Types of powers of attorney

Power of attorney

A power of attorney (РОA) or letter of attorney in common law systems or mandate in civil law systems is an authorization to act on someone else's behalf in a legal or business matter. The person authorizing the oilier to act is the "principal" or "mauler" (of the power), and (he one authorized to act is the "agent" or "attorney-in-fact."

Oral and written powers of attorney

A power of attorney may he oral and whether witnessed or not. will hold up in court, same as if it were in writing, for some purposes, the law requires a power of attorney to be in writing. Many institutions, such as hospitals, banks and. in (he United States, the Internal Revenue Service, require a power of attorney to be in writing before they will honor it. and they will usually keep an original copy for their records. In some countries, like Portugal, it can be also served an Electronic Power of Attorney since December 2007.

Types of powers of attorney

A power of attorney may be "special" or "limited" to one specified act or type of act. or it may be "general", and whatever it defines as its scope is what a court will enforce as being its scope. (It may also be limited as to time.). Under the common law, a power of attorney becomes ineffective if its grantor dies or becomes "incapacitated," meaning unable to grant such a power, because of physical injury or mental illness, for example, unless the grantor (or principal) specifies that the power of attorney will continue to be effective even if the grantor becomes incapacitated (but any such power ends when the grantor dies). This type of power of attorney is called a "durable power of attorney".

In some jurisdictions, a durable power of attorney can also be a "Health Care Power of Attorney", an advance directive which empowers the attorney-in-fact to make hcalth-care decisions for the grantor, up to and including terminating care and "pulling the plug" on machines keeping a critically and terminally ill patient alive. Health care decisions include the power to consent, refuse consent or withdraw consent to any type of medical care, treatment, service or procedure.

People with mental illness may prepare Psychiatric Advance Directives (PADs in some U.S. states) or "Ulysses contracts" as they are called in Canada. Ulysses contracts are powers of attorney that enable a patient to dictate preferences for care before becoming incapacitated by recurring mental illness.

In some U.S. stales and other jurisdictions it is possible to grant a "springing power of attorney":i.e.. a power that only takes effect after the incapacity of the grantor or some other definite future act or circumstance. After such incapacitation the power is identical to a durable power, but cannot be invoked before the incapacity. 1 his may be used to allow a spouse or family member to manage the grantor's affairs in case illness or injury makes the grantor unable to act. while retaining the power for without an attorney-in-fact before the incapacity occurs.

Many standardized forms are available for various kinds of powers of attorney, and many organizations provide them for their clients, customers, patients, employees, or members. In some states statutory power of attorney forms are available. Some individuals have used powers of attorney to unscrupulously waste or steal the assets of vulnerable individuals.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 819