Durable Power of Attorney
Let Our Dallas Estate Planning Lawyer Help You
Power of attorney, in its simplest form, is a legal document that allows a person of your choice to make legal, medical, or financial decisions in your place, as specified by the document. General power of attorney will come to an end if it is revoked, if it has an expiration date, if you pass away, or if you become incapacitated. To ensure that you have someone acting on your behalf even in the event of incapacity, it is important to have a durable power of attorney. Our estate planning attorney in Dallas can help you to understand what document works best for your needs.
A person (known as the principal) may wish to sign durable power of attorney for multiple reasons, such as:
- Old age
- A debilitating disease
- Mental disability or deterioration
- Physical disability
- A potentially dangerous surgery
Remember, durable power of attorney only grants the agent power to make financial and legal decisions, not medical decisions, on behalf of the principal. If you would also like to make medical decisions, you need to sign a medical power of attorney as well.
When Does Durable Power of Attorney Go into Effect?
Generally speaking, it is up to the principal to determine if the power of attorney document goes into effect immediately, or only in the event of mental incapacity. You and your lawyer can work together to outline more specifically what you would like your chosen representative, or agent, to have control over. It can be a limited matter, such as the purchase and sale of a particular property, or provide more general authority over real estate, business, and legal matters. Granting power over medical decisions involves specifically getting medical power of attorney, so if this is something else you are interested in setting up, Kamuche Law Firm, PLLC can help.
Making decisions on behalf of an incapacitated loved one is a trying experience. You deserve to be well-informed. Contact our knowledgeable and compassionate Dallas estate planning attorney at (214) 273-6959 today to get started.