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Why You Need A Durable Power Of Attorney
Who will handle your financial affairs if you become incapacitated and cannot do so yourself? If you have a Durable Power of Attorney, the answer is whoever you selected. If you don't, the answer may be "whoever the court decides."If you are not married, without planning, no one likely will have any pre-existing ability to handle your financial affairs. If you are married, your spouse can probably take care of the basic bill paying and many other financial transactions (since these are in both names). But even then, items such as the sale of an investment or home that require both spouses' signatures or any assets that are in your name alone will be a problem. Banks, brokerage firms, title companies, etc.

will only deal with someone other than the owner if authorized by a court order or under Durable Power of Attorney. Obtaining authority from the court can be an expensive and on-going process, ending with someone other than who you would have wanted handling your money and financial affairs.Creating a Durable Power of Attorney allows you to select who will make your financial decisions if you are unable, and to control the powers given. You can provide broad power, allowing your agent to do whatever you could do, or restrictive the powers given to certain specified financial areas. You can also have the Durable Power of Attorney be "immediate," meaning the person selected has the power to act on your behalf as soon as it is signed; or it can be "springing," which means the Durable Power of Attorney



does not become effective until (and unless) you become incapacitated.In addition to planning for handling your financial affairs if you become incapacitated, you should consider similar incapacity planning for your health care decisions. To find out more, please see our article titled Why You Need an Advanced Health Care Directive at http://www.baconlaw.com/estateplanning/health-care-directive.htm..