Upon reaching the age of 18, many children will leave home and may head off to college. This legal milestone bestows upon them the rights and responsibilities of adulthood, including the ability to vote, build credit, legally execute binding contracts, and make autonomous medical decisions. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) further ensures that medical providers cannot disclose an adult’s medical information without explicit authorization to safeguard patient confidentiality.

While adulthood symbolizes newfound independence for your children, it also imposes significant restrictions on your rights as their parent. Importantly, parents no longer have the legal authority to make medical decisions or receive medical information on behalf of their now-adult child, even in emergencies, unless they possess a health care power of attorney (“HCPOA”).

An HCPOA is a crucial legal instrument that empowers an adult to designate a trusted individual to make medical decisions on their behalf if they become incapacitated. An HCPOA does not infringe on privacy rights, nor does it grant the designated agent unrestricted access to all medical information or absolute authority over medical decisions. Instead, an HCPOA ensures that the individual’s medical preferences are respected and their needs are met when they cannot advocate for themselves. The HCPOA allows for the inclusion of specific instructions and limitations tailored to the individual’s wishes.

Including a HIPAA release in the HCPOA permits medical professionals to share pertinent medical information with the agent during an emergency. This dual approach of an HCPOA and HIPAA release provides a comprehensive legal framework to protect an individual’s medical autonomy while ensuring trusted persons can act on their behalf when necessary.

It is prudent for all adults, especially young adults, to consider executing an HCPOA to safeguard their medical interests and ensure their healthcare wishes are honored.  If your child has attained the age of 18 but does not have an HCPOA in place, in the instance of a medical emergency, a petition to the Court to be appointed as your child’s legal guardian may be required.  This can be a costly and protracted process that is otherwise avoidable if an HCPOA is executed.

If your child is interested in talking to someone about drafting their HCPOA, please contact Connie Schonlau at cschonlau@hn-colaw.com or 720-390-3457.  We look forward to helping your family with this important issue.

On January 1, 2024, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) enacted a new Federal law that requires compliance by closely held entities in 2024: the Corporate Transparency Act.  The Act requires all foreign and domestic corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, and other entities created through a government filing (subject to certain exemptions), to identify and provide personal information for key personnel—including any individual who owns a 25% or greater ownership interest in, or who exercises substantial control over, the company — by filing a beneficial ownership information (“BOI”) report with FinCEN.  Existing companies have until January 1, 2025, to file an initial BOI report with FinCEN, but new companies must report within 90 days of formation (and starting in 2025, new companies will have only 30 days to report). Moreover, any changes in previously reported beneficial ownership information must be reported within 30 days of the change.

The Act provides an exemption from filing a BOI report for various entities including governmental authorities, money service businesses, accounting firms, public utilities firms, insurance companies, investment companies, 501(c) tax-exempt entities, large operating companies that have more than twenty full time employees in the U.S., and inactive entities. To be considered inactive, an entity must meet the following six requirements: (1) the entity was in existence on or before January 1, 2020; (2) the entity is not engaged in active business; (3) the entity is not owned by someone who is not a U.S. resident or citizen; (4) the entity has not experienced a change in ownership in the preceding 12-month period; (5) the entity has not sent or received any funds larger than $1,000.00 in the preceding 12-month period; and (6) the entity does not hold any assets, whether in the U.S. or abroad, including any ownership interest in any corporation, LLC, or other similar entity.

As a result of a recent federal Court case, National Small Business United, d/b/a, the National Small Business Association, et al. v. Yellen et al., many questions have arisen regarding the Act. In National Small Business United, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama ruled that the Act was unconstitutional because the legislation cannot be justified as an exercise of Congress’ enumerated powers. The Court enjoined the government from applying the Act to the plaintiffs in the case specifically, but because no national injunction is in effect, parties not involved in this specific litigation should continue to comply with the Act while the case proceeds through the legal system.

We are available to advise you regarding your entity’s reporting obligations, and to assist with the required reporting. If you are the owner of a closely held entity, please contact Laura Ross at (720) 974-9423 or lross@hn-colaw.com to schedule a time to discuss your new compliance obligations.

In April 2022, Mychael Dave stopped by CU Denver to present to students seeking a Masters in Couple and Family Therapy. He spoke on Dissolution of Marriage and Allocation of Parental Rights concepts, the development of safety plans for spouses at risk of domestic violence during the divorce process, and concerns impacting therapists when they are subpoenaed to testify in court.