Legal Directives Attorney Serving South Florida
If you were suddenly unable to speak for yourself, whether from an accident, a stroke, or a serious illness, someone would have to make decisions about your medical care and your finances almost immediately. Without the right documents in place, that someone might not be the person you would have chosen, and your family could end up in court asking a judge to appoint a guardian just to do what a few signed papers could have authorized in advance.
Barash-Schatten Law Firm, P.A. prepares health care and financial directives for clients throughout Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, and attorney Pamela Schatten makes sure each document actually holds up when a hospital, a bank, or a court needs to rely on it.
Why the Right Attorney Makes the Difference
A downloaded form that is missing Florida’s specific witness or notarization requirements, or that does not clearly state it remains valid after you become incapacitated, can be rejected by a hospital or a bank at the exact moment your family needs it to work. Without valid directives in place, your family may have no choice but to petition a court for guardianship, a public and often slower process, just to get the authority a properly drafted directive would have given them automatically.
We also make sure your directives include the language needed to access medical records under federal privacy law, a detail that is easy to overlook and that stops a named decision-maker from even getting basic information otherwise.
How We Help With Legal Directives
We prepare health care surrogate designations naming who can make medical decisions on your behalf, living wills stating your wishes about end-of-life care, and durable powers of attorney authorizing someone to handle your finances if you cannot. We also prepare pre-need guardian designations, which let you name in advance who you want a court to appoint as your guardian if one is ever needed, so that decision is yours rather than left entirely to a judge.
If you already have an estate plan with us, we build your directives to work together with your will or trust rather than as a disconnected set of forms.
Why Clients Choose Pamela Schatten
Ms. Schatten is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell, a distinction based on peer review of both legal ability and ethical standards, and clients consistently describe her as thorough and conscientious, exactly the qualities you want from the person making sure a document will actually work when your family needs it most. She also handles the guardianship matters that arise when these documents were never put in place, so she has seen firsthand what a family goes through without them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Health care and financial directives can raise practical questions for people the first time they actually consider them. Here are some examples.
What Working With Our Firm Looks Like
We walk you through each decision these documents require in plain language, including how much authority to give and when it should take effect, rather than handing you a stack of forms to sign without explanation. Our office typically responds to calls and emails within a couple of hours, and you work directly with Ms. Schatten throughout the process.
We also keep copies on file and let you know if a change in Florida law or your own circumstances means a document should be updated, rather than leaving you to remember on your own.
If you do not have health care and financial directives in place, or it has been years since you reviewed the ones you have, call Barash-Schatten Law Firm, P.A. at (954) 698-4644 to schedule a consultation at our Hollywood office. You can also reach us through the contact form on our website.
Contact the Firm
Start the conversation.
Tell us briefly what you need and how to reach you. Messages go directly to Pamela Schatten, and you will hear back within a couple of hours at most during the business day.
Office
Barash-Schatten Law
800 E Cypress Creek Rd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334
Telephone
Toll free
Areas served
Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Lauderdale by the Sea, Hollywood Beach and Pompano Beach, plus the rest of Broward and Miami-Dade County
Office location, Fort Lauderdale
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