The Money Is Not Yours! An attorney for property is the person named in a Power of Attorney document (POA), to manage another person’s property. The attorney is not usually a lawyer – the term attorney just means the person with legal authority. When attorneys for property are managing another person’s assets, they must use those assets for the person’s
Continue ReadingAs Attorney for Property, You Can Be Taken to Court for Not Being Transparent An attorney for property is the person named in a Power of Attorney document (POA), to manage another person’s property. The attorney is not usually a lawyer – the term attorney just means the person with legal authority. Attorneys have a Duty to Keep Accounts The
Continue ReadingWays 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
Continue ReadingPrescribed By Law: Duties of Attorneys for Property The duties of an attorney for property are prescribed by law. The law comes from statutes (legislation passed by provincial or federal government), regulations (which accompany legislation and which give further details or expand upon provisions in the legislation); and case law (judge-made law). What’s my point? Most attorneys for property are
Continue ReadingIsn’t a POA Expensive If a Lawyer Drafts It? The quick answer is “no.” And here’s why: Considering that a Power of Attorney (POA) is a legal document affecting a person’s lifetime financial security and personal liberty, people should invest in having it done correctly. How Much A Power of Attorney Document Costs How much of an investment, you ask?
Continue ReadingCan You Force Someone to Get a Capacity Assessment? Family and friends will often notice changes in a person’s mental health or mental capacity, even if the person lacks insight into these changes. Family members and friends often becomes concerned their loved one lacks capacity: to make decisions about finances or personal care to make (or to have made) a
Continue ReadingCapacity and Personal Care Capacity is decision-specific. The critical question to ask is, capacity to do what? Capacity to manage one’s personal care is a specific legal test, described in the Substitute Decisions Act, 1992 in Ontario. To have capacity to make one’s own personal care decisions, one must: understand information that is relevant to making a decision concerning one’s
Continue ReadingWho Should You Appoint as Attorney for Personal Care? An attorney for personal care is a person you appoint in a Power of Attorney document (POA), to make personal care decisions for you if you ever lack capacity to make those decisions yourself. An attorney for personal care is not usually a lawyer. In the POA context, an attorney is
Continue ReadingWhat is a Power of Attorney for Personal Care? A Power of Attorney for personal care (POA) is a document giving decision-making authority over another person’s personal care. The person given the authority is called the attorney. The attorney is not usually a lawyer. In the POA context, the term attorney just means the person with legal authority. Health and
Continue ReadingCapacity Assessments: Capacity is decision-specific. The critical question is always, capacity to do what? A capacity assessor will typically determine whether someone has capacity to do any or all of the following: capacity to make a Power of Attorney (POA) capacity to manage their property capacity to make their own personal care decisions capacity to make a Will Capacity assessments can
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