Drafting advance directives provides clear guidance for medical care, reduces family conflict, and helps avoid unnecessary treatments. A well-prepared directive supports your autonomy, aligns treatment with your values, and saves time for clinicians during emergencies. Our firm guides you through forms, amendments, and legal requirements to ensure validity.
A primary advantage is ensuring your wishes guide both medical decisions and financial matters, reducing conflicts and speeding up action when choices must be made quickly.
Choosing our firm provides clear guidance, professional drafting, and ongoing support to adapt your plan over time. We listen to your goals, explain legal options, and help you create durable documents that withstand scrutiny.
Life changes, laws update, and medical directives may require adjustments. We advise on when to revisit documents and how to implement changes smoothly without starting from scratch for ongoing protection.
Choose someone you trust who understands your values and can communicate clearly with doctors. The proxy should be willing to act in difficult circumstances and be reachable in emergencies. Discuss your decision with the person, confirm they agree to serve, and provide them with copies of your directives and your doctors’ contact details so they can act promptly when needed.
A living will states your preferences about life-sustaining treatment and resuscitation expectations, guiding medical staff when you cannot express choices, and can be tailored to different care settings and situations with clear instructions. A durable power of attorney for healthcare designates a trusted agent to make medical decisions on your behalf when you cannot, ensuring guidance aligns with your preferences and is revocable while you remain capable.
Yes. You can revise directives at any time while you have capacity. Simple amendments should be signed, dated, and witnessed as required by Maryland law. Notify your healthcare proxy and doctors of the changes, and replace old copies, storing updated versions alongside the originals for continuity.
Most advance directives require witnesses and sometimes notarization depending on Maryland law. We guide you through the correct witnessing process to ensure documents are legally enforceable and accepted by medical providers. We coordinate with your attorney to ensure signatures and witnesses meet state requirements, providing clear storage and future update instructions.
Review directives at least every few years or after major life events such as marriage, divorce, illness, or the arrival of grandchildren. Regular updates keep the plan aligned with your current wishes. Set reminders with your attorney and healthcare proxy to prompt timely revisions, ensuring documents stay valid and easy for clinicians to follow.
Directives should be portable and accessible to any hospital you encounter. We format documents so they are recognizable by medical teams and can be retrieved quickly in critical moments. We also provide digital copies and guidance on sharing with your primary care physician, loved ones, and designated agent to ensure continuity of care across locations.
Bring any existing living wills, durable powers of attorney for healthcare, and advance directives, plus lists of medications, healthcare providers, and family contacts. Having these items helps us tailor new documents. Include proof of identity and any court orders if applicable; we provide checklists to keep the process efficient and ensure nothing is missed for accuracy.
Yes. You can tailor directives for routine care, critical illness, or terminal conditions, specifying which treatments to pursue or avoid in each scenario. This flexibility helps ensure your wishes are respected. We help you organize these scenarios clearly and legally, so clinicians and families can act confidently no matter the situation.
Without directives, decisions may be made by relatives or guardians chosen by the court, which might not reflect your values. A durable power of attorney helps prevent this by providing a pre-selected agent. Having a plan also speeds medical decisions and reduces conflict for family members during stressful times.
Store originals securely, and keep multiple copies accessible to your agent, physician, and primary care provider. We recommend both physical and digital backups for rapid retrieval. We guide you on distributing copies, updating notices, and refreshing digital access so care teams can locate your directives quickly in emergencies anywhere.
