Celebrating an 18th birthday is a major milestone for parent and new adult alike. However, it’s easy to overlook some of the more important legal considerations of your child reaching age 18 in lieu of the celebrations fund and looking ahead towards college or future planning.
When your child turns 18, he or she is categorized as an adult under the law. This means that as a parent you no longer have the legal authority to make decisions on your child’s behalf. It might seem as though an 18-year-old is not fully equipped to make decisions for themselves just yet but the law categorizes someone as a true adult capable of doing so at this age. Therefore, you need to schedule a consultation with an experienced estate planning lawyer to talk about things to do when your child turns 18.
A minimum estate plan for your new adult includes a durable power of attorney, a last will and testament and a health care power of attorney with a HIPAA release. This enables you to step in and receive pertinent medical information about your loved one in the event of an accident.
Being far away and having your loved one sent off to college, in either the spring or the fall semester can present unique challenges if something suddenly happens to your child in an accident or if they need to go to the hospital. Being equipped with the legal documentation to step in and take action quickly can make a big difference in this critical situation.
Use an estate planning lawyer to draft these important documents.
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