Adults can create estate plans that address a variety of risk factors. Many people focus on death and the need to protect their families when they can no longer provide direct support. They appoint guardians for their children in a will and distribute property either...
Complex Legal Challenges
Durable Power of Attorney
Six Essential Estate Planning Documents You Should Have
In most Florida estate plans, there are six essential documents which you should have in place. These include the following: Last Will and Testament. This document allows you to appoint a Personal Representative to oversee your probate estate and to designate your...
Affidavit of Agent under a Durable Power of Attorney
A Durable Power of Attorney (“DPOA”) names you as agent or attorney-in-fact to act for the person who executed the DPOA (the “Principal”). You go into a bank intending to transact some business on behalf of the Principal and when you present the DPOA, you are told...
What makes a Durable Power of Attorney “Durable?”
In our estate planning practice, we regularly have clients sign a document titled “Durable Power of Attorney.” So, what is a Durable Power of Attorney? First and foremost, as a Power of Attorney, it is a legal instrument which a person, the principal, can sign...
Can a nonresident of Florida serve as agent under a Florida Durable Power of Attorney?
When working with clients, we are often asked who can serve as agent under their Durable Power of Attorney. Often the reason for the question is that they want to know if a nonresident of Florida can be designated. The short answer is that a nonresident person can be...
When does a Durable Power of Attorney go into effect in Florida?
A Durable Power of Attorney (“DPOA”) is a written legal instrument signed by one person, known as a principal, appointing another person, known as an agent, to act on the principal’s behalf. Most such DPOAs enumerate specific powers which the agent may exercise. For...
Is a Person Serving as Agent Under a Durable Power of Attorney Entitled to Compensation?
A Durable Power of Attorney (“DPOA”) is a legal instrument in which a principal can designate a person as agent to act for the principal. Most DPOAs give the agent a “laundry list” of powers covering a wide-range of financial, legal, and personal matters. These could...