Durable Power of Attorney

A Pennsylvania durable power of attorney lawyer is a person who can help you with all of the necessary documents surrounding your estate planning, not just your durable power of attorney. A Pennsylvania durable power of attorney practitioner will be highly knowledgeable about this area of the law and how you can avoid many of the most common mistakes people make in the estate planning process. A durable power of attorney in Pennsylvania is a great resource to turn to to get all of your various questions answered and to ensure that you understand what is involved as you proceed with putting together this various documentation. A power of attorney is a very important and powerful legal document in the state of Pennsylvania that enables one person to appoint an agent to make decisions for that other party. These decisions can involve financial concerns, such as making account inquiries, closing accounts, investing money, paying bills and selling assets. A power of attorney is crucial because it gives an agent a strong authority to act or a more specified power to act depending on the way that the power of attorney is written. This is why it is so important to retain an attorney who understands this process.

In order to obtain a durable power of attorney in the state of Pennsylvania, the principal must have the appropriate capacity at the time that the POA is signed. The principal has to recognize what they are doing in creating the document at the time it is created. The POA document, in order to be classified as legal and valid in the state of Pennsylvania, must be dated and signed by the principal and as well as being witnessed by two adults. In general, it's a good idea to have your power of attorney notarized despite the fact that this is not a statutory requirement in Pennsylvania law.

The power of attorney also must be signed by the agent because the agent has to accept the fiduciary duty associated with the POA. A general durable power of attorney exists in Pennsylvania and is presumed unless it is specified in another way in that document. A durable power of attorney is effective upon the point of execution and will stay in effect once the principal sustains from some form of incapacity.

This makes a POA document extremely powerful since the agent is still eligible to act in the stead of a person who can’t on their own due to an incapacity. Another type of power of attorney that is also considered durable in the state of Pennsylvania is a springing durable power of attorney. This becomes effective only when a particular event has occurred.

Usually, this event will be named as the principal's incapacity. No matter how you decide to put together a durable power of attorney, it's a good idea to have a lawyer to guide you through the process. Not having an attorney to advise you can mean that there are mistakes made in the document that could compromise the very ability of the agent to act when he or she needs to do so. The support of a lawyer is instrumental in answering many of the most important questions and minimizing the possibility of mistakes in the future.