No assets? At least consider a power of attorney

A lot of people tell me that they have no major assets, and no dependants, so they don’t need to have a will drafted. While I’m not entirely sure I agree with that, even if you don’t need a will, it doesn’t mean you don’t need to do estate planning.

If you were injured or became suddenly ill, in order for someone to act on your behalf in a non-emergency situation, you would need to either have a guardian named for you, or you would need a power of attorney in place. A guardianship application is costly and can have far-reaching consequences, especially if you recover; you also have no say in who is named as a guardian.

If you want to make the decision about who cares for you personally, as well as your assets, and you want a say in what type of care you will have if you are incapable at the time, the only solution is to sign a power of attorney, right now.