LEGAL MATTERS

LEGAL MATTERS


You can use several legal tools to maintain control over
your affairs in later years. These will enable you to decide,
while healthy and alert, what you want done in the event of
death or disability. Be sure to discuss any arrangements with
your survivors to save them from facing difficult decisions and
to give them peace of mind, knowing they are complying with
your wishes.

* Wills--If you do not have a current will, the state, not
you, will decide how your assets are divided. Such legal
documents as Living or Revocable Trusts offer ways to
avoid probate.

* Trusts--This device lets you decide who would be
responsible for your financial affairs if you became
unable to manage them yourself.

* Powers of Attorney and Living Wills--Powers of attorney
typically assign responsibility for financial matters to
another person. Some apply to health care decisions as
well. You can use a Power of Attorney or a Living Will to
state in advance your wishes in case of an incapacitating
or life-threatening illness. Doing so is essential if you
want your family to know the circumstances in which you
wish to decline life-support measures.