Estate Planning & Personal Planning in North Vancouver

Preparing for your future security and that of your family is one of the most important legal tasks of most people’s lives. Andrea D. Johnson, Notary Public offers trained, professional services to ensure your wishes are clear and all documents are in place when they are needed.

Estate and Personal Planning

Estate and Personal planning covers all areas of your life: health care, personal care, legal affairs and financial affairs. Estate and Personal planning is important for everyone no matter their age or health; however, people frequently leave this planning until it is too late for them to make their wishes known.

Last Will and Testament

Wills are a legal document that leaves instructions for the distribution of assets, guardianship of minor children, and the designation of an executor who takes care of administering the estate. Without a Will, your estate will be distributed as according to the Wills, Estates and Succession Act (WESA).

Power of Attorney

A Power of Attorney allows a capable adult to appoint someone to act for them in their financial and legal matters in the event they are unable to do so themselves or need assistance due to illness, injury and disability.

Representation Agreement

A Representation Agreement appoints a representative, or multiple representatives, to make decisions regarding an individual's health and personal care in the event they are unable to communicate their own wishes.

The purpose of the Representation Agreement is to allow adults to arrange in advance how and by whom the decisions about their health care or personal care will be made if they become incapable of making decisions independently.

Advance Directive

An Advance Directive is written instructions about what health care you do or do not want in the future if you become incapable and a health care decision needs to be made. Unlike a Representation Agreement, an Advance Directive does not appoint a person to act on your behalf.

If you have both a Representation Agreement and an Advance Directive, the Representation Agreement takes priority. However, your representative must follow any instructions or wishes including those set out in an Advance Directive.