If someone you know has symptoms of dementia, it might not be too late to sign a will or other estate planning documents. Millions of people are affected by some form of dementia. Unfortunately, many of them do not have all of their estate planning affairs in order before symptoms begin to appear. This is another good reason to speak with an elder law attorney now, rather than putting off such a discussion.
In order for a will to be valid, the person signing it must have “testamentary capacity”, which means that he or she must understand the implications of what is being signed. It is not the case that people automatically cannot sign a will if they are affected by a disease or a mental illness. This does not matter as long as the person is lucid enough at the time to know what they are doing.
Generally, people are considered mentally competent to sign a will if they:
Understand the nature and extent of what they own.
Remember who their relatives and descendants are.
Are able to articulate who should inherit their property
Understand what a will is and how it disposes of their assets
Understand how all these things relate to each other to form a plan.
If there is any question about a person’s competency, an attorney may request a physician or other witness verify the person is lucid enough to understand what he or she is doing. Many times a geriatric physician or neurologist can prepare a report confirming a person’s mental competency to sign a will.
Ms. MacDonald’s practice is limited to Estate Planning, Probate, Conservatorships, Elder Law and Trust Administration. Ms. MacDonald maintains her practice in the Santa Clarita Valley at 25115 Avenue Stanford, Suite B-124in Valencia. For more information, call 661-294-6464 or visit http://yelllowpieplate.umn.edu/indexB.html.