Decision Making Click here to read the whole report or … [Read more...] about Free Report: Why Is Incapacity Planning Important

The motivation behind creating an estate plan typically comes from the desire to protect and provide for loved ones. While that motivation may initially be a result of the knowledge of your own immortality, death is not the only threat to the stability and safety of you and your loved ones. Your own incapacity could also be a threat. With that in mind, the Los Angeles living trust attorneys at Collins Law Firm urge you to reflect on whether you have an incapacity plan within your estate plan or … [Read more...] about Attorney Caprice L. Collins Asks: Do You Have an Incapacity Plan?

Everyone understands the importance of retirement planning. People generally recognize the need to engage in estate planning as well. However, there is a period of time that may lie between your active retirement years and your passing. This is the phase of life that we call the twilight years. During this stage, you may suffer from incapacity. You could become physically incapacitated and unable to communicate either temporarily or permanently. There is also the possibility of mental … [Read more...] about How Can You Prevent a Conservatorship?

A power of attorney is a legal document that you can use to give someone else the power to make legally binding decisions on your behalf. If you are the person granting the power, you are called the principal, and the person who would be able to act as your representative would be the agent or attorney-in-fact. Any adult who is of sound mind who is willing to act as an attorney-in-fact can assume the role. You do not have to be a lawyer to act as an attorney-in-fact. There are general … [Read more...] about What Is Different About a Durable Power of Attorney?

Things like wills and trusts are naturally going to come to mind when you think about estate planning. Transferring assets is certainly part of the process, but you should also think about the latter portion of your life and the potential for conservatorship proceedings. To prepare in advance, you could execute a legally binding document called a durable power of attorney. Before we look at the details that surround a power of attorney, we should explain some things about incapacity so that you … [Read more...] about Prepare Yourself With a Durable Power of Attorney

Many people from Los Angeles have served our country in the military. There are no words to describe the debt of gratitude that we owe to these brave men and women. Wartime veterans go through a lot, and many people who have served in the military are returning back home to Los Angeles. Though there is no way to fully repay the former service members for their sacrifices, there are some benefits that can be of great assistance. Most people are aware of the military retirement pension. If … [Read more...] about Many Wartime Veterans Are Returning to Los Angeles

Everyone understands the importance of retirement planning. People generally recognize the need to engage in estate planning as well. However, there is a period of time that may lie between your active retirement years and your passing. This is the phase of life that we call the twilight years. During this stage, you may suffer from incapacity. You could become physically incapacitated and unable to communicate either temporarily or permanently. There is also the possibility of mental … [Read more...] about How Can You Prevent a Conservatorship?

When most people think of estate planning they think of preparing for the distribution of estate assets after death. While deciding what happens to your estate assets when you are gone is certainly an important aspect of an estate plan, a comprehensive estate plan can accomplish much more than that. In fact, a wide range of inter-related estate planning goals can be accomplished with a well thought out estate plan. Incapacity planning, for example, is often incorporated into an estate plan. If … [Read more...] about Can a Living Trust Help with Incapacity Planning?

A power of attorney is a legal device that most people have heard about at some time or another. On the surface, the device can seem rather simple and straightforward. You would use a power of attorney to give another person the authority to act on your behalf in a legally binding manner. This is the basic principle, but there are a number of things that the typical layperson simply would not know about a power of attorney. Let's look at some of them. 1.) The Agent When you decide that you want … [Read more...] about Five Things You Didn’t Know About a Power of Attorney

A power of attorney is a legal document that you can use to give someone else the power to make legally binding decisions on your behalf. If you are the person granting the power, you are called the principal, and the person who would be able to act as your representative would be the agent or attorney-in-fact. Any adult who is of sound mind who is willing to act as an attorney-in-fact can assume the role. You do not have to be a lawyer to act as an attorney-in-fact. There are general powers … [Read more...] about What Is Different About a Durable Power of Attorney?