For Busy Business Owner Moms
Are Your Kids Totally Protected If The Unthinkable Happened to You?
by
Darlynn C. Morgan, Esq.
Step 1 - Create a Plan Put in place a clear plan for the care of your children if something happens to you. This one is the most important.
Step 2 - Give Guidance on Who to Call Next, give guidance to caregivers as to exactly who they should call if something happens to you. But, you want to make sure they aren't going to call someone who doesn't have legal authority. It's not going to help to have a neighbor come over unless that person has documented legal authority to stay with your children.
Step 3 - Give Written Legal Authority to First Responders Make sure that you have given documented clear legal authority to someone who lives nearby and would be available immediately to your children.
Step 4 - Give Clear Guidance to Your First Responders Make sure the people who have legal authority know that they are going to be called on if something happens to you and make sure you give them the legal documentation they need to prove that authority if necessary.
This is important because imagine a police officer arrives at your house after an accident. The babysitter is with your kids and it'll take many hours before the long-term guardians can arrive. The police officer can't leave your children alone with the babysitter or neighbor. The officer will have to remove your children from your house.
Step 5 - Legally Document Who Should Act as Guardians for the Long-Term Make sure you've designated in writing exactly who you want to care for your children for the long-term. And, make sure you've given clear guidance as to exactly how decisions should be made regarding your children's care.
Step 6 - Put in Writing Who You DON'T Want to Care for Your Children This is an often overlooked step because it's such a sensitive issue. But, if there's someone in your life you know you would never want to raise your children, don't you want to do everything you can to protect against that risk? You can, by clearly designating in writing anyone you know that you would never want to care for your children if something happens to you.
Step 7 - Provide Financial Resources As a parent, it's your responsibility to provide enough financial resources to make sure that whoever is raising your children will not struggle financially.
And, most importantly, make sure that the financial resources you do leave would be available to your guardians and your children and would be totally protected. You will want to designate a trust as the beneficiary of your life insurance so it doesn't get pulled into the court process and be unavailable when it's most needed.
Darlynn Morgan is an attorney, speaker and Personal Family Lawyer. Darlynn makes it easy for your family to talk about and plan for tough subjects like money, death and taxes. Visit www.MorganLawGroup.com for more resources on how to make sure your kids are totally protected if the unthinkable happens to you.