Page 31 - Bereavement Guide Book

A lawyer can discuss any potential claims Powers of Attorney
that Powers of Attorney a “dependant may A power of attorney is an instrument by
have under Law, and or with respect to any which a person authorizes another person (the
potential claims or entitlements. An aware- “Attorney”) to act on his or her behalf. It is
ness of such responsibilities and rights can quite common for people to execute a power
help prevent unintended consequences of attorney for personal care and a power of
or surprises upon death. In addition to certain attorney for property, at the same time of
statutory claims, there are other legal limita- drafting a Will.
tions that must be considered when drafting
a Will. Documents such as a marriage or a In a power of attorney for property, the
cohabitation agreement, a separation agree- authority granted to an Attorney may be
ment, or a shareholders agreement (with buy/ general in nature and thus may authorize the
sell provisions, or option agreements) may Attorney to act on the grantor’s behalf in
also affect your Will plan, and thus it is conducting his or her financial affairs. Alter-
important that such information be shared natively, the power of attorney may be quite
with yourrepresentative(s) when designing an narrow, authorizing the attorney to perform
estate plan.
specific acts, such as the sale of specific as-
In addition to determining how your estate sets (house, car, etc.) the conduct of banking,
or the transfer of securities etc.
will be distributed, a lawyer can speak to you
about choosing Estate Trustee, and the con- Similarly, in a power of attorney for personal
siderations involved in selecting an appropri- care, the authority granted to an attorney is
ate person (or trust company) to administer the authority to make, on his or her behalf,
your estate. The potential responsibility and decisions concerning the grantor’s personal
work involved in being an Estate Trustee can care, such as health care, shelter, nutrition,
be significant, and thus appointing someone clothing, hygiene and safety.
with the financial acumen and willingness to While you can appoint more than one attor-
take on this responsibility ney, it is important to decide whether they
is a must. Often times, people assume they are to act “jointly” or “jointly and severally”.
must appoint a relative or child to act as an Depending upon where your attorney resides,
Estate Trustee because it would be ”an hon- such as distinction may have significant prac-
or”. While it may be considered “an honor” tical considerations.
for some, the primary considerations should
be choosing someone with the patience, abil-
ity and willingness to carry out this respon-
sibility.

Peace and Tranquility Funeral Home | Page 31