Two documents for the day you can’t speak.

A durable power of attorney is a written authorization where you (the principal) name another person (your agent) to handle your financial affairs. The word “durable” means the authority survives your incapacity; an ordinary power of attorney terminates the moment you become unable to make decisions, which is exactly when you need it. California Probate Code Section 4124 defines durability and the rest of Probate Code Section 4400 et seq sets out the rules for the document and the agent’s duties. Without a durable POA, family members usually have to file a court conservatorship to manage your affairs if you become incapacitated.

A California advance health care directive (AHCD) is a written document that names a health care agent to make medical decisions for you if you cannot, and records your treatment preferences for life support, resuscitation, organ donation, and end of life care. California Probate Code Section 4670 et seq governs these directives. The standard California statutory form is in Probate Code Section 4674. The AHCD also includes a HIPAA authorization so your agent can access your medical records.

A durable power of attorney covers financial decisions: paying bills, managing investments, dealing with the IRS, selling property. An advance health care directive covers medical decisions: choosing treatment, refusing treatment, end of life care. Each document names its own agent, and the two agents do not have to be the same person. Most California estate plans include both because they handle different parts of the same problem (you cannot speak for yourself) but the law treats them separately.

In California, the living will has been replaced by the advance health care directive. The AHCD combines what used to be two separate documents: the durable power of attorney for health care (which named your agent) and the living will (which recorded your end of life preferences). Both functions live in a single AHCD now under Probate Code Section 4670 et seq. The phrase “living will” is still used informally, but the actual California document is called an advance health care directive.

Only if the power of attorney specifically authorizes real property transactions. California Probate Code Section 4264 lists the actions that require express authority in the document, including selling real property, making gifts, creating or revoking trusts, and changing beneficiary designations. A general power of attorney does not include these powers automatically. Bob includes the express authorities your situation calls for and leaves out the ones you do not want to give. Most California families want the agent to be able to sell or refinance the home if needed for care; not all families want gift-making authority.

Two options under California law. An “immediately effective” POA takes effect the moment it is signed, even though most agents do not actually start using it until needed. A “springing” POA only takes effect on a triggering event, usually a written determination of incapacity by a physician. Most California attorneys recommend immediately effective POAs because the springing form often creates delay and disputes about whether the trigger has been met. The agent’s fiduciary duty under Probate Code Section 4230 protects against misuse either way.

Your family will usually have to file a California conservatorship petition. A conservatorship is a court proceeding where a judge appoints someone (the conservator) to make financial decisions (conservatorship of the estate) and personal care decisions (conservatorship of the person). The process takes months, requires investigation by the court investigator, costs thousands in attorney fees, requires annual accountings to the court for life, and is public record. A durable power of attorney and advance health care directive avoid the entire process if signed before incapacity strikes.

Yes, and many California families do. The durable power of attorney for finances names your financial agent. The advance health care directive names your health care agent. The successor trustee under your living trust handles the trust assets. The guardian nomination in your will names who raises your minor children. Each role can go to a different person if it makes sense for your family. A common pattern: a financially organized adult child as financial agent, a child who lives nearby for health care decisions, a sibling as guardian for minor children if both parents are gone.

A properly drafted California advance health care directive includes a HIPAA authorization that lets your health care agent access your medical records. A separate standalone HIPAA authorization is sometimes used when the principal wants to give a non-agent access to medical information (an adult child who is not the named agent, for example). Bob includes the HIPAA language in the AHCD itself and adds standalone authorizations where the family situation calls for it.

A POLST (Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment) is a doctor’s order, signed by both the patient and the physician, that translates the patient’s end of life preferences into specific medical orders that emergency responders and hospital staff follow. POLSTs are typically used for patients with serious illness in the last year or two of life. An advance health care directive is a planning document that anyone can sign in good health to direct care later. The two work together: the AHCD records preferences in advance; the POLST converts those preferences into actionable orders when the time comes.