Wills &
Wishes
By ZARAH WALPOLE
You know you need a Will. When you die, having
a valid Will allows you to dispose of your assets as you
wish, appoint a guardian for your child(ren), and choose
who will look after your estate. Without a Will, you leave
behind a huge potential for uncertainty and expense. Having
Powers of Attorney, which allow someone to make financial
and health decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated,
is equally important. Of course, knowing you need a Will
and Powers of Attorney, and actually taking the time to
create them is a different matter. All I'll say on this
topic is, the fact of your eventual death is certain. Please,
please make sure you get this job done. It is a kindness
to your loved ones to ensure your wishes are known, when
you can no longer express them.
But that's not the main topic of this article. What I really
want to write about, is the importance of actually talking
about your wishes before you die or become incapacitated.
North Americans generally find talking about death extremely
uncomfortable. Despite the fact that death in inevitable,
we prefer not to think or talk about it. If we don't talk
about death, maybe it won't happen. However, we are not
doing our loved ones any favours by burying our heads in
the sand. So carve out a little time to think about what
you want. Things to consider, include:
- Who will take care of your finances and who will make
medical decisions if you become incapacitated?
- How will they make those decisions and what guidance
can you provide in making those decisions?
- What are your goals for medical treatment if you have
a serious advanced illness or injury that interferes with
your ability to communicate?
- Is there a point that you would want life sustaining
medical treatments to be withdrawn?
- Do you want to be an organ donor?
- What sort of funeral or wake do you want?
- Do you want to be buried or cremated? Where?
- Where are your Will, Powers of Attorney and other related
documents stored?
- Who should be the your child(ren)'s guardian, and why?
- Who will be your Estate Trustee (the person who makes
funeral arrangements, inventories your assets, pays the
funeral expenses, debts and taxes, and distributes your
estate), and why?
- How will your assets be divided? Will this create any
bad feelings and how can you lessen the impact?
- How will you deal with things like the family cottage?
- Do you want to forgive loans to family members and will
other members of the family see this as unfair?
Then talk to those who are close to you and most likely
to be involved in decision making if you are very ill or
when you die. Just because you have a close relationship,
does not mean that your wishes are known. Clear and open
communication can cut down on disputes in the future. Express
your wishes and then ask them to tell you, in their own
words, what they think you want. It's also a good idea to
get the consent of your proposed guardian and estate trustee.
You are asking these people to take on a huge responsibility
so it is only fair to get their consent. Talking about death
can be uncomfortable but the end result is greater peace
of mind knowing that when you die, your loved ones will
act in accordance with your wishes.
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The above is not intended to constitute
legal advice. Please contact a lawyer to clarify your
legal rights.
