MAKE YOUR FREE South Dakota Advance Directive
What is a South Dakota Advance Directive?
The person making an Advance Directive is called the "principal," while the people or organizations gaining authority to carry out the principal's wishes are known as "agents." Designed for residents of South Dakota, this Advance Directive is made for use in Pennington County, Lincoln County, Minnehaha County, and in all other regions across the state. Each South Dakota Advance Directive from Rocket Lawyer can be fully personalized for your unique situation. This essential legal document will provide proof of your decisions to healthcare facilities, and it will confirm that your representative has been given the authority to make choices for you when you are not able.
When to use a South Dakota Advance Directive:
- You're making sure your loved ones aren't put in the position of making important end-of-life healthcare decisions for you.
- You're about to draft a complete estate plan, and want to make sure life-sustaining treatments are covered.
Sample South Dakota Advance Directive
The terms in your document will update based on the information you provide
South Dakota Advance Directive FAQs
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How do I make an Advance Health Care Directive in South Dakota?
It's very easy to document your medical wishes using a free South Dakota Advance Directive template from Rocket Lawyer:
- Make the document - Answer a few basic questions, and we will do the rest
- Send and share it - Go over your wishes with your healthcare agent or ask a lawyer
- Sign it - Mandatory or not, witnesses and notarization are ideal
This route, in many cases, would be notably less expensive and less time-consuming than working with your average provider. If necessary, you may start this Advance Directive on behalf of an elderly parent, a spouse, or another family member, and then help them sign when ready. Please remember that for this document to be considered legally valid, the principal must be a mentally competent adult when they sign. If the principal is already incapacitated and unable to make their own decisions, a court-appointed conservatorship might be necessary. When dealing with this scenario, it is a good idea to speak to an attorney .
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Why should I have an Advance Directive?
Every adult should have an Advance Healthcare Directive (both a Living Will and a Healthcare Power of Attorney). Even though it may be unpleasant to think about, there will likely come a time when you can no longer make your own medical decisions. Here are a few typical circumstances in which you may find it helpful to make or update your Advance Directive:
- You are managing a terminal illness
- You expect to be hospitalized for surgery
- You intend to move into a residential care facility
- You are aging or have declining health
Regardless of whether your South Dakota Advance Directive is being drafted as part of a forward-looking plan or made as a result of a recent change in your health, notarization and witnesses can often help to protect your document if someone disputes its validity. Advance Directives are not valid during pregnancy in South Dakota.
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Should I work with a lawyer to review my Advance Directive in South Dakota?
Making an Advance Directive is generally simple to do, but you or your agent(s) might still have questions. Having an attorney double-check your document may take a long time if you attempt to do it on your own. Another approach could be through the Rocket Lawyer On Call® network of attorneys. Rocket Lawyer members can ask for feedback from an experienced lawyer or send other questions. As always, you can live confidently knowing that Rocket Lawyer is by your side.
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How much would I normally have to pay to make an Advance Directive in South Dakota?
The cost of finding and hiring a legal provider to make an Advance Directive could add up to between $200 and $1,000, depending on where you are. Different from many other sites that you may come across, Rocket Lawyer offers much more than an Advance Directive template. If you ever require help from a lawyer, your Premium membership offers up to a 40% discount when you hire an Rocket Lawyer network attorney.
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Is anything else required once I have written my South Dakota Advance Directive?
When you're done creating your document on Rocket Lawyer, you will be able to view it wherever and whenever you choose. With a Rocket Lawyer membership, you can make edits, save it in PDF format or as a Word file, or sign it. Your South Dakota Advance Directive has its own set of recommended actions to take once the document is completed. Your agent(s), care providers, and other impacted parties should receive a copy of your fully executed document.
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Does an Advance Directive need to be notarized or witnessed in South Dakota?
The requirements governing Advance Directives vary in each state; however, in South Dakota, your Advance Directive usually needs to be signed by two witnesses. If you are only making a Healthcare Power of Attorney and not a Living Will as part of your Advance Directive, then you may get it notarized in lieu of having two witnesses. Witnesses to your Advance Directive should not include your healthcare provider, their employees, or any relative, heir, or other beneficiary, including your spouse or adopted children. As a general rule, your witnesses should be 18 years old or older, and none of them should also be named as your healthcare agent.