1. CAPACITY & DECISION MAKING
working with aging clients

2. DEFINING Capacity Capacity is defined as an individual’s ability to:
Understand information
Understand options about their situation
Make choices and decisions
Appreciate the consequences of choices and decisions
There is no set ‘test’ that determines capacity.

3. Capacity can vary
Someone who is capable of one thing, may not be capable of another.
Capacity is dependent on a person’s situation:
Context and situation specific
Domain and task specific
Laws related to capacity differ from province to province, territory to territory.

4. who might become ‘incapable’
Capacity challenges most commonly affect these groups of people:
Individuals with intellectual disabilities
Individuals with psychiatric disorders
Individuals who have had a brain injury
Individuals with neuro-degenerative disorders
Individuals who are aging

5. CAPACITY AND AGING
Capacity problems can be part of aging, however, capacity is not determined by age.
Not everyone who is older is going to be incapable of managing their financial affairs or be incapable of many other day-to-day things.
A person who has never been involved in financial or investing matters – for example, a surviving spouse – is not necessarily incapable.
Some people may use nodding, agreeing, and other social graces to mask a capacity issue.

6. The Role of The advisor
Financial advisors can play a critical role in protecting the financial well-being of clients.
It’s important to interact with aging clients free of stereotypes, while being fully informed about the most common issues that can present in the later stages of life and how to spot them.
Family members may not notice the diminished capacity of a loved one in financial matters if they never discussed complex topics such as finances.
Clients may not have self-awareness of their difficulty.
The most important way to determine whether someone is capable of making a decision is to talk to them, interview, probe, verify and listen.

7. Client interactions
Set up client meetings to optimize the environment so older clients can participate to the best of their ability:
Comfortable seating, lighting and hearing
Best time of day for older clients to meet and think clearly
Be mindful of effects of medication
Meeting location; more comfortable in their home?
People’s ability to understand and communicate clearly can be affected by poor hearing, fatigue, medications, illness, stress and more. Allow ample time and comforts.

8. CLIENT INTERACTIONS
Slow down pace of speech, emphasizing points with facial and body language
Watch and listen how clients respond to questions
Look beyond the social graces of nods and agreement
Note how they respond to probing and follow up
Check what they understood, really took in
Go back and verify they understood a discussed situation
Allow ample or extra time for complex discussions

9. What to watch for Signs and red flags of possible diminished capacity:
Memory problems
Easily confused
Disorganized
Trouble following the conversation
Just nodding and providing vague responses
Decisions seem rash, out of character, or not in keeping with previous decision-making style

10. What advisors can do Be observant
Stay vigilant and informed about your clients’ situations
Remain aware of your firm’s procedures
Seek help from your firm if you see red flags
Learning about changing capacity, how it may affect client-advisor meetings and what can be done to handle any challenges, will help protect the financial well-being of clients and further strengthen the client advisor relationship.