A husband and wife came to my office to create a plan. The husband decided I was too expensive and that they would be fine. Two years later the wife came back alone. Within a few months of a dementia diagnosis he was gone mentally, and she could not speak to his insurance company, his doctors, or anyone else. Every one of them asked for her authority. Being someone's wife does not give you that. There has to be paperwork.
What I Said
From my September 10 Parents Edition workshop at the Cambria Hotel in Calabasas, lightly edited for readability.
Let me tell you the story. Husband and wife came to my office. They wanted to create the trust, the plan. The husband decided that I'm too expensive and that they'll be fine. In two years, the wife came to my office because the husband suddenly became ill, has dementia. Within three, four, five months the guy was gone mentally, and she couldn't talk. They're married, husband and wife. She couldn't talk to insurance. She couldn't talk to doctors. She couldn't talk to anyone, because everybody asked for her authority.
Just being a wife or child of someone doesn't give you authority to act. There has to be paperwork, because the judge doesn't know. They don't know if she's not beating him up every day.
The full talk, written down: Who Picks Up Your Child From School if You Never Come Home?
More on this topic: Power of Attorney
More From the Workshop
- Put a Note on the Fridge: Do Not Call the Police
- The Form That Keeps Police and CPS Out of the First Hours
- Date Night, a 16-Year-Old Babysitter, and a Phone That Never Answers
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