The New York Power of Attorney Act is found in the New York General Obligations Act, Article 5, Title 15. Power of Attorney forms are available from many sources, including state government websites, hospitals, doctors' offices, and online legal document providers. All our contracts and legal documents are drafted and updated regularly by licensed lawyers. Save your hard-earned time and money with templates. Use our power of attorney forms to allow someone to make legal and financial decisions for you.
A power of attorney (POA) form is a legal document that allows you to designate someone you trust, called your “agent” or “de facto agent”, to manage your affairs if they are unable to do so. You, the “principal”, specify on the form what types of actions your agent can take on your behalf, such as selling a property, depositing checks or filing taxes. You also decide if your agent can start acting on your behalf immediately or only if you become incapacitated (cannot make your own decisions because of an injury or disability). To give an agent authority to manage your health care decisions if you become incapacitated, use our medical power of attorney forms instead.
In most cases, you'll need to download a state-specific form to make sure your POA meets all of your state's requirements (otherwise it won't be legally binding). If you're still figuring out what kind of power of attorney you need, take a look at one of the generic templates below to get started. This simple power of attorney form allows you to give general or specific powers of attorney to make financial decisions for you, such as operating a business, buying or selling property, accessing accounts and managing investments. Our form may be non-durable (your agent only makes decisions for a limited period of time and ends if you become incapacitated) or durable (your agent makes the decisions if you become incapacitated).
A permanent power of attorney form focuses on how an agent can act on your behalf if you become incapacitated. This form provides additional clauses and details specific areas on which you can give power of attorney in case you are unable to take care of yourself (for example, if you had a stroke or fell into a coma). A medical power of attorney is a type of durable power of attorney that specifically allows an agent to make health care decisions for you if you become incapacitated. These decisions may include what treatment you receive, if your organs are donated, and if you are kept alive on life support.
A limited power of attorney form allows you to grant limited powers of attorney to an agent for a specific task (such as a single real estate transaction) and usually ends when the task is completed. This type of power of attorney “comes into effect in a given situation and ends at the time you specify”. For example, you can authorize someone to pay your taxes while they are deployed in the military overseas. Power of Attorney (POA) refers to the legal authority to act on behalf of another person in certain personal matters and the name of the legal document that grants authority to another person.
One person (the “principal”) chooses another person (the “agent” or “proxy”) to make certain decisions on his behalf and completes the power of attorney documentation with important details about the agent and the actions he or she can take on behalf of the principal. For example, elderly or sick parents may create this document for a child or loved one so that they can conduct their financial affairs, manage estate planning, and make medical decisions if they are unable to do so (for example,. If you become incapacitated without appointing a director, a loved one or family member may need to obtain legal guardianship from a court to help you with your affairs. In this part of the form, you can also nominate a second person to be your agent if the first person does not want or is unable to fulfill its obligations.
The second part of the document allows you to choose what powers you give your agent and decide what decisions he can make for you. At the bottom, you can also include special instructions. For example, you can explain how you want to limit the power you give to your agent. If a power of attorney is not durable, you can also nominate a guardian in advance to handle your affairs in case you become incapacitated.
This step is unnecessary if the form is durable. The final step is to sign and date the POA documentation. Because laws vary in the U. S., the type of POA you need and its format depend on where you live.
Make sure you get a form specific to your state. Yes, you can make a power of attorney yourself as long as you use a form that meets your state's requirements, fill it out yourself and create a legally binding document without hiring an attorney. You can also use our free online step-by-step document generator. Yes, in most cases, a power of attorney must be notarized; check your state's laws to find out if your form needs to be notarized.
You can revoke the document at any time (provided you are legally competent). You must also notify the previous agent and any banks, companies and other institutions affected by the revocation. No, a power of attorney cannot be changed without the consent of the principal; The director must agree to change the powers granted to the agent and then create a new form. No, a power of attorney cannot change a will; A POA gives an agent authority to make legal decisions.
