Tag Archives: Power of Attorney

Elderly father’s step-daughter is taking financial advantage of him

Q: My father was just diagnosed with a terminal illness at 81 years of age. His step daughter “talked” him into giving her POA. What can we do? We all live hours away here in Pittsburgh. My sister is going up to take care of him, after she puts her affairs in order. She is also the executor of his will (as she understands it . We are worried she (step daughter) will change his living will. He feels intimidated by her (she lives close to him). Afraid she will change it and take the house away and put him on the streets. He lives near Tionesta, PA. What are our options? (Pittsburgh, PA)

A: First, it is important to understand the difference between a Living Will and a Will. The living will is the “pull the Plug” document that contains a person’s wishes about being removed from life support. What you are probably concerned about is changing the Will which is the document that passes your father’s property at death. Generally, the Will cannot be changed by someone with a POA. The danger of the POA is that she can make the Will irrelevant by moving all of his assets out of his name. A POA agent is supposed to act in the best interests of the principal (your father) so you could take her to court if she takes all of the assets for her own benefit, but it is better to prevent a problem rather then attempt to solve it in a court proceeding. Talk to the step-daughter. At this point you have no evidence that she has bad intentions. She needs to understand her liability for abusing the POA. If talking won’t help, then you will most likely need to start a guardianship proceeding in court. Unless your father revokes the POA, a guardianship is the only way to get it rescinded. If you cannot work this out within the family, hire a lawyer to communicate with her.

Can step-sister sign dad’s cabin to herself with a POA?

Q: My father was just diagnosed with a terminal illness. He is 80 years old. His step daughter “talked” him into giving her POA. What can we do? We all live hours away. My sister is going up to take care of him, after she puts her affairs in order. She is also the executor of his will (as she understands it). We are worried she (step daughter) will change his living will. He feels intimidated by her. She is big and forceful. We are afraid she will change it and take the cabin away and put him on the streets. He lives in the cabin in Crawford County. We are all in Allegheny except the step-daughter who lives up there. What are our options?

A: Generally, an Agent on a POA cannot draft and sign a will for another person. But this could not stop her from having a new deed to the cabin prepared and signed by her as POA, in which she deeds it to herself. If he is still mentally competent, perhaps you can advise him to revoke the POA by signing one over to you or your siblings. If this is not possible, if you want to control the situation, you may need to file for a guardianship. Unfortunately, he lives in Crawford County and you may have to file there. I think you should discuss this with a lawyer here or in Crawford County. He or she may be able to start communication with the step daughter and this may put her on notice that her actions are being scrutinized. If you have evidence she is diverting money, or has wrongfully converted his money, you can have an attorney petition the court for an accounting of POA funds. Before you do anything I would attempt to see if you and your siblings can meet with her to put all of these concerns on the table. Open communication may help to avoid a legal fight.

 

Can my sister charge me for elder abuse?

Q: I have been my mother’s power of attorney as well as on a joint checking account with her for the past couple of years. She has now had to be placed in a dementia care home and my sister who was not involved with any of her care filed for and got guardianship. I then closed the joint accounts and sent the money to the care home. My sister got copies of bank statements and is now charging me with stealing my mother’s money. My mom and I were ok with me spending what I needed as well as me using money from my private account to help her with bills. Since I was a legal joint owner on that checking account does my sister have a legal standing to accuse me?

A: Based on the limited facts I am hearing, the simple answer is that when you were acting as POA Agent, you had a fiduciary duty to act in your mom’s best interest and document all your expenditures of her money. If you can did act in her best interest and can document all of her expenditures, your sister can allege all she wants, proving it is another matter. In order for her to proceed against you legally, she would need to hire an attorney to file a petition in Orphan’s Court requesting an accounting of all of your spending as agent for your mother on her POA.

 

Can someone leave an assisted living and go home with a nurse of they want?

Q: He would go home to his “wife”, but she doesn’t want him at home. It is not right. He is wealthy and is now on walker and needs assistance but wife doesn’t want to help. His mind is sharp as a tack still but when he was ill he gave wife and son power of attorney. His son has control over his money. He wants to go home and get a nurse but they won’t let him. Can he get help? They just don’t want to be bothered and have a nurse there all the time. It cost him 6,000 a month to live at this nursing place. He is not dead yet and they won’t let him live his life what he has left.

A: If he is still competent, it is up to him whether he wants to return home with a nurse. Even if the wife son are his Agents on a Power of Attorney, he still can make decisions for himself. He may also want to consider a new POA in which he appoints a new Agent. This will have the legal effect of revoking the old POA. If what you say is true and he is competent, he should consult with an attorney as to his wishes. In theory, he should be able to sign himself out of a nursing home and contract for home nursing care on his own. It sounds like there may be a family conflict, which is unfortunate. I am not sure if there is any service the Department of Aging can provide to intervene but it may be worth a call. I think it would be very beneficial and perhaps dispositive, if his doctor would approve of him returning home with nursing care.

Can I sell property with a Power of Attorney without the person’s knowledge?

Q: Can you sell someone’s property under their general durable power of attorney without the person knowing or signing documents? Can you get in trouble for doing this?

A: All powers of attorney have an underlying understanding that the agent is acting in the best interest of the principle. If the principle is competent to make his or her own decisions and you, as agent, are operating behind their back doing this, you are not fulfilling your duty. If they are incompetent and you are acting in their best interest, that is another matter. You really need to have a local lawyer look at the POA and assess the situation. Is it a standard general durable POA or is it a springing POA? Is the principle competent? Is this move in the principal’s best interest? There have been two significant changes in POA language by the PA legislature, one is Act 39 in the year 2000 and one is Act 95 in the year 2014, effective January 1, 2015. Much of these changes were made to curb and police the actions of agents who exceed their powers in not acting in the principal’s best interest.

What options do I have with my terminally ill grandmother?

Q: What options do I have to ensure my terminally ill grandmother is receiving the best possible care during the end stage of her life. My grandmother is under hospice and living at my Uncles house in South East Florida. I am in PA. My mother was living there up until this week assisting the Hospice care team with the care of my grandmother. Not certain of the details but according to my mother, my uncle was violent with her and called the police to have my mother removed from the home. My Uncle claims to have POA over my grandmother although I have no idea if this is true or not. My mother claims he does not. I do not believe my grandmother has been deemed incapacitated, although again I have no way of finding out. I do know that she is of sound mind, but she is very weak and highly immobile as we have spoken. I am concerned I will not be able to see my Grandmother before she passes and I am really concerned about her quality of life.

A: This is more of a family dynamic problem than a legal problem. I would highly suggest trying to talk to your uncle and express your concerns. You may want to call the Hospice team and see if they will help convey your concern, but don’t count on them wanting to get involved in a family dispute. If you have to go legal, you can call the department of aging or social services agency in that county and see if they do home visits for the elderly. You can also seek a lawyer down there to advise you on what services are available and perhaps on what legal actions he can take such as a letter to your uncle expressing your concerns and requesting a copy of the POA. He can also advise you on the law of guardianships in Florida.

Can I become my aunt’s power of attorney?

Q. Is it possible that i can become my aunt power of attorney? Her mental state of mind is going downhill and she has no children. The friend that she was staying with just recently died. He was the one that took care of her. Helped her pay her bills and keep up with her hygiene. Right now she is staying with me but i don’t feel as though I am capable of taking care of her myself.

A. Yes, I assume you can become the agent on a Power of Attorney for your aunt, unless there is some reason you cannot. A General Durable Power of Attorney (GDPOA) is probably recommended but you really need to sit down with an attorney and discuss all of the facts. She needs to be mentally competent to sign a GPOA. Don’t wait longer to do so, as her condition may deteriorate and render her incompetent to sign. You may also need to contact the Department of Aging to see what help you can get. An attorney can also advise you about applying for Medicaid if she has insufficient money to pay for her care.

POA for Aging Mother

Q.           A year ago my mom fell and broke her femur, I also think there is more health issues. She cannot live alone anymore. I’ve been with her seven months it was to be one month only, she doesn’t want a nurse and she doesn’t want to sell her home. I have my own family to go home to, I need help please. I don’t know what to do anymore she is being very selfish and uncaring of me and my family. she wants what she wants. Can you please help me.

A.            I would consult with a local elder law attorney. You have no obligation to take on such a role, especially if it is detrimental to your health. Dealing with aging parents can be frustrating, time consuming and can cause stress. You can call the Department of Aging for assistance, but that may not be the best answer. If she is competent, you could get a Power of Attorney from her and make decisions that are in her best interest. For example, you could hire in home care at first to see how that works before moving her into an assisted living situation.