What is a durable power of attorney?
A durable power of attorney is one of the most important legal planning documents you can have. It's put in place while you're alive and it functions while you're alive. It goes out to effect after you have passed away. A durable power of attorney is you're putting in place the number of legal authorities that you have, you are delegating that to a person you select. By delegating those authorities on paper and in writing, you help to avoid any guardianship process that may occur after you've lost your mental capacity. In Florida, we had a significant change to our law in October of 2011. That means that documents that are created after October of 2011 needs to have certain formalities with document execution, how you sign it, and how you initial on certain authorities called superpowers. Again, it's extremely important to make sure you are working with an experienced elder law attorney who knows what those requirements are under the new Florida-specific law.