Understand The Benefits And Limitations Of A Financial Or Property Power Of Attorney
An Illinois Statutory Short Form Property Power of Attorney is the document by which you may name a person you trust to handle your financial affairs. The document provides initially for the broadest powers to be granted to your named agent listing the most common and then the document provides an opportunity to restrict or limit those powers and an also an opportunity to specify a particular additional power. The document provides for you to specify that it is immediately effective although you reserve the right to make those decisions so long as you are able or you may indicate that the POA is only effective when your physician verifies that you are not able to make these decisions yourself. Obviously, if you select the latter effective date, your agent would have to obtain verification from your physician to be able to act as your agent.
The laws governing property power of attorneys in Illinois are not all that I believe they should be. For example, there is no ability to require an agent acting under a Power of Attorney to give an accounting of the uses of the principal’s money by the agent to members of the family. The agent can be sued for malfeasance or breach of his or her fiduciary duty under the law but the family often does not learn of malfeasance until long after the money is gone and the principal is deceased. The law does provide the ability to remove an agent for malfeasance but again you have to know about it and it takes court action to do so.
This document, like the Illinois Healthcare Power of Attorney as its title suggests, is a form that the state of Illinois has set out in its statutes. The statutory form contains the text of the document and instructions which make it a little difficult to read. Attorney Cellucci will walk you through the document and help you complete it in a way that best suits your needs.
Protect Your Right To Choose
Contact The Law Office of Marsha H. Cellucci at 630-912-5058 to learn more about Illinois’ statutory short form power of attorney for property and how it may be appropriate for your circumstances. Schedule your initial consultation at attorney Cellucci’s Naperville office today.