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Life-prolonging treatment
Whether you accept or refuse aggressive measures like CPR or ventilator support if recovery is not expected.
A Living Will, also called an Advance Medical Directive, lets you record your medical treatment preferences in advance. Recognised by the Supreme Court of India under Common Cause v Union of India (2018) and simplified under the 2023 SC order. Expert-drafted, attestation by a Notary or Gazetted Officer included.
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A 15-minute consultation with a senior estate planning expert. We will walk you through what a Living Will can specify and answer any questions about the 2023 Supreme Court procedure.
Complete Advance Medical Directive service. Drafted, witnessed, and attested per the 2023 Supreme Court simplified procedure. Ready to share with your hospital, family, and treating doctor.
A Living Will, formally called an Advance Medical Directive (AMD), is a written document where you record the medical treatment you do or do not want, in case a future illness leaves you unable to communicate that decision yourself.
It is not a regular Will. A regular Will distributes your assets after you pass away. A Living Will works for you while you are still alive but medically incapacitated.
The Supreme Court of India formally recognised the Living Will as a constitutionally valid document in March 2018, in Common Cause v Union of India. The court ruled that the right to die with dignity is part of Article 21 (the right to life).
In January 2023, the Supreme Court simplified the original procedure. The document now needs attestation only before a Notary Public or Gazetted Officer. The earlier Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) requirement was removed.
Common Cause v Union of India, (2018) 5 SCC 1, decided 9 March 2018, recognised the Advance Medical Directive as a valid exercise of the right to die with dignity under Article 21. The Supreme Court order dated 24 January 2023 modified the 2018 guidelines and replaced the JMFC attestation requirement with attestation before a Notary Public or Gazetted Officer.
Sources: Common Cause v Union of India (2018) 5 SCC 1. Supreme Court order dated 24 January 2023 in MA 1699 of 2019.
Our senior estate planning experts will walk you through what the directive can specify, in plain language and on your timeline. No commitment required.
Both are legal documents. Both involve a Notary. The similarity ends there.
Most families benefit from having both documents. AasaanWill offers Regular Wills under our other plans starting at ₹4,999.
Your directive is as specific or as general as you choose. Common categories include the following.
Whether you accept or refuse aggressive measures like CPR or ventilator support if recovery is not expected.
Your wishes about feeding tubes and intravenous nutrition when you can no longer eat or drink.
Whether you want medical staff to attempt CPR in case of cardiac arrest, especially in a terminal condition.
Your preferences on pain relief priorities versus alertness when treatment options are limited.
The person you nominate to interpret your directive if a situation arises that the document does not cover.
Whether you wish to donate organs after death and any conditions attached to that decision.
Any faith-related or personal values you want the treating team to honour, such as last rites or specific rituals.
Your preference between hospital care, hospice, or at-home care if active medical treatment is withdrawn.
Any adult of sound mind can create a Living Will in India.
The Supreme Court has set out who can validly create an Advance Medical Directive. The core criteria are simple, but they are essential because the document carries serious medical and legal weight.
If you are uncertain about whether the eligibility applies to your situation, our senior estate planning expert can review the details with you on the consultation call before any drafting begins.
This is the part many still get wrong. The procedure was simplified in January 2023, but many resources continue to publish the older JMFC requirement.
The original Common Cause judgment (2018) required the Living Will to be signed before a Judicial Magistrate First Class. This created a practical bottleneck and almost no Living Wills were being executed. By the Supreme Court order dated 24 January 2023, this requirement was modified. The document now needs attestation only before a Notary Public or a Gazetted Officer.
Source: Supreme Court order dated 24 January 2023 in MA 1699 of 2019 (Common Cause v Union of India).
Both witnesses must be independent. They cannot be your beneficiaries or treating doctor.
The witnesses confirm that you signed voluntarily and were of sound mind at the time.
The attesting authority verifies your signature and the witness signatures. JMFC is no longer required.
You provide copies to your family doctor, hospital records, family members, and a trusted custodian.
Some hospitals and practitioners still apply the older JMFC rule. We follow the current Supreme Court directive. Talk to us before you commit to any service.
Drafting a Living Will is one thing. The state-level activation infrastructure (Medical Boards and District-level committees) is rolling out at different paces across India.
Note: Drafting a Living Will is valuable even in states without active Medical Board infrastructure. The document carries legal weight under the Supreme Court directive and most major hospitals will honour it when presented.
India does not yet have a national registry for Living Wills. Smart distribution to the right parties is what makes the document usable in a real medical situation.
The doctor is most likely to be consulted first if your condition changes. Discuss the directive in advance.
Submit a copy to the hospital where you receive regular care so it sits on your file in advance.
Close family who may be called on to make decisions or to communicate your wishes to the medical team.
The person you nominated in the directive itself. They need the document and your written instructions.
A Living Will is not self-executing. The Supreme Court has prescribed a two-board process to be followed before the directive is acted upon.
Step one: Primary Medical Board.
When a treating doctor concludes that further treatment will not benefit the patient, the case goes to the Primary Medical Board at the hospital. This board, made up of senior doctors from relevant specialities, reviews the patient's condition and determines whether the criteria set out in the directive apply.
Step two: Secondary Medical Board.
If the Primary Board recommends acting on the directive, the case escalates to a Secondary Medical Board, typically including a doctor nominated by the District Collector. This is the additional safeguard against premature withdrawal of treatment.
Once both boards agree, the family is informed, and the directive is implemented by the treating team.
A senior estate planning expert walks you through what a directive can specify, no rush, no judgement.
Your preferences are translated into a properly worded Advance Medical Directive with all required clauses.
You read the draft, raise any concerns, and one revision round is included before finalisation.
Notary or Gazetted Officer attestation is arranged. You receive originals.
Share your details and a senior estate planning expert will reach out within 24 hours for the drafting consultation, at your pace.
A Living Will is not a one-time decision frozen in place.
You can update or revoke your Advance Medical Directive at any point before it is activated. People often revisit theirs after a major life change such as a new medical diagnosis, retirement, the loss of a spouse, or a change in religious or personal views.
Revocation requires the same formalities as the original. You need to draft a written revocation, sign it before witnesses, and have it attested. The earlier directive should then be physically destroyed and the revocation distributed to everyone who held a copy.
An update follows the same path. Rather than amending the original document, the safer practice is to draft a fresh directive that supersedes the older one.
Many online templates still require JMFC attestation. The 2023 SC order replaced that with Notary or Gazetted Officer attestation. Skip the JMFC step.
Beneficiaries, treating doctors, and close family members who stand to gain cannot serve as witnesses. Use two independent persons.
"Do not keep me alive on machines" is not specific enough. The directive should reference specific interventions (ventilator, feeding tube, CPR, dialysis).
Without a named surrogate, the family is left to interpret your wishes by committee. A clearly named surrogate prevents disputes at the worst time.
A document nobody knows exists cannot be acted upon. Share copies with your family doctor, hospital, and trusted family.
A directive drafted before a major medical event may not address the new reality. Revisit and update if your situation changes.
Composite scenarios where the Living Will arrangement gives the family certainty during a medical crisis. Names and facts are anonymised.
A retired professional in their seventies who has discussed end-of-life wishes with their family and wants those wishes recorded in a legally recognised document. A living Will executed under the framework laid down by the Supreme Court. Two witnesses sign in the testator's presence and a Notary or Gazetted Officer attests.
A working professional in their forties who wants to relieve their family of the burden of end-of-life medical decisions. The Living Will is drafted in plain English, with specific instructions about life-sustaining treatment, ventilation, and resuscitation. The document sits alongside the testator's Property Will and is kept accessible to the named family contact and treating physician.
A patient with a chronic condition who wants to record preferences before any future incapacity. The Living Will names a primary surrogate and an alternate surrogate, with specific instructions about types of treatment the testator does and does not want. As per the supreme court guidelines, so the family knows what happens when the directive is invoked.
Yes. The Supreme Court of India recognised the Living Will as constitutionally valid in Common Cause v Union of India (2018). The procedure was simplified by a Supreme Court order dated 24 January 2023. Notary or Gazetted Officer attestation is now sufficient. JMFC is no longer required.
Speak to a senior estate planning expert about your Living Will. We will explain what the directive can specify, walk through the 2023 Supreme Court procedure, and answer any questions about your situation. No commitment until you are ready.
15-minute discovery call. Senior estate planning counsel. No obligation.
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