General Power of Attorney
A General POA is provided by the Donor to an Attorney or Attorneys and gives
them the authority to perform certain tasks on behalf of the Donor. The
authority can be limited to specific tasks such as accessing your bank account,
or it can provide the Attorney(s) with the authority to handle all your affairs
in the event that something unexpected happens to you. A typical example of the
use of a General POA would be when people travelled overseas.
You may wish to consider including an expiry date in this type of POA.
Enduring Power of Attorney
As in the case of a General POA, an Enduring POA gives the Attorney(s) the
authority to perform certain tasks on behalf of the Donor. An Enduring POA can
also be limited to specific situations. Whereas a General POA would cease to be
effective if the Donor loses mental capacity, an Enduring POA, as the name
suggests, would continue to be effective in this event. This is the most
important distinction between the two types of POAs and careful consideration
should be given to which type best suits your particular situation.
A typical example of the use of an Enduring POA is where the Donor is an
elderly person who wishes to have a relative or close friend look after their
affairs in the event that they suffer a stroke or other potentially mentally
debilitating event. As well as the obvious advantage of having your attorney
take care of paying bills and handling your affairs, it can also help avoid the
expense of applications to the Protective jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and
the ongoing cost of administration when dealing with the Court.
Advantages of having a Power of Attorney
Knowing that you have a properly appointed attorney can give you peace of
mind when you:
• go interstate or overseas for an extended period of time;
• suffer poor physical and / or mental health; or
• reach an age when you anticipate you will need greater assistance.
