Knowledgeable Estate Lawyer for Power of Attorney Guidance

A Power of Attorney helps others speak on your behalf when you are unable to do so for yourself. Power of Attorney for Personal Care and Power of Attorney for Management of Property can be combined in one document or be in separate documents and can even have different attorneys appointed in each.

Power of Attorney for Management of Property

A power of attorney is simply a document which grants an individual of your choosing the power to act on your behalf. In the case of a power of attorney for management of property, it’s a document which grants an individual power over your financial affairs.

At Yeti Law, our strength is in people and relationships. We have tools in place to help you make the best possible choices when it comes to the appointment of someone to act on your behalf with power of attorney. You will need to appoint someone you trust not to misuse the authority you grant over your financial affairs, but also you need to trust that you’ve appointed someone who can account for the decisions they make with regard to your property. You can also choose to assign power of attorney to more than one person, and you can (if you choose to do so) specify the division of responsibilities for those you assign, giving them the power to act separately, otherwise they would need to agree in order to move forward with any decisions they make in their cooperative role.

Power of Attorney for Personal Care

A power of attorney for personal care authorizes the holder to make personal decisions regarding your health care or housing for you if you should find yourself incapable. Wishes regarding “heroic measures” or life support are often, but not necessarily, set out in a separate document known as a Living Will rather than being included in the power of attorney for personal care document. The true importance of this type of power of attorney assignment is in its power to remove the burden from your loved ones who would otherwise be forced to make life-saving (or life-ending) decisions on your behalf.

Much like with a power of attorney for management of property, it’s vital that you select someone capable and trustworthy with power of attorney. This is where your Legal Sherpa® excels: making that selection may be the single most important decision you make in this process, so it makes sense to seek the help of someone with the experience to help you evaluate your options.

Reviewing your Power of Attorney Selections

In the case of either type of power of attorney, it’s important to remember that much like the rest of the documents which make up your Forward Plan, the appointment of power(s) of attorney shouldn’t be considered a decision to make once and then forgotten until needed. It should be regularly reviewed with a trusted lawyer like your Legal Sherpa®. Relationships can change, and someone you deemed trustworthy or competent may not remain so. Your Legal Sherpa® makes a point of reviewing your Forward Plan documents at regular intervals to ensure that the documents contained therein most accurately capture your wishes at any given time.

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