Legal Tips for Senior Citizens and People with Disabilities

Seniors and those with disabilities are both in a similar position – they’re potentially vulnerable groups. But, this vulnerability doesn’t mean you’ll be taken advantage of. Far from it.

You simply need to be savvy about the law, so you can protect yourself every step of the way.

Important Legal Topics To Consider

Learn, Don’t Assume

First, it’s crucial to learn how the law actually works in your specific situation. This may involve reading posts like this one and consulting a local lawyer for more details.

Such approaches are crucial because the law doesn’t always work as we would expect it to. For example, some seniors find that there’s a surprising amount of paperwork involved in getting the end-of-life care they hope for. And, even when this is all filled out correctly, there’s a chance that things don’t go as planned.

The lawyer aspect of this really is critical, as the specifics of a situation can influence the relevant laws and their implications. This isn’t something you can pick up simply by reading advice online.

So, ask many questions and take the time to learn.

Start Long-Term Planning Early

Long-term planning includes a variety of topics, like how you will pay for end-of-life services, what happens if you can’t support yourself, and how you wish to die.

While the topics can be scary, the earlier you can start this planning the better.

You’ll often need to talk to a financial advisor and a lawyer for these steps, as there are many complexities along the way. Those complexities are a crucial reason for starting the planning early. Doing so gives you the time to do things right and means you’re not dealing with all the emotions of aging or a serious diagnosis at the same time.

Some important areas to consider include:

• Estate Planning. Your will is the most fundamental aspect of estate planning, but there are other aspects too, including setting up trusts and talking to family lawyers. The goal is often to ensure you have the resources you need, while also leaving something for future generations.
• Long-Term Care Planning. Many people will need long-term care, as aging or disability can prevent them from being fully independent. Yet, such types of care can be expensive, so you’ll need to plan the finances carefully. 
• Retirement Planning. Younger people may also need to think about how they’re going to afford to live in their retirement. This is easiest if you already have some money saved. If not, you’ll need to find ways to decrease spending, while looking at the available types of financial support.
• Insurance. Is your current insurance adequate for your needs? What happens if things change? What are your other options?
• Living Environment. Is your current home suitable for the future? Some homes become risky as people age, particularly if they have stairs or require considerable maintenance. You may need to make home modifications or even downsize to ensure your home is safe for you in the long term.  
• External Support. It’s also important to look at your options for external support, particularly support from the government. This is worth investigating, as there could easily be some unfamiliar programs. You can also look for legal aid to make legal support more affordable.

Create a Will

If you don’t already have one, a will is crucial. This helps define how your family will be cared for in the event of your death, how your estate is divided, and who is responsible for making key decisions.

Creating a will has many benefits. Not only does this allow your assets to be distributed in the way you wish, but it also helps reduce family debates and squabbles. This is huge, especially as those you leave behind will already be dealing with significant grief.

There are many will services that can help you to understand the requirements associated with a will and ensure that everything is legal. Generally, to create an official will, you will need the following:

• A valuation of your estate – you will need a complete list of your assets to evaluate which of your inheritors will receive each of your assets.
• A list of your inheritors – you must draw up all the people you wish to include, along with the assets you would like them to inherit.
• Charitable considerations – if you have no viable inheritors, you might consider donating your assets to a charitable organization. You can collect a list of charities that accept estate donations and decide which cause is nearest to your heart.
• Choose executors – an executor is a person you trust to read your will to your inheritors and ensure that all of the terms of your will are executed accordingly upon your death.
• Write your will – you can use a will writing service for this process to ensure the will is legible and legally compliant.
• Sign the will – you need a witness to the signature to ensure you are not under pressure or duress, establishing that the choice is genuine and according to your wishes.

Of course, simply creating a will once generally isn’t enough. You’ll also need to update this regularly, especially when things change in your life.

What Will Happen if You Can’t Make Decisions?

It’s also important to think about decision-making. Notably, what happens if you’re unable to make decisions for yourself, like if you’re in a coma or have significant cognitive impairment?

In such cases, people mightn’t know what you want unless you’re very clear. There are also quite a few legal steps to consider here and paperwork that must be filled out to ensure your wishes are met.

Medical Directives

Medical directives are one area to consider. You may also hear the terms living wills or advance directives, which are similar in many ways.

Medical directives are written legal documents that specify the types of treatment a person senior does and doesn’t want when they’re no longer capable of deciding for themselves.

Such directives often consider specific types of treatment that the senior may want or not want. For example, are you comfortable with CPR, with using a ventilator to help you breathe, or with tube feeding? What about types of pain medication or experimental treatments?

The answers to these questions are often linked to a person’s values around quality of life versus length of life. In particular, some people may want to stay alive for as long as possible, while others may refuse to be supported by machines.

Power of Attorney

Medical directives often aren’t enough on their own, as you can’t possibly anticipate every combination of situations. So, many people also designate a decision-maker, through Power of Attorney (PoA) paperwork.

The PoA is then able to make a variety of decisions on your behalf, including legal, financial, and healthcare decisions.

It’s important to plan well here, as the PoA can have varied powers, depending on the specific paperwork. Some areas to consider include:

• Is the PoA durable? A durable PoA can act even if the senior is incapacitated or mentally incompetent, while a general PoA is only relevant when the senior can make decisions for themselves.
• What does the PoA cover? Some PoAs are only relevant in specific areas, like a financial PoA who can only make financial decisions or a healthcare PoA who is relevant for medical decisions.
• How is the PoA transferred? What happens if you’re no longer happy with the PoA? What if you’re no longer competent and the family feels your PoA is acting against your interests? Understanding the laws here can help you protect yourself and other family members.

It’s also important to talk to the person with Power of Attorney (often called your Health Care Agent or Health Care Proxy). They may be making decisions for you in the future, so they should understand your values and wishes.

Guardianship

If you become incapacitated and haven’t completed Power of Attorney paperwork, a guardian might be appointed instead.

Guardians are often appointed from within the family, like a spouse or an adult child. However, if there are no suitable and willing family members, someone else may be appointed as a guardian.

While guardians have a similar role to someone with a PoA, guardians are less desirable. Notably, a guardian is appointed for you, meaning you don’t get the chance to plan with them or talk about your wishes. This can mean the guardian doesn’t really know what you want. They might make some decisions you wouldn’t have wished for.  

Be Aware of Abuse

Abuse can take many forms, including physical, verbal, and financial abuse. While some types of abuse are obvious, others are much more subtle.

For example, a person with financial PoA may be taking advantage of your accounts, using some of your money for themselves rather than for your own needs. Abuse can occur in other settings too, like dementia medication abuse in care homes and

Because of this, you may need a third party to keep an eye on things and look out for signs of a problem.

Think about getting agreements in writing too. This way everyone knows what is expected and any issues are easy to spot.

In some families, the PoA may be regularly paid from the senior’s account, as the role requires considerable time and effort. This isn’t financial abuse if it is discussed and agreed upon. But, if the PoA is helping themselves to payment, then it can be considered abuse.

What Happens If There Is Abuse?

In cases of abuse, the immediate goal is to stop the abuse from happening.

However, there may also be the chance for compensation, especially if abuse is happening in a professional setting. Here, you or a loved one may be able to submit a demand letter to potentially receive compensation. 

Such approaches don’t just apply to abuse. They’re also relevant if care is inadequate or neglectful. For example, your place of residence during your care should have physical security plans to protect you from harm. If the facility neglects to provide sufficient security, and you become harmed directly, you could have grounds for compensation.

Should you need to, there is also the option of legal action for any personal injury caused to you while under medical care. New methods of legal funding that are available mean plaintiffs need not fund their entire case with cash. Pre-settlement funding gives plaintiffs an advance (should they qualify) on their settlement amount so that they can pay for legal fees during the legal process.

Thankfully, many seniors won’t ever need to take this route. Having loved ones watch out for signs of scams or abuse is often enough to provide the protection a senior needs.