In the absence of an incapacity plan that makes it clear who you designate to make healthcare decisions during a period of incapacity, a court may need to appoint someone.  At that point, you have no control over who is appointed to make decisions for you, nor any say so over the decisions that are made on your behalf. In addition, if more than one person believes that they have the right to make those decisions for you, a costly and divisive court battle could ensue that leaves your loved ones taking sides.