Tag Archives: Enduring Power of Attorney

Help! I’m not sure if the Power of Attorney is being abused!

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We’ve talked about powers of attorney and enduring powers of attorney in the past on this blog. In summary, these are instruments allowing a person (the attorney) to be given the authority to act on another person (the principal’s) behalf in relation to financial matters.

The attorney must at all times act in the best interests of the principal. Unfortunately however we can never predict how people would behave, and we can never tell if someone is going to abuse the power of attorney given to them. Sometimes it may not be as clear cut as abuse either – perhaps the actions taken were well-intentioned, but nevertheless not in the best interests of the principal.

If the principal is still able to do so, revoking a power of attorney is simple enough, but if the principal no longer has the capacity to make their own decisions or to revoke

the enduring power of attorney, then a third party must bring an application to the Guardianship Tribunal to review the enduring power of attorney and whether it should be revoked.

This also means that the Guardianship Tribunal will have a make a decision about who should take over this job.

At the end of the day however, keeping all of the above in mind – when putting together an enduring power of attorney, it is extremely important that you choose an attorney that you can trust to do the right thing.

Want to know more about estate and succession planning?

For more information regarding our estates and succession planning services, including will preparation, powers of attorney, enduring guardianship, obtaining probate or letters of administration, and managing deceased estates, please use the quick enquiry form found on this page or call our office on 02 9687 8885. Our experienced estates lawyers look forward to assisting you with your estate and succession planning requirements.

This website is proudly supported by Phang Legal. This article was posted by Kenneth Ti, associate solicitor at Phang Legal.

Related posts:

  1. What is a Power of Attorney?
  2. Enduring Power of Attorney – Some Considerations
  3. What is an Enduring Guardianship?

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Enduring Power of Attorney – Some Considerations

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We have previously discussed what a Power of Attorney is as well as what an Enduring Power of Attorney can do for you. In summary, a Power of Attorney gives the authority for someone to act on your behalf in matters involving your finances. An Enduring Power of Attorney will allow this person to continue acting even if you are incapacitated.

If you are considering executing an Enduring Power of Attorney you should consider the following:

  1. Do you engage in a risky job, or do you travel a lot?
  2. Are you at an advanced age?
  3. Does your family have a history of diseases that might cause you to be incapacitated?
  4. If you consider that an Enduring Power of Attorney is appropriate, when should it commence from? The day it is executed, or at a time when you are incapacitated?
  5. What are your assets? Do they include land or real property?
  6. If you are incapacitated, does your family require immediate access to assets that are held in your name?
  7. If you are incapacitated, does your family need to sell off your land or real property or personal assets?
  8. Who should be your attorney? Your attorney should be someone trustworthy and someone whom you know will act in your best interests.
  9. What kind of restrictions would be appropriate for your attorney?Can they deal with land or real property? Should they only be limited to act on your behalf on a small range of matters?
  10. Should your attorney also use the funds from your assets to provide for other people, such as your family?

The above points are all matters that you should consider when putting together an Enduring

Power of Attorney – however these are non-exhaustive. If you are looking to put together an Enduring Power of Attorney, give us a call to ask us some further questions on what is involved, or send an e-mail to us using the quote form above.

Want to know more about estate and succession planning?

For more information regarding our estates and succession planning services, including will preparation, powers of attorney, enduring guardianship, obtaining probate or letters of administration, and managing deceased estates, please use the quick enquiry form found on this page or call our office on 02 9687 8885. Our experienced estates lawyers look forward to assisting you with your estate and succession planning requirements.

This website is proudly supported by Phang Legal. This article was posted by Kenneth Ti, associate solicitor at Phang Legal.

Related posts:

  1. What is a Power of Attorney?
  2. What is an Enduring Guardianship?
  3. Planning for the future

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Law Week – Elders Law presentation (16 May 2011)

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We are proud to announce that as part of Law Week, Phang Legal will be conducting an Elders Law presentation at the Auburn City

Council Library on 16 May 2011 starting at 3.30pm. This is a free event and all are welcomed.

Topics will include the importance of a legally valid and current will, enduring power of attorney and enduring guardianships.

Our associate solicitor, Ms Natalie Lim will be chairing the presentation which is intended for a largely Chinese-speaking audience. The presentation will be attended by the members of the Auburn Asian Elderly Friendship Group and the Auburn Chinese Elderly Support Group.

Thank you to the Law Society and the Auburn City Council for organising this event and inviting us to present.

If you are interested in attending the Elders Law presentation, please contact Mrs Annetta Kucharska on (02) 9735 1331 or email her at annetta.kucharska@auburn.nsw.gov.au. We look forward to seeing you there.

Want to know more about Wills and Estate Planning?

Ern Phang

For more information regarding our estates and succession planning services, including will preparation, powers of attorney, enduring guardianship, obtaining probate or letters of administration, and managing deceased estates, please use the quick enquiry form found on this page or call our office on 02 9687 8885. Our experienced estates lawyers look forward to assisting you with your Wills, and your estate and succession planning requirements.

This website is proudly supported by Phang Legal. This article was posted by Ern Phang, director of Phang Legal.

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  1. Good Will Week 2010
  2. Reduced Fee for Will Preparation and Review
  3. Recent changes in the law about passing away without a Will

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What is a Power of Attorney?

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Leaving authority with a Power of Attorney

A Power of Attorney is a powerful document that gives a nominated person (the Attorney) the authority to act on your behalf. In New South Wales, this power is limited to only make financial and property transactions on your behalf. This can be anything from operating your bank account to selling your house. The Attorney has to act on your behalf or act in your best interests.

There are a number of reasons why anyone would want to execute a Power of Attorney – however a common reason is that the person granting the authority (the Principal) is unable to be present or cannot participate in the transaction. Another is if the Principal is growing old, and they would like the Attorney to handle their matters for them.

A Power of Attorney can be drawn up to specify exactly what powers the Principal wants to give to the Attorney, or it can be a general power that gives the Attorney the authority to deal with everything. It is important to consider what kind of powers should be granted to the Attorney before executing a Power of Attorney.

A Power of Attorney is usually only valid in whichever state or country it is drafted for. Should you execute a New South Wales Power of Attorney, for example, there is no guarantee that it would be accepted as a valid Power of Attorney in a foreign country, or even in Queensland or Tasmania. In such a situation you should obtain a Power of Attorney from that country or state that the Principal wishes it to operate in.

As a rule of thumb, if you have assets in a particular state or country, should you want someone to take care of those assets, you should execute a Power of Attorney from that state or country.

An ordinary Power of Attorney will stop working if the Principal suffers some sort of mental incapacity. In such circumstances the Principal will have to execute an Enduring Power of Attorney. An Enduring Power of Attorney has different execution requirements and is a powerful document that is commonly executed alongside a Will.

A Power of Attorney does not give the Attorney the right to make decisions affecting the Principal’s health or welfare. In order for the Attorney to be able to make those sorts of decisions, they will be needed to be appointed as an Enduring Guardian. Separate documentation must be prepared and executed in order to enable this.

Want to know more about estate and succession planning?

For more information regarding our estates and succession planning services, including will preparation, powers of attorney, enduring guardianship, obtaining probate or letters of administration, and managing deceased estates, please use the quick enquiry form found on this page or call our office on 02 9687 8885. Our experienced estates lawyers look forward to assisting you with your estate and succession planning requirements.

This website is proudly supported by Phang Legal. This article was posted by Kenneth Ti, associate solicitor at Phang Legal.

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