Living Wills & Advance Directives If you are looking for legal help, look no futher than Law Office of Steven J. Hart.

Living Wills & Advance Directives in Warwick, Rhode Island

Planning for Future Medical Decisions in Rhode Island Since 2000

A living will records your medical preferences for a time when you can’t communicate treatment decisions. Advance directives give your family, physicians, and designated representative written guidance during a serious medical situation.

At Law Office of Steven J. Hart, I prepare advance directives through a broader estate planning process that considers your assets, circumstances, and goals. My practice includes living wills, powers of attorney for medical and financial decisions, wills, living trusts, guardianship, estate administration, gift and estate taxation, and elder law.

Call (888) 701-0919 to discuss living wills, advance directives, and other documents that may belong in your plan.

How I Prepare Advance Directives in Warwick, Rhode Island

The process starts with a discussion of your circumstances and priorities. Reviewing an existing plan can reveal whether medical decision-making documents are missing or no longer reflect your preferences.

Preparing and maintaining a plan generally involves these stages:

Reviewing Your Circumstances: I examine your assets and personal situation to understand what you want the plan to accomplish.
Discussing Your Priorities: We discuss your views about future medical treatment and who you want to communicate decisions for you.
Preparing and Signing Documents: I prepare the selected documents to comply with Rhode Island law and guide you through signing them.
Revisiting the Plan: I recommend reviewing your plan every few years and after major life changes.

Most plans I prepare for Kent County clients include a will, one or more trusts, powers of attorney, and advance directives for health care. Each document serves a different purpose, but together they can address incapacity and the transfer of property after death.

Rhode Island Declarations & Health Care Powers of Attorney

Rhode Island calls its living will a Declaration. Governed by the Rights of the Terminally Ill Act in Rhode Island General Laws Chapter 23-4.11, it states a person’s treatment preferences for certain end-of-life circumstances.

A medical power of attorney serves a separate purpose under Chapter 23-4.10. It identifies a representative who can make medical decisions when the person granting that authority can’t do so.

Signing a Declaration

A Declaration must be in writing and signed by the declarant, meaning the person making the document, or at that person’s direction. The declarant must be at least 18 and competent when the document is executed.

Two adult witnesses must observe the signing. Neither witness may be related to the declarant by blood or marriage.

When a Declaration Takes Effect

A Rhode Island Declaration takes effect for treatment decisions when three conditions are present: the person has a terminal condition, can’t make treatment decisions, and the attending physician has been informed that the document exists.

Because a Declaration and a medical power of attorney perform different functions, incapacity planning may include both. I can explain how each document fits within your wider plan rather than treating either one as an isolated form.

Put Your Medical Wishes in Writing

During a consultation, I can discuss your medical preferences, choice of representative, and related estate planning goals. I explain the available documents and prepare those selected for your circumstances under Rhode Island law.

I also consider how this planning may intersect with family law, business law, guardianship, and business succession. That broader perspective is useful when personal, family, and business decisions affect the same plan.

Schedule a consultation with Law Office of Steven J. Hart through the contact form or by calling (888) 701-0919.

Treatment Choices, Revocation & Document Distribution

A Rhode Island Declaration addresses life-sustaining procedures when a person has a terminal condition. Artificial nutrition and hydration are covered only when the document expressly applies to those procedures. Without a living will, end-of-life treatment preferences aren’t recorded in a written Declaration.

Changing or Sharing a Declaration

A Declaration may be revoked at any time and in any manner. Rhode Island doesn’t maintain an advance directive registry, so distributing copies is an important practical step after signing.

Copies should be given to the person’s physician, family, and designated representative. They should know that the document exists and have access to the current version.

Medical Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment

The Rhode Island Department of Health provides information and forms concerning powers of attorney for medical decisions, living wills, and MOLST. These medical orders record a terminally ill patient’s wishes about resuscitation and other life-sustaining treatment.

MOLST is a medical order, not a replacement for every advance directive. Whether it’s appropriate should be discussed with a medical provider, while living wills and powers of attorney can be addressed through incapacity planning.

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