Power of Attorney
Also called: POA, general power of attorney
Updated June 7, 2026
What a power of attorney covers
A financial power of attorney can authorize the agent to manage bank accounts, pay bills, file taxes, buy or sell property, and conduct other financial transactions. The scope can be broad (general) or limited to specific acts (limited or special). Either way, it takes effect immediately when signed, unless it is a "springing" power that activates only upon a defined event.
Power of attorney versus durable power of attorney
The critical distinction is what happens if the principal becomes incapacitated. A standard power of attorney lapses at that moment. A durable power of attorney remains in effect — it is designed precisely for that situation. For estate planning, the durable version is almost always what people need.
Related terms
- Durable Power of Attorney — A durable power of attorney is a legal document granting an agent authority to handle financial and legal matters on behalf of the principal, with the crucial feature that it remains in effect even if the principal becomes mentally incapacitated. "Durable" is the word that makes it useful for estate and incapacity planning.
- Healthcare Proxy — A healthcare proxy is a person legally designated to make medical decisions on your behalf if you become unable to make or communicate them yourself. The document appointing them — sometimes called a medical power of attorney or healthcare proxy designation — is separate from a financial power of attorney and limited to healthcare decisions.
- Advance Healthcare Directive — An advance healthcare directive is a legal document that records a person's wishes about medical treatment in the event they become unable to communicate those wishes themselves. It typically covers decisions about life-sustaining treatment, resuscitation, artificial nutrition, and similar interventions. Many states combine this document with a healthcare proxy designation.
- Living Trust — A living trust is a legal arrangement created during a person's lifetime in which they transfer ownership of their assets to the trust — typically naming themselves as the initial trustee — to be managed for their benefit while alive and distributed to named beneficiaries when they die, all without going through probate. Because the trust, not the individual, holds the assets, those assets pass directly to beneficiaries outside of the probate process.
Legatus Vault keeps your wills, trusts, and estate documents in one secure place and releases them — only when the time comes, and only after careful verification — to the people you choose.