What is a Power of Attorney and what should it include?

Whether you are a young or an older person, preparing Powers of Attorney and Wills is a necessary evil that everyone not only should do but must do. I stress this because I have seen so many times the mess that is left behind when an individual doesn’t take care of their affairs and a family is left trying to pull the pieces together.

This article is not about your Will, it is about preparing Powers of Attorney and not just using printed forms. This became glaringly obvious to me recently when a man suffered a brain aneurism, and his wife was put in the horrible position of having to decide whether to end all life support, effectively leading to the death of her husband.

Types of Powers of Attorney

The husband should have made that decision himself earlier, and spared his wife the horror and guilt. How do we do that?

There are two kinds of Powers of Attorney (POA) that each of us should sign. The first is for financial matters. This POA allows the designated attorney to conduct all financial affairs, as if he or she were that person. This would help, for example, in a case where a person had two broken arms and couldn’t sign cheques. Even with this POA, if you want restrictions and specifics, you need to have the lawyer you retain include these details in the legal document.

The POA for personal care gets even more tricky. This is where you need to think about all of the potential problems that could occur, and how you want to make decisions on what happens in advance. As an example, here is one kind of clause:

I do not wish to be kept alive for any significant period of time if I am in a vegetative state or I am being kept alive by artificial means, unless there is a reasonable chance of my recovery such that I will no longer be in a vegetative state or kept alive by artificial means. Where there is no reasonable chance of recovery, I direct that I be allowed to die and not be kept alive by medications, artificial means or “heroic measures,” and I direct that any such medications, means or measures that would keep me alive in those circumstances be withheld or withdrawn. I do, however, ask that medication, means and measures be mercifully administered to me or medical or surgical procedures be taken to alleviate suffering even though this may shorten my remaining life.

Gift to loved ones

Or, as an example, here is a list to consider: Health care, nutrition, shelter, clothing and hygiene. At our firm, we typically arrange for either a GP or surgeon to be available to review these issues, and be able to discuss them with our clients as part of the process in order that we might incorporate their desires into their POA.

Taking these steps and clarifying these matters now is the best gift you can give your loved ones. Don’t wait.