I have learned so many lessons in my years of practice and I use those lessons to better help my clients prepare for whatever may come. One lesson I learned is that you are never too young of an adult to have a power of attorney.
A woman, who later became my client, had a teenage daughter in her second year of college. The daughter was in a horrific car accident on her way home during Thanksgiving break. The daughter was rushed to the hospital and was in critical condition. When my client reached the hospital, she learned that her daughter was in a medically induced coma due to her injuries and was unable to communicate in any way. There were lots of decision to be made about her daughter’s immediate care. The mother was ready and willing to make those decisions for her daughter. Unfortunately, she was unable to. The doctors explained that because her daughter was an adult, in order for my client to be able to make medical and legal decisions for her daughter, she needed to have a power of attorney or healthcare directive. The mother called me for advice to see what she could do. Due to the daughter’s incapacity, her signing a power of attorney or healthcare directive was impossible. The mother’s only option was to file a legal guardianship court case to become the guardian of her daughter so she could make the medical and legal decisions on her behalf. Well, we file the guardianship case and due to the court backlog, it took 3 long months, but we finally got the guardianship finalized and my client was able to make decisions for her daughter.
The lesson learned is that no matter how young you may be, you never know when you will be in a position where you cannot communicate or make decisions on your own behalf. Be safe, have a plan and appoint a power of attorney in case you ever need it. My client’s daughter remarkably survived the accident and is slowly recovering.
This blog post is written for educational and general information purposes only, and does not constitute legal advice. There is no attorney-client relationship between you and the blog publisher. This blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.