Money Wise — Ashley Reever
Durable Power
of Attorney
A
task that is easy to ignore, yet
important to consider, is that
of assigning authorization
to direct your affairs to other responsible adults in the event of your
death or incapacitation. This task is
important in that it alleviates stress
from your loved ones as well as gives
you peace of mind that your affairs
are being handled as you wish.
A durable power of attorney is a
simple legal document granting a person or persons whom you designate
the authorization to make decisions
on your behalf should you become unable to make choices for yourself. The
person or persons granted authorization over your affairs is known as an
agent. This person could be a parent,
adult child, or another responsible
adult. The person should be some-
30 Reflections • Mar/Apr 2014
one you believe will carry out your
instructions as you have given them.
You should have a discussion with
your designated agent before signing the durable power of attorney so
your agent is aware of your wishes
and agrees to carry them out. Your
agent should have a signed copy of the
durable power of attorney document.
It is also a good idea to designate a
secondary power of attorney in the
event the first agent is unavailable or
incapacitated. It is not required that
the agent live near you, yet the agent
should be available to interact on your
behalf, possibly for extended periods
of time, should the occasion arise.
There are two types of durable
power of attorney you need to arrange, one for finance and another
for health care.