As we age or manage chronic disabilities, planning ahead becomes more important than ever—especially when it comes to who will make decisions if we no longer can. Two common tools for planning are powers of attorney and guardianships. They both allow someone else to make decisions on your behalf, but they work very differently—and knowing the distinction can help protect your independence and your future.
What Is a Power of Attorney?
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A Power of Attorney (POA) is a legal document you sign while you are still mentally competent. It allows you to choose a trusted person—called your “agent” or “attorney-in-fact”—to act on your behalf. You can create a POA for financial decisions, medical decisions, or both. You decide how broad or limited their powers are and when they go into effect.
Importantly, a POA is flexible and proactive. It lets you maintain control by choosing who will act for you before any crisis happens.
What Is Guardianship?
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Guardianship is a court-ordered process that happens when someone is no longer able to manage their own affairs and didn’t put a plan in place beforehand. A judge appoints someone—called a guardian—to make personal or financial decisions for the person who is incapacitated (called the “ward”). The guardian must report to the court regularly.
Guardianship can be essential in some cases, but it can also be costly, time-consuming, and public. You lose the ability to choose who makes decisions for you, because the court does that instead.
Why Does This Matter?
If you’ve already won your disability benefits or are retired, you may think this doesn’t apply to you. But we’ve seen too many clients and their families caught off guard by unexpected illness, cognitive decline, or even a sudden hospitalization. Without a valid POA in place, your loved ones may be forced to seek guardianship—an emotionally and financially draining process.
How Can You Prepare?
The good news is that planning ahead is easier than you might think. Creating a Power of Attorney while you’re still capable can help avoid guardianship altogether. It’s one of the most powerful ways to retain dignity, reduce family conflict, and ensure your wishes are respected.
Our firm now offers elder law services, including estate planning, Medicaid planning, and advance directive preparation. If it’s been a while since you reviewed your legal documents—or if you’ve never created a POA—now is a good time to talk.
We’re Still Here for You
We were proud to stand with you during your disability claim, and we’d be honored to continue helping you plan for whatever comes next. If you have questions about Powers of Attorney, guardianship, or long-term care planning, we’re just a phone call away.
Call us at 800-562-9830
Or contact us online: DisabilityDenials.com
