Ways to Prevent and Resolve POA Disputes

When a person makes a Power of Attorney document (POA), they give decision-making authority to another person or people. The people named in the POA document to have decision-making authority are called attorneys. These attorneys are not usually lawyers – in the POA context, the term attorney simply means the person with legal authority.

Unfortunately, when more than one attorney is named to act together, the attorneys may not agree on all decisions. As such, it is helpful if the person making the POA provides a mechanism to resolve disputes. If such mechanisms are not expressly written into the POA document, attorneys may fight and may even end up in court.

Take the following example: a person appoints their current spouse, child 1, and child 2 as their attorneys.

The person could state in the POA document that where all three attorney do not agree on any decision:

• One of the attorneys (for example, the spouse) has veto power and can make the final decision, or
• The decision of the majority rules
• The decision of the majority rules provided that the majority must include  X person (i.e. the spouse)

This last mechanism can be helpful if the person making the POA is in a second marriage or partnership, as it may protect the spouse/partner if the children of the first marriage try to team up against him or her.