Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: Will vs Living Trust

There is some confusion between a will and a living will. A will is a legal document that allows the individual to pass property upon death. A living will normally contains a health care proxy and a health care declaration. The documents give another individual the power to make health care decisions when the grantor is about to die (with no hope of survival) and is unable to express his or her wishes.

To answer your question, you would have to ask yourself if you need these two documents. If you do not have a will, you die intestate and NY law determines who inherits. If you die without a living will, you may be on a respirator for years although you will be brain dead.

Mike.