Hello Dennis,
My father in law appears to be getting dementia and his son needs to make decision. He lease an apartment and he wants his son to be able to make decision regarding rental, handling his bank accounts and medical issues.
Will a Durable power of attorney be enough. Or does he need to be a Conservator?
Thank you for your time.
L. B.
Dear L.B.:
If your father-in-law has sufficient mental capacity at this time to execute a financial power of attorney, that would be an excellent solution to allow his son to be able to assist him with his finances. He should also consider an Advance Health Care Directive and HIPAA Authorization Form if he would like his son to be able to assist with medical and personal decisions like where he lives when he no longer has capacity to make these types of decisions himself. The level of mental capacity needed to execute a financial power of attorney is the same as enter into a contract. This means that your father-in-law would have to understand the extent of his wealth and that by executing the power of attorney he is allowing his son to assist him with his finances. The level of mental capacity needed to execute an Advance Health Care Directive is the amount of understanding needed to understand medical procedures and consent to medical treatment.
A conservatorship is appropriate for these types of situations, but if his father still has sufficient mental capacity to execute a power of attorney and advance health care directive, they are much less expensive solutions to the problem.
Thank you for taking the time to submit your question and for assisted your husband with providing assistance for his father. Contact us at 951-787-7711 if you would like to schedule an appointment for your father-in-law to discuss his estate planning options.
Riverside Estate Planning Lawyer Dennis Sandoval
By submitting a question to ASK DENNIS, the questioner is not creating an attorney-client relationship or receiving legal advice. Any questions submitted will not be treated as privileged or confidential and may be posted along with its response on the firm website so others with similar issues can benefit from the response. Questioners understand that Dennis may not be able to respond to your question at all, but if he or one of his associate attorneys responds they will do so in a general manner on which you cannot rely as legal advice. Go to ASK DENNIS to submit your estate planning and elder law questions to the Riverside estate planning lawyers at Sandoval Legacy Group, a division of Holstrom, Block & Parke, A Professional Law Corporation.
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