Types of Georgia Powers of Attorney to Consider

Powers of attorney (POAs) are an extremely important component of nearly all estate plans in Gwinnett County and throughout Georgia. Powers of attorney are legal documents through which one person can give another person the ability to make legal decisions for them on their behalf. It is important to know that there are different types of powers of attorney, and you will likely need more than one in your estate plan. Our Georgia estate planning lawyers routinely work with Norcross residents on POAs and many other parts of their estate plans, and we can provide you with more information about how powers of attorney work and what specific documents you will need based on your circumstances and wishes.

Understanding the Terminology of Powers of Attorney

First, it is important to understand some of the key terminology used in discussing powers of attorney in Georgia. The party who creates a power of attorney is known as the “principal,” and the person to whom the principal gives legal authority is known as the “agent” or sometimes as the “attorney-in-fact.”

Powers of attorney can be created as “springing,” which means they only take effect upon the principal’s incapacity. Other powers of attorney can take effect immediately. In addition, many powers of attorney are created as “durable,” which means that they last or remain in effect beyond the principal’s incapacity.

Health Care Agent in Your Georgia Advance Directive 

One type of power of attorney that you will want to include in your estate plan is part of the Georgia Advance Directive for Health Care that you can create with your estate planning lawyer. This document includes several advance directives, including a document for a “health care agent.” The person you name as a health care agent is, in effect, your agent in a health care power of attorney. By naming a health care agent, you are giving this person permission to make medical decisions on your behalf solely in the event of your own incapacity.

Durable Financial Power of Attorney

Another crucial type of power of attorney is a durable financial power of attorney. This type of power of attorney document allows you to name an agent who can make financial decisions on your behalf and handle financial matters on your behalf, such as paying your bills. You may want to create this type of power of attorney as a “springing” document that takes effect upon your incapacity, or you may want to create it as a document that takes immediate effect so that your agent can begin assisting you with financial matters.  The Georgia Power of Attorney, by default, allows the agent to take action immediately unless you provide Special Instructions in the document to make the powers activate or “spring” upon incapacity.

Contact a Norcross Estate Planning Attorney for Assistance with Your Powers of Attorney

Creating powers of attorney can allow a person to ensure that their health care and financial decisions will be handled by a person they trust in the event that they become incapacitated. As we noted above, a financial power of attorney can also allow someone you trust to assist you with various financial matters, which can be especially helpful for older adults who can use this type of assistance. To find out more about creating powers of attorney for health care and finances, you should reach out to an experienced Norcross estate planning lawyer at Bowman Law Firm. We can discuss your POA and Georgia estate planning needs, and we can begin working with you today on the documents you need. Contact us for assistance.

Source:

law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-53/