The Oxford dictionary defines a Power of Attorney as “the authority to act for another person in specified legal or financial matters”. In other words, granting someone a power of attorney empowers that person to manage your financial or legal affairs within defined boundaries. The person authorizing the other to act is the “Principal” and the one authorized to act is the “Agent” or “Attorney In Fact” (AIF).
The Power of Attorney may be verbal—such as requesting someone to sign your name on a document—or it may be done in writing. However, institutions such as banks require a power of attorney to be in writing before they will honor it, and they usually request the original copy. When appointing an AIF, the principal should authorize someone he trusts implicitly. The Power of Attorney must be drafted keeping state law requirements in mind; most people use an attorney for this chore, while others prefer doing it themselves with the aid of a fill-in-the-blank form.
It is crucial to define the extent of the Power of Attorney. The powers might be very restricted, such as granting someone the authority to sell your car or a piece of land while you are overseas. Or, the powers might be very broad, such as the power to buy and sell your property, lend and borrow money in your name, and so forth. The principal must determine if the Power of Attorney will take effect immediately or when something prevents him from acting himself.
Some official procedures should be observed in keeping with the principal’s interests; the Power of Attorney must be signed in front of reliable witnesses, notarized, and recorded in court. In some cases, the Equal Dignity Rule comes into play; according to this rule of law, if you give someone your Power of Attorney to sign the papers to sell your property, and the law requires that signature on the legal document to be notarized, then your Power of Attorney authorizing that agent to sign the deed must be notarized, too.
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Durable Power of Attorney
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A Durable Power of Attorney authorizes the principal’s named representative [attorney-in-fact] to continue to act for him or her after he or she become incapacitated; the legal document must contain the words, “This Power of Attorney shall not be affected by my disability” or “This...
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Medical Power of Attorney
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A Medical Power of Attorney gives specific instructions, prepared in advance, that are intended to direct medical care for an individual if he or she becomes unable to do so in the future. Plainly speaking, a Medical Power of Attorney is made in anticipation of...
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Power of Attorney Forms
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A Power of Attorney is a legal document that evidences the creation of a liaison between two people who are designated as “principal” and “agent”. Through this document, the principal authorizes the agent to act on his or her behalf. A Power of Attorney can...
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Real Estate Power of Attorney
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A real estate Power of Attorney grants legal authority to another party or agent to make financial decisions regarding the principal’s real property, including purchase and sale. In particular, the Power of Attorney provides the authority to negotiate, purchase, sell, convey, transfer, mortgage, preserve, or...
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Specific Power of Attorney
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The Oxford dictionary defines a Power of Attorney as “the authority to act for another person in specified legal or financial matters”. Simply speaking, a Power of Attorney establishes a fiduciary relationship between two individuals – the principal and named representative [attorney-in-fact]. There are, broadly...
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General Power of Attorney
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A general Power of Attorney is used by the principal to allow the agent to handle all of his or her affairs during a period of time when he or she is not capable of doing so, for example, when the principal is traveling out...
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Limited Power of Attorney
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Through a limited Power of Attorney, the “principal” can authorize another person, i.e. “agent”, to carry out specified tasks on his or her behalf for limited time duration or only under certain circumstances. The Power of Attorney is therefore “limited” or tailored to meet the...
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Tax Attorney Jobs
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Tax attorney jobs are available in the fields of business, income, property, estate, and international taxes. Apart from a proper degree in taxation law, experience is also crucial. While a majority of tax attorneys in the US have a private practice, some attorneys work as...
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Last Will And Testament Forms
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Wills are documents that reflect your deep desires to transfer your assets to those you love in the event of your demise. It says how your property must be distributed among your siblings, children, spouse and friends. There may also be instructions on what should...
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Notary Public Jobs
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If you wish to work at home or in any office that could use a notary on duty during the hours you want to work, you might enjoy becoming a notary public. Consider the situation where a normal employee of an institution such as a...