Connecticut End-of-Life Planning: The Complete Document Checklist

End-of-life planning in Connecticut involves more documents than most people expect. The advance directive covers medical decisions, but it does not address financial authority, funeral arrangements, or the probate requirements that families face after death. Missing even one document creates gaps — and those gaps surface during the worst possible moments.

Here is the complete checklist of documents Connecticut residents need, in the order they should be completed, with the execution requirements for each.

Document 1: The Combined Advance Directive

Connecticut's combined advance directive under C.G.S. § 19a-575a is the foundation of medical planning. It covers four areas in one form:

• Health care representative appointment — who makes medical decisions when you cannot
• Living will — your instructions about life-sustaining treatment
• Conservator designation — your preferred conservator if a court ever appoints one
• Anatomical gift declaration — organ and tissue donation preferences

Execution: Your signature plus two adult witnesses. Your health care representative cannot be a witness. The optional notarized witness affidavit (C.G.S. § 19a-578) is strongly recommended.

Who needs it: Every Connecticut adult, regardless of age or health status.

Document 2: Durable Financial Power of Attorney

The advance directive gives your representative no financial authority. A separate financial POA names an agent to handle bank accounts, investments, real estate, tax filings, and bill payments if you become incapacitated.

Execution: Your signature plus two adult witnesses plus mandatory notarization. The stricter requirements reflect the financial stakes — banks and institutions routinely reject financial POAs that lack notarization, even with valid witness attestations.

Critical distinction: Many Connecticut banks have experienced rejection issues with generic or out-of-state POA forms. Using the Connecticut statutory form or having an attorney draft one reduces the chance of institutional pushback.

Who needs it: Every adult, especially anyone with bank accounts, property, or investment accounts that another person might need to manage.

Document 3: MOLST (If Clinically Appropriate)

A MOLST — Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment — is an active medical order that takes effect immediately. Unlike the advance directive (which activates only after a physician determines incapacity and a qualifying condition), the MOLST tells paramedics and emergency personnel exactly what to do right now.

Covers: Resuscitation status (CPR or DNR), level of medical intervention, antibiotic use, artificial nutrition

Execution: Completed on the state-prescribed form from the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Signed by both a clinician (physician, APRN, or PA) and the patient or their legally authorized representative. No witnesses required.

Who needs it: Individuals with serious illness, advanced frailty, or those approaching end of life. Not appropriate for healthy adults doing general planning — complete the advance directive first and discuss MOLST with your physician when the clinical picture warrants it.

Storage: On the refrigerator at home (standard recommendation for paramedics), on the front of the medical chart in a facility, and traveling with the patient during transport.

Document 4: Disposition of Remains

Under C.G.S. § 45a-318, Connecticut allows you to appoint an agent to handle funeral and burial arrangements and to specify your preferences for cremation, burial, or other disposition.

Execution: Signed by you in the presence of two adult witnesses.

Covers: Appointment of an agent to carry out your wishes, specific funeral directions, cremation vs. burial preferences, religious or cultural ceremonies

Why it matters: Without this document, Connecticut law assigns funeral decision-making authority using a statutory hierarchy. Family disagreements over funeral arrangements are common and can delay disposition during an already stressful time.

Document 5: Last Will and Testament

A will directs how your assets are distributed after death and names an executor to manage the probate process. Without a will, Connecticut's intestacy statutes determine who inherits — and the result may not match your wishes.

Execution: Signed by you in the presence of two witnesses, who also sign. Self-proving affidavit (notarized) recommended to simplify probate.

Connection to advance directive: The will and advance directive serve different phases — the advance directive covers decisions during your life when you cannot speak for yourself, the will covers what happens after death. They should name consistent decision-makers: your health care representative handles medical decisions during life, your executor handles estate administration after death.

The Connecticut-Specific Probate Dimension

After death, Connecticut families face a probate process with strict deadlines and a fee structure that surprises many:

Probate fees are based on the gross estate — including non-probate assets like living trust property, joint accounts, and life insurance. This is unusual nationally and means that families who set up living trusts to "avoid probate" still pay the probate court fee.

For an estate with a gross value of $1.5 million, the statutory probate fee is approximately $4,615 — even if every asset was in a trust.

Key deadlines:

• File will and petition: within 30 days of death
• File estate inventory (Form PC-440): within 2 months of fiduciary appointment
• Record real estate notice: within 2 months
• Creditor claims period: 150 days
• File estate tax return (CT-706 NT or CT-706/709): within 6 months of death

Small estate exception: If the estate's gross probate value is $40,000 or less and includes no solely owned real estate, a simplified small estate affidavit (Form PC-264) can be used instead of full administration.

Hospice Transition Checklist

For families managing a hospice transition in Connecticut, the document priorities shift to immediate needs:

1. Confirm the advance directive is on file with the hospice provider and any hospital involved
2. Complete the MOLST with the attending physician if not already done
3. Verify the health care representative is available and has a copy of all documents
4. Check the financial POA — hospice costs, facility charges, and insurance coordination often require financial authority
5. Review the disposition of remains document — funeral homes need direction quickly after death

The gap between a living will and a MOLST is the most critical one during hospice. A living will may not have activated yet if the statutory trigger conditions are not met. A MOLST provides immediate coverage.

Getting It All Done

The most practical approach is to complete documents 1-4 in a single planning session. Bring two witnesses and visit a notary:

1. Sign the advance directive with your two witnesses
2. Complete the witness affidavit with the notary
3. Sign the financial POA with the same witnesses and notary
4. Sign the disposition of remains with the same witnesses
5. Distribute copies to every relevant person and institution

The Connecticut Advance Directive & Living Will Kit covers every document in this checklist with step-by-step instructions, execution requirements, and a distribution tracker to make sure nothing falls through the cracks.

See more Connecticut guides →