Understanding Power of Attorney- for Beginners!

Life is full of unexpected events. In the event of an anticipated or perhaps, unanticipated significant life change, it’s important to know that our loved ones will be able to manage our affairs with ease.

While Power of Attorney documents allow access for a variety of decision making, they are often used for managing financial affairs. Financial institutions are set up with many security factors used to protect us and our assets, however in the event someone becomes incapacitated this necessary security can make it difficult to execute those plans.

The best way to ensure that your loved ones will be able to act on your behalf, is to establish a Power of Attorney. This is a document that is typically drafted by an attorney and allows a trusted individual to make decisions. There are multiple types of Power of Attorneys (POA), the primary are outlined below.

General POA: This option gives very broad rights to act on someone else’s behalf and ends if someone becomes incapcitated. This would not be a good option for someone living with dementia.
• Durable POA: This option also gives broad rights, and can extend past a declaration of incapacity. This is a suitable option for a person living with dementia.
• Springing POA: This can only be invoked when a person is deemed incapacitated by a physician. Some people are more comfortable with this option.
• Medical POA: This type of POA allows someone to make medical decisions on your behalf.

It’s important to choose a person that you can trust, and feel comfortable discussing your wishes with. You want to choose someone who will respect these choices and act with those in mind.