Hospital Appointments - Lawyer for Wills, Personal Directives, Powers of Attorney
To schedule an appointment, contact our law firm at 403-400-4092 or Chris@NeufeldLegal.com
Being hospitalized doesn't mean that you can't get legal services, especially at a time that a lawyer might well be essential to protecting your interests and/or those of your loved ones. We understand that people find themselves in the hospital and in need of immediate legal counsel. In those circumstances, you need a compassionate and experienced lawyer who can promptly attend to those legal matters from the hospital bedside. Whether that takes the form of dealing with long overdue estate planning matters (i.e. wills, powers of attorney) or corporate/financial planning/restructuring, you need a lawyer that can not only implement those interests, but appropriately advising you as to the viability of such approaches and advising as to the possibly better options.
For though it is not our role as a lawyer to facilitate the legal interests of our clients, it is important that we present options and alternatives, while seeing out the pros and cons of those options such that the client might make an intelligent and well informed decision. Thereafter, we need to make sure that the individual's decision works and is capable of standing up against legal scrutiny. Because the unfortunate thing with legal actions undertaken while an individual is in hospital is that if they are unpopular with certain people, they might well be challenged in court at a later date. As such, we need to make sure that those legal actions are done correctly and the competency of the individual giving the directions is properly substantiated. And if that competency is lacking, that is a concern that needs to be addressed accordingly, given their inability to give legally binding directions that can withstand court challenges [more on strengthening against legal challenges].
Hospital visits are necessary, but unfortunately come with additional legal cost due to the required travel time and other issues associated with timing, expedience and other legal challenges, especially when it comes to compentency and verification. These added costs can prove particularly significant; nevertheless, given the cost of not taking such action can be far more substantial, oftentimes requiring otherwise avoidable court intervention or resulting in actions that contravene one's present intentions. At the same time, getting one's legal paperwork completed consistent with one's current intentions and preferences gives hospitalized people the peace of mind to focus on making it through their medical situation, as opposed to having the added concern of legal issues bearing down on them.
For more information about attending to legal matters at the hospital, hospice or seniors home, and the associated costs involved as a result of the added time that must be expended in furtherance thereof, whether its Calgary’s Foothills Medical Centre, Peter Lougheed Centre, Rockyview General Hospital, South Health Campus, Tom Baker Cancer Centre, Cochrane Community Health Centre, Airdrie Community Health Centre or other medical facility, hospice or seniors home in metropolitan Calgary, Alberta, contact our law firm today at 403-400-4092 or via email at Chris@NeufeldLegal.com to schedule a confidential initial consultation.
Prompt Attention Required, given Potential for Further Loss of Capacity
The professional responsibility of a lawyer is fundamentally predicated on the existence of a client with the requisite legal capacity to provide clear, informed, and voluntary instructions. To validly execute a will, personal directive, or power of attorney, an individual must possess the cognitive ability to understand the nature of the document, the extent of their assets, and the impact of their decisions on potential beneficiaries or representatives. When a client’s mental faculties have diminished to a point where they can no longer grasp these essential elements, a lawyer is ethically and legally prohibited from completing or witnessing the execution of such instruments. This limitation serves as a protective measure for the individual, yet it highlights the narrow window of opportunity available for effective planning (especially when someone has been hospitalized). Consequently, waiting until a health crisis or cognitive decline becomes apparent (or worsens) often results in a situation where the legal professional can no longer intervene, leaving the individual's affairs in a state of uncertainty.
Addressing these critical legal matters promptly is essential because capacity is not always lost in a linear or predictable fashion. Fluctuations in cognitive health can create significant hurdles during the drafting and execution phases, as a lawyer must be satisfied that the client’s instructions are consistent and free from undue influence at every stage of the process. If a person's capacity further deteriorates during the period between the initial consultation and the signing of the documents, the entire legal project may have to be abandoned to maintain professional integrity and compliance with standards of practice (which can be particularly dangerous with hospitalized individuals, which demands immediate legal attention). A proactive approach ensures that the individual’s wishes are documented while they still possess the clarity of mind necessary to defend those choices. Failure to act while capacity is intact often necessitates much more complex and intrusive court-supervised processes to manage personal care and property.
While a lawyer provides essential guidance in the preparation of these documents, the scope of their service is inherently limited by the specific instructions provided by the client and the information disclosed during the engagement. There are numerous nuances in estate and personal planning that may not be fully addressed if a client is unable or unwilling to provide a comprehensive overview of their intentions or family dynamics. Furthermore, the effectiveness of a power of attorney or a will is often dependent on external factors and the subsequent actions of appointed representatives, which fall outside the lawyer's direct control. These limitations represent only a fraction of the potential concerns that can arise during the planning process. It is important to recognize that a lawyer's involvement, while vital, cannot guarantee a solution for every possible future contingency, particularly when the foundation of the legal relationship (the individual's capacity) is compromised.
IMPORTANT NOTE: This website is designed for general informational purposes. The site is not designed to answer specific questions about your individual situation or entitlement. Do not rely upon the information provided on this website as legal advice in respect of your individual situation nor use it as substitute for individual legal advice. If you want specific legal advice, you need to engage a lawyer under established legal engagement procedures that have been specifically agreed to by that lawyer.
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