The presentation was given by a solicitor John Costello who is also involved in St Michaels House and has a brother who is autistic and in full time care.
I must say I found the talk highly beneficial and this post is *my* interpretation of the information provided from my personal perspective.
Should this post already be too long here is the main point(s):-
Make a Will, not next week, contact your / a solicitor today!
- Special needs or not make a will immediately. Contact a solicitor and do it now ! Get it? If you don't and you die bad things can happen (seriously some of his examples were frightening)
- Appoint trustees. A trustee is an administrator of finances
- Appoint guardians. A guardian is concerned with welfare of the child.
- Consider putting in place a Discretionary Trust. The speaker said that this is vitally important however I am doing this de facto through my trustees
- Consider a letter of wishes which outlines specific requirements.
2 comments:
Dad, you are so right to bring up this issue. It is unfortunately something most people do not want to think about. But, at the end of the day, making a will is not being morbid, it’s the most sensible thing to do. It’s like taking any kind of insurance, it’s nothing more than a contingency plan, just in case…
And strangely enough, I am just in the process of doing the same thing myself, amending my own will, and all because of Cathal – not because he is my first grand-child, but because he has less of a chance of acquiring full financial independence because of DS than other grandchildren who might come in the future.
Well done for having the courage of bringing up this topic.
On a lighter note, I believe Ava and Cathal are getting on famously well at their little “play-dates”…
Oh you're right I suppose grumble grumble mwlhghhhh etc
It's going on the list. Not to make it, but to amend it. Once upon a time we were quite organised and it got made. So we'll have to sort it, won't we?
Good post. Good advice.
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