Power of Attorney is a legal term
that is often misunderstood or misconstrued. Simply put, a power of attorney is
a legal document, or instrument, that conveys authority to a person to act in
someone's behalf with the same legal authorization as if they were that person.
This instrument may be limited to specific situations or it may encompass all
legal decisions and ramifications available to an individual.
Power of attorney may be sought by an individual looking for another person to
act in their best interests, or in some cases the reverse may occur, where a
person seeks power of attorney over another person's affairs. The various
situations in which someone may seek or obtain power of attorney can include
the unfortunate natural problems with aging and memory loss. As some people
age, their mental clarity can become muddled and create problems for themselves
and others. In these cases, it can be in the person's best interest for another
person to act on their behalf.
Despite the common theme in movies of some unscrupulous person trying to gain
control over an enfeebled elderly person, the reality is that often it is the
older individual in question who seeks out someone whom they trust to act with
power of attorney. The decision to do this is not an easy one and usually comes
only as a last resort. However, this is not the only type of power of attorney
that exists. Power of attorney falls into two categories, those being general
power of attorney and specific power of attorney. General power of attorney is
usually for an undetermined amount of time and the scope of the decisions are
usually not defined. This is quite different from specific power of attorney,
where the authorization instrument only relates to a specific time frame or
sometimes even a specific transaction.
An example of specific power of attorney could be if an individual is traveling
outside of the country, but is involved in a financial transaction where their
physical presence is required. The person could authorize another person to act
on their behalf, which is legally binding, but the scope could be limited to
even just the final closing of the deal. Obviously, these types of situations
are not extensive and the power of attorney would expire after a set period of
time or as soon as the financial transaction had been completed.
The reasons for limiting power of attorney are numerous. When a person has
general power of attorney, it means that they can often borrow money, lend
money, collect financial payments and file tax returns in another person's
name.
In all cases, seek authorized legal representation before making any decisions,
and the information contained in this article is intended as a guide and should
not be considered legal advice or representation.
For
further reading and resources on Probate Law visit Public
Attorney Adrian Philip Thomas, Florida.