A letter of intent is a non-binding guide that provides future trustees, guardians, and caregivers with the personal details that legal documents often omit, including routines, medical history, preferences, concerns, and long-term goals. Although it is not legally enforceable, it can strongly influence everyday care and decision-making. Kreisher Marshall & Associates, LLC incorporates this document into its life care planning for Pennsylvania families.
What Does a Letter of Intent Actually Do?
Wills and trusts transfer assets and authority, but they do not capture daily routines, medical preferences, triggers, or trusted caregivers. A letter of intent is not legally enforceable in Pennsylvania, yet it can become a practical guide for trustees and future caregivers. Those everyday details make it an important part of long-term planning.
What Belongs in the Letter
Content should cover the practical picture that outsiders cannot reconstruct from records. Most letters address the following:
- Daily routines, sleep patterns, and morning and evening rituals
- Current medications, dosages, prescribing physicians, and past reactions
- Communication style, including nonverbal cues and warning signs
- Foods, textures, and sensory conditions to avoid
- Friendships, activities, faith practices, and sources of comfort
- Educational history, work experience, and future goals
- Names and contact details for doctors, therapists, and longtime aides
Why Does It Carry No Legal Force?
Pennsylvania recognizes a will only when it meets formal execution requirements, and 20 Pa.C.S. § 2502 requires the document to be in writing and signed at the end by the person making it. A letter of intent meets none of those formalities, and it is not meant to.
Keeping it informal is the point. A binding document would need an amendment every time a medication or routine changed, while a letter can be rewritten on a laptop in an afternoon.
Who Should Receive a Copy
Storing the letter in a safe deposit box defeats its purpose. Copies belong with the people who will act on them:
- The named trustee of any special needs trust
- The nominated guardian and any successor guardian
- Siblings or relatives expected to stay involved
- The executor named in the will
- The attorney holding the estate planning file
Tell each recipient where the current version lives. A letter nobody can find during a hospital admission does no good.
Keeping the Letter Current
Review the letter annually and after any major change in health, providers, or living arrangements. Date every version so a caregiver reading it later knows how recent the information is. Many families attach the letter to the trust document itself. Physical proximity keeps the two from drifting apart over the years.
Let Our Firm Build the Rest of the Plan Around Your Letter
A letter of intent works best when the legal documents beneath it are drafted to match, so the trustee has both the instructions and the authority to follow them. Kreisher Marshall & Associates, LLC has served Pennsylvania families for over 50 years and holds Board Certification in elder law from the National Elder Law Foundation. Call (814) 458-6294 or request a planning consultation.