Cortes Law Firm's Podcast

As an Estate Planning Attorney, I know that each individual and family is unique. That is why we take time at the beginning of each relationship to sit down and visit with you regarding your goals and dreams. In this podcast, attorney Stephen Cortes covers estate planning, probate, and trust administration. Serious topics with a little fun thrown in...

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Cortes Law Firm's Podcast

082: Durable Power of Attorney

November 15, 2023 • Stephen Cortes

https://corteslawfirm.com/durable-power-of-attorney-2/

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Cortes Law Firm

5801 Broadway Extension Hwy Suite 110

Oklahoma City, OK, 73118

405-213-0856

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Durable power of attorney. A durable power of attorney grants somebody the power to be your agent to legally act on your behalf even if you are to become incapacitated. And that's really important because there are some power of attorneys out there that do not go beyond incapacitation. So in other words, if you gave your son Enrique, a power of attorney over you, but there was no language in there that said it is to continue upon incapacitation then it probably is really not worth having. And that brings up a kind of an important part that when you try to do this stuff yourself, it's really important to look out for that kind of stuff because you might have downloaded a form off the Internet that you think is going to cover you completely, but it's not durable. So when you do become incapacitated, incapacitated, when you actually need that document to work, it's not going to because it doesn't it doesn't go it doesn't stay in effect, for incapacitation. So basically, a durable power of attorney is a power of attorney that grants somebody the authority to act legally on your behalf. As part of a revocable living trust centered estate plan, this is an essential document. In our last video, I talked about a poor over last will and testament and how it's kind of a catchall. Well, the problem with having that or having to use it is that you have to go through the probate process. And so if you are to become incapacitated during your lifetime, let's say that you name Sally as your power of attorney, and Sally is also your successor trustee. So as a successor trustee, Sally is going to look and see what all of your assets are. And Sally, sees that you have a little rental house that is in your name only and not in the name of the trust. Well, because you are still alive, Sally can exercise her power as your power of attorney and transfer that rental house, transfer the title from your personal name to the name of the trust. Why is that so important? It's so important because by giving Sally that power and Sally actually using that power to transfer that rental property from your name to the name of the trust, she has literally saved your estate thousands of dollars by putting it into your trust now, because once you pass away, if Sally did not exercise that power or she did not have that power, then that particular rental house is going to have to go through the probate process, costing your estate thousands of dollars to get it into either your heirs names or to the names of your trust. So that is why a power of attorney is so important. A durable power of attorney will allow somebody, your agent, to act on your behalf. And make sure that all of your finances make sure all of your assets are truly funded into your trust for distribution According to the terms of the trust, exactly how you want things to happen.