As published in the Houston Chronicle, 50 Plus Section, December 2001

Baby Boomers and Their Aging Parents

By Wesley E. Wright and Molly Dear Abshire

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 It should be no surprise that the emerging field of elder law, which has been unfolding over the last fifteen years, derives much of its momentum from aging baby boomers and their parents.

The ìboomers," or ìbaby boomers," are those among us who were born between 1946 and 1964.  These boomersí births collectively have been referred to as waves. The first wave consists of those born between 1946 and 1954, whose ages fall at the current time between 47 and 55 years old. The second wave consists of those born between 1955 and 1964, whose ages are currently 36 to 46 years old.  These boomer waves represent approximately 76,000,000 people in the U.S. or 31% of the population.  It is predicted that 90% of all boomers will enter retirement by the year 2030.

But boomers are the elder law stories of tomorrow.  Today the stories are about their parents.  They have been quietly aging ahead of their children.  Some are still healthy and hard at work.  Others are settling into retirement or have been retired for years.  Many have already passed away. As we all know we experience life in different stages.  Sometimes a person reaches a stage in life when his or her ability to function independently begins to decline.  This may result in a new lifestyle for the older person.  Communication between the older person and the family members becomes important for a smooth transition.

Hopefully, the parents have planned for the possibility of diminished independence or incapacity that would render them unable to manage some or all of their decisions.  About twenty-five years ago, the Quinlan case became famous regarding a personís ìright to die".  The case concerned the unfortunate situation of Karen Quinlan, who was in a chronic persistent vegetative state and was being kept alive on a respirator. This case is the point from which most, if not all, of the states have developed their laws pertaining to medical advance directives.  These documents, which originally referred to medically related documents such as the living will and the medical power of attorney, have since been included in a larger group of directives made in advance of a personís possible incapacity.  They generically became known as advance directives.  In Texas, this group of documents usually includes the two directives mentioned above, plus a mental health directive, a statutory durable power of attorney for property, and the declaration of guardian in advance of incapacity.

Parents, as well as all adults, should consider obtaining these documents for several reasons.  First, the power of attorney for property and health care along with the living will in most cases should help the parent to avoid the possibility of an expensive guardianship proceeding.  Second, it allows the parent to choose the agents who will control his or her assets and make decisions regarding the parentís person upon subsequent incapacity.  Thirdly, it makes it clear to third parties who is in charge and may also reduce arguments between siblings as to who will make what decisions.

Interestingly enough, it is sometimes difficult to ascertain when a parent might need the childís help.  This can be a serious problem.  The parent does not always look favorably upon outreach efforts, and they can result in a wide variety of reactions from the parent.  There is no right or wrong about it, but it may be an issue that only time will solve.

The desire of almost every aging parent is to live at home as long as possible.  Thus, this should be the goal of the child to the extent that the child can assist in this endeavor.  The best advice to both the parents and their children is to communicate with each other. The parent and child need to try to work together.  An early step would be to obtain the advance directives.  Another step would be for the parent to begin a dialogue regarding the details of his or her personal data, financial information and medical history. 

Practicing elder law goes beyond the recitation of legal terms from law books.  It requires the application of legal concepts to the life experiences encountered by people who have led long lives rich in human experience; and it aspires to ease difficult transitions in life stages for its clients and their families.

Wesley E. Wright and Molly Dear Abshire are attorneys with the firm of Wright & Associates in Bellaire.  Wright is board certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Estate Planning and Probate Law.  Abshire is an attorney with the firm.  Nothing contained in this publication should be considered as the rendering of legal advice to any personís specific case, but should be considered general information.