Living Will Form Overview!

A living will is used to let your attending medical team know what life saving treatments you would like applied or withheld during any period in which you are suffering from a terminal illness or in a permanent state of unconsciousness and unable to communicate your instructions.

While the legal status of living wills is somewhat unclear in Ireland, most prudent solicitors are preparing living wills on behalf of their clients in the expectation that Ireland, like the UK and US, will soon introduce legislation to officially recognise their status and importance. In fact, the Irish Government recently issued a sample living will for the purposes of (amongst other things) soliciting comments from solicitors and medical advisors in relation to the use of living wills in Ireland and the possible format it should take.

Our Living Will form comes in a format which closely resembles those used in the UK and US. It is likely that any form officially approved in Ireland will closely resemble these forms. Also, like most other legal forms, there will be a large amount of discretion given to those preparing these documents in order to ensure that they properly reflect their wishes. As such, the format is unlikely to be in a fixed format and, as a result, and while it is not yet certain, the use of the forms available from IrishWills.ie should be legally enforceable. If not, then they will act as an important guide to your medical team and family who can make decisions with full knowledge of your views on the subject. 

A living will is clearly something that is better to have and not need; that to need and not have!!!

This downloadable form comes complete with step-by-step guidance instructions on how to complete the form.

If you are not completely familiar with Living Wills, we recommend that you purchase our legal kit entitled “Make Your Own Living Will”. This kit will give you a detailed explanation on how living wills work and what you need to consider when making one – and, of course, you also get the sample documents!