PA Amends Powers of Attorney Law 2014 – 2015

During 2014 an amendment to the PA law concerning Financial Powers of Attorney (POA) was signed into law.  This new law makes several changes:

• Execution Procedure: All newly prepared POAs now need to be notarized and witnessed by two individuals. As my clients know, my office has always had any POAs prepared by Giordano Law notarized and witnessed by two individuals.
• Requirements: The principal can now include additional requirements in the document, which the form produced by Giordano Law has always included, regarding recordkeeping by the agent.
• Third Party Reliance: Third parties such as banks must now accept the POA statutory form and cannot insist that their own different form be used.
• Gifts and Changes: In addition, certain powers such as making gifts, making changes to life insurance policies, disclaiming property, changing a beneficiary designation, and certain others must now be specifically included in the financial Power(s) of Attorney.
• Notice and Acknowledgement Language: As of January 1, 2015, the language of the required “Notice” and the “Acknowledgement of Agent” sections has been changed.

Powers of attorney are essential documents to prepare ahead. If you were to become incapacitated, either physically or mentally, your agent can immediately handle your affairs without having to waste time and money asking the court to appoint a guardian.

If you would like to learn more about Financial Power(s) of Attorney and/or how this amended law might affect you, feel free to contact us.