How to Change a Durable Power of Attorney
Giving someone power of attorney means that they will have the ability to make decisions in your place if you are unavailable or become incapacitated. You can give someone this power temporarily or you can give what is called durable power of attorney, meaning they have that ability until you revoke it. Life circumstances may change, and you might want or need to change who you have named as your attorney-at-will.
- Decide who you will name your new power of attorney. Be sure that you trust that person to make any and all decisions for you, and that they will have your best interests in mind if they do need to make your decisions. Also make sure they are willing to take on that responsibility.
- Locate a legal statione or somewhere you can purchase power of attorney forms. These can be purchased relatively inexpensively at some office supply stores or other stores that sell legal forms. Ensure that you are buying the correct form for naming durable power of attorney.
- Fill out the form, which will include space to put the new power of attorney’s name and address as well as check boxes that describe what powers you are giving the person. You can select what decisions that person will be able to execute for you. You may want to delegate different decisions to different people.
- Sign the form in front of a notary so that it will be officially recognized. Most states will not accept a form for power of attorney that has not been notarized.
- File the new form with your local county clerk. This may not be necessary, depending on your state of residence but it is still a good idea so that a copy of the form is kept safe in one place. If you lose or damage the copy you have at home, you will be able to refer to the copy you filed.
- Retrieve any copies you had previously filed with the old power of attorney’s name, along with any copies you may have at home or in safekeeping.
- Shred all of the old copies of the previous power of attorney forms. If you do not destroy the copies, it may cause ambiguity of who has power of attorney if the need arises. Shredding them will ensure there is no confusion.