These principles were developed by a multidisciplinary group of experts convened
in 2017 by the American Bar Association Commission on Law and Aging in
collaboration with the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, the
University of California at San Francisco Medical Center and the UCSF/UC
Hastings Consortium on Law, Science & Health Policy, with funding from The
John A. Hartford Foundation and additional support from the Borchard
Foundation Center on Law and Aging.

The principles provide a conceptual framework and guideline specifically for
lawyers and health care professionals to align the practice of advance care planning
in legal offices with the realities of implementation in health settings. These are
informed by current evidence of what makes advance care planning effective in
healthcare settings as summarized in the Institute of Medicine’s report on Dying in
America and a growing body of related literature. Legal and health professional
organizations are encouraged to endorse these principles.