A power of attorney can be defined as a written authorization to act or represent for another individual in issues having to do with private affairs, business and legal concerns. The one who authorizes somebody to act on his behalf is called a donor or grantor whereas the individual to whom the power to act is granted is referred to as a donee or agent. The donee who is approved to work on behalf of someone else must act in a trustworthy way as prescribed by the law.
Usually, a power of attorney is granted whenever an individual is not able to carry out certain things on his own. There are numerous reasons why men and women authorize someone to act on their behalf. Health problems and lack of ability to do specific tasks are a few of the reasons why people allow an individual to act on their behalf. Authority associated with health care or legal matters are some of the basic types of authority given to somebody else.
As granting this kind of an authorization might be risky, people give this kind of an authority to those who are in close relationship with them or people who are very reliable. Giving authority to act on your behalf means that the person will have the capacity to undertake a list of items and make decisions for you. The situation can become a lot more risky in instances of financial and legal matters. For that reason, it is very important to think carefully before giving authority to a person to act on your account.
The authority will become null and void when the grantor of the authority becomes insane or incapacitated or dies. However, this isn’t the case with a durable power of attorney which permits the donee to act on behalf of the grantor, even when the grantor of authority is mentally incapacitated. This kind of an authority can be quite helpful in the event you end up mentally incapacitated so that someone can act and make decisions for your benefit to look after your health and finances.
On the other hand, the primary drawback of giving authority to someone else is that the authority might be abused by the donee or the agent. There are numerous examples of abuse of authority by the donee. That is particularly true in situations connected with financial issues. As a result, it is quite essential to give authority to an individual who is reliable and honest.
Even though there are some chances of improper use of authority by the donee, the grantor can revoke the authority anytime if he suspects misuse of authority by the agent or donee. If used wisely and granted to a trusted individual, a power of attorney will be very useful to perform tasks that you are unable to accomplish by yourself.