Arkansas Pro Bono Partnership

Arkansas Pro Bono Partnership

Equal Access to Justice Panel | River Valley Volunteer Attorney Project

Volunteer Organization of Center for Arkansas Legal Services

Legal Forms Overview

1. Living Will. A Living Will allows you to designate specific treatments that you do not wish to have when you become terminally ill or permanently unconscious. In the absence of a Living Will, your medical provider will provide all treatments deemed necessary to keep you alive, even if the quality of your life will not improve. Typical treatments that you may decline include surgery, blood transfusions, antibiotics, CPR, artificial nutrition, and artificial hydration. Even if you decline to receive any treatment needed to keep you alive, you will be given treatment needed to keep you comfortable.

2. Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care. A Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care allows you to designate a person to make decisions for you about your medical care if you become disabled or incapacitated, which may include decisions about hospitalization, long-term care or end-of-life care. This document will not authorize the person you appoint to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatment in the event you become terminally ill or permanently unconscious. If you wish to refuse life-sustaining treatment, you should also complete a Living Will.

3. Durable General Power of Attorney. A General Durable Power of Attorney allows you to designate a person to make broad decisions about your affairs, including your finances. It can be helpful if you become incapacitated or plan to be away from home for an extended period of time. The Durable Power of Attorney can be made effective immediately, for a limited period of time, or only when your doctor certifies that you are no longer capable of making decisions about your own affairs.

4. Power of Attorney for Minor. A Power Attorney for Minor allows you to designate a person to take care of your child or children and handle certain matters, such as enrollment in school and medical treatment, if you are incapacitated or unavailable (e.g., deployed abroad). You can only use this form if you are the custodial parent. A Power of Attorney for Minor does not affect parental rights or custody. The Power of Attorney for Minor can be limited so that it expires on a certain date or the happening of an event, such as return from deployment.

5. Simple Will. A Simple Will allows you to decide who your money and possessions go to in the event of your death, and may provide for the appointment of a guardian of any minor children that you have. In the absence of a will, a court will distribute your estate according to laws that set an order of preference for which of your survivors should inherit your estate. A Simple Will can help avoid consequences that you may not intend, such as causing a family member to be disqualified from Medicaid. A Simple Will should only be used if you plan to leave your estate to immediate family members.