Make your Free
Indiana Advance Directive

An Indiana Advance Directive is a legal document that lays out your wishes in relation to health care (your "Life-Prolonging Procedures Will Declaration"), such as your refusal of or request for specific medical treatments and procedures, and/or the appointment of a chosen decision maker.

The individual making an Advance Directive is called the "principal," while the individuals or entities receiving permission to carry out the principal's wishes are known as "agents." Suited for residents of Indiana, this Advance Directive is made for use in Lake County, Allen County, Marion County, and in every other part of the state. Any Indiana Advance Directive from Rocket Lawyer can be personalized to address your specific scenario. This official document provides proof of your decisions to healthcare providers, and it will certify that your agent has the authority to act in your interest when you are not able.

It's very easy to outline your medical wishes with a free Indiana Advance Directive template from Rocket Lawyer:

1. Make the document - Answer a few general questions, and we will do the rest
2. Send and share - Look over your wishes with your healthcare agent or get legal help
3. Sign it and make it legal - Optional or not, witnesses and notarization are recommended

This method is often going to be much less expensive than meeting and hiring your average provider. If needed, you may fill out this Advance Directive on behalf of your spouse or another family member, and then have them sign it when ready. Keep in mind that for an Advance Directive to be considered valid, the principal must be an adult who is mentally competent when they sign. In the event that the principal has already been declared legally incompetent, a court-appointed conservatorship generally will be necessary. In such a scenario, it's important for you to speak to a lawyer.

Everyone over 18 years old ought to have an Advance Healthcare Directive (both a Living Will and a Healthcare Power of Attorney) in place. Although it can be tough to acknowledge, a day will likely come when you are no longer able to make your own healthcare decisions. Here are some common situations where you might find it helpful to make or update your Advance Directive:

• You've been diagnosed with a terminal illness
• You plan to be in the hospital for a medical procedure
• You have plans to move into a care facility
• You are getting older or dealing with ongoing health issues

Regardless of whether your Indiana Advance Directive is being made in response to a recent change in your health or as part of a forward-looking plan, witnesses and notarization can often help to protect your agent if their privileges and authority are questioned by a third party. An Advance Directive that contains your medical treatment preferences is not valid during pregnancy in Indiana.

Making an Advance Directive is normally straightforward, but you or your agent(s) could still have questions. The answer will depend on whom you ask, but quite often some attorneys won't even accept requests to review your document if they did not write it. A more favorable approach worth consideration is to request help from the Rocket Lawyer On Call^® network. With a Premium membership, you can request advice from an experienced attorney or get answers to additional questions related to your Advance Directive. As always, we're here to support you.

The fees associated with meeting and hiring a lawyer to draft an Advance Directive can total between $200 and $1,000, depending on where you are located. Rocket Lawyer offers much more than many other Advance Directive template providers that you may come across. As a Rocket Lawyer Premium member, you can get up to a 40% discount when hiring an attorney from our network.

As a Rocket Lawyer member, you can edit it, save it as a Word or PDF document, and print it out. In order to finalize your Advance Directive, it should be signed. You should make sure that your agent(s), care providers, and other impacted parties get a copy of the final document.

The specifications for Advance Directives vary in each state; however, in Indiana, your document needs to be signed by two witnesses if it contains a Living Will. If you are only naming a health care representative, then only one signature is required. As a general principle, your witnesses must not be under the age of 18, and no witness should simultaneously be named as your agent.

Legal references for an Advance Directive in Indiana: IC 16-36