Knowledge about legal representatives is helpful for social workers as they work with residents and families. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Privacy Rule establishes federally protected rights that permit individuals to uses and disclosures of their protected health information. In the event that persons cannot speak for themselves, the legal system has devised categories of designates to represent the person under certain conditions. These include living wills, healthcare proxies, and guardianships. A legal representative can be a person who has authority given by either a person or the courts to be a representative of another. Nursing facilities can assume the role of representative payee for a resident if there are not any family/fiduciary representatives to assume the task. The quarterly care plan meeting is a good time to review all information pertinent to the living will, healthcare proxy, guardianship, and durable power of attorney.