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Many people name their spouse attorney-in-fact, but they also should name an alternate \u2014 who should definitely be aware they\u2019re being nominated for the job.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s not many playbooks on how to be an executor or serve as the attorney-in-fact named in the power of attorney document, says Philippe Richer, lawyer and principal at TLR Law Office in Winnipeg.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe spend a lot of time talking about why people should have wills, powers of attorney, and so on and so forth,\u201d says Richer, who practices in this area of law. \u201cBut we spend very little time with the people named in the documents to tell them what it actually means to be appointed power of attorney or executor.\u201d<\/p>\n
A 2022 Ipsos survey found less than half of Canadians have a will and a little more than a third have appointed a power of attorney (PoA).<\/p>\n
(That\u2019s not even accounting for the need to appoint a proxy in a health-care directive document to make medical decisions for Canadians when they no longer can themselves.)<\/p>\n
Still, there are millions among those who have done these estate planning basics, meaning there are millions of Canadians have agreed to take on these roles \u2014 executor, proxy and PoA \u2014 when the time comes.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I were accepting an attorney for property role, I would want to get advice for myself,\u201d says Holly LeValliant, a Toronto-based estate and trust consultant with Scotia Wealth Management.<\/p>\n
Questions to asks might include:<\/p>\n
\u2014 How do I perform these duties properly?<\/p>\n
\u2014 What is my responsibility to this person who\u2019s vulnerable?<\/p>\n
\u2014 How do I protect them?<\/p>\n
\u2014 Equally important: how do I protect myself from potential liabilities?<\/p>\n
Another place to start is with the government of Manitoba, which offers a guidebook that generally addresses many concerns individuals may have about these roles.<\/p>\n
Of course, those appointing these powers should first ask the individuals they have in mind for these roles is they truly want to do the job, Richer says.<\/p>\n
Many people name their spouse attorney-in-fact, but they also should name an alternate \u2014 who should definitely be aware they\u2019re being nominated for the job.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe usually advise choosing a younger alternate,\u201d he says. \u201cIf you name somebody who\u2019s the same age as you, they may become incompetent at the same time you do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most power of attorney documents today involve an \u2018enduring power of attorney.\u2019<\/p>\n
That\u2019s opposed to a \u2018springing power of attorney\u2019 whereby the powers only come into effect after someone is deemed incompetent.<\/p>\n
This may seem reasonable, but Richer says getting someone declared mentally incompetent can be a long process, requiring a physician to declare the person unable to handle their affairs.<\/p>\n
With enduring power of attorney, the attorney-in-fact only requires the actual document. It still sets out triggering events like incapacity, but it can be invoked gradually by a competent donor, he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn practical terms, it means that if you\u2019re competent and you\u2019re doing everything you\u2019re supposed to do, the person named attorney doesn\u2019t need to worry about anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ensure the people appointed in these roles know where the actual documents are kept because financial institutions, for example, will not authorize access to a bank account without the originals.<\/p>\n
Ideally, you should keep the actual copies in a safe deposit box. People serving in these roles should know its location as well as where the keys are kept.<\/p>\n
For aging parents, have regular discussions with each other and other stakeholders \u2014 i.e. adult children \u2014 to avoid confusion when the time comes to use these documents, says Mariska Loeppky, assistant vice-president of tax and estate planning at IG Wealth Management.<\/p>\n
\u201cOlder generations often don\u2019t want to share exactly how much taxable income they have or how much they want to donate to charity, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n
She suggests philanthropic individuals consider setting up foundations or donor-advised funds \u2014 basically mini-foundations \u2014 whereby charitable money is invested for the long term and donated on a sustainable basis. This money will flow outside of the estate upon death, and these structures essentially remove philanthropic concerns off the to-do list for the executor at least, she adds.<\/p>\n
Some people have no one they trust to fulfill these roles. That\u2019s where trust companies \u2014 which most financial institutions offer \u2014 enter the picture. They can serve as executors and attorneys for property. (They will not act as a health-care proxy.)<\/p>\n
For people appointed in these roles, some preparation can make life easier. Besides knowing the location of the documents, they should familiarize themselves beforehand with their contents if possible.<\/p>\n
Failing that, adult children should talk to their parents, for instance, ask their aging parents about their intentions for care and in death, Loeppky says. \u201cYou can simply ask, \u2018Would you like some help?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
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Visit their advisers with them, and try to gradually take on more of their financial affairs, Richer says. \u201cIt can happen quite naturally when you get involved that way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t be afraid of over-communication. It can help avoid misunderstandings, LeValliant says.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t want anyone ever to say that you didn\u2019t tell them what was going on or did something against a loved one\u2019s wishes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joel Schlesinger is a Winnipeg-based freelance journalist<\/p>\n
joelschles@gmail.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It might feel like an honour to have a family member or friend place tremendous trust in you…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":809853,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194296],"tags":[49,48,22073],"class_list":["post-809852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-winnipeg","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-winnipeg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=809852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/809852\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/809853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=809852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=809852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=809852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}