Legal Question in Elder Law in Oregon

Power of Attorney

My mother's Power of Attorney, authorizing me to handle of business affairs if she should become incapacitated in the future, was signed in 1992. A bank employee told my mother that she must re-do or update her Power of Attorney every 1 1/2 - 2 years because many businesses will not accept a Power of Attorney that is ''not current.'' This employee mis-handled changes to my mother's bank accounts a few weeks ago, verified by a long-standing bank employee. I do not trust her advice. Does my mother need to ''update'' her POA frequently?


Asked on 6/26/03, 10:19 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Susan Burns Law Office of Susan Ford Burns

Re: Power of Attorney

Although in theory, your Mother's power of attorney remains valid, some businesses, banks in particular have a history of refusing to honor valid, but stale, powers of attorney. Members of the Elder Law Section of the Oregon State Bar have worked for a number of years with the bankers association and the legislature to change the law to require banks to honor older powers. Despite our work, there are still problems.

If your mother still has capacity, it would not be a bad idea to revise her power of attorney. This is particularly true if she owns real property because changes in the real estate licensing law two years ago mean that if the power of attorney does not specifically identify the property she owns, the person using the power of attorney to deal with real property could, in some circumstances, be violating the real estate licensing laws!

Because laws change routinely, I usually suggest that clients with estate and disabilty plans consult an attorney every 3-5 years to review what is in place and make changes as may be necessary based on either new laws or changes in the person's life.

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Answered on 6/26/03, 4:24 pm


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