Power of Attorney?
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 2,169
Likes: 1
From: Dallas, TX / Boston, MA
Power of Attorney? A friend on mine's mom was hospitalized 3 weeks ago. to make the story short, she's in a state of semi-consciousness (not quite a coma, but not far from it) and the odds that she'll make it out are slim. The players here are the mother's boyfriend (who doesnt live at the house full time), my friend, and her brother and sister (who dont live at home anymore).
they've all mutually decided to make my friend the head of estate and handle all the bills and medical decisions and whatnot. unfortunatley she cant make those decisions or access the bank accounts without power of attorney. the mother has no known will, and they cant find any documentation regarding a life insurance policy.
how do they go about getting her the power of attorney if the mother wont be able to sign anything? i googled this, but everything i found talked about organizing all this BEFORE you get sick and end up in a hospital on your deathbed.
i assume they have to go through a lawyer and get a letter from the doctor stating that the mother is medically unable to make her own decisions. anyone know what the process is and the approximate cost to do all this? money is really tight for them, so they need the cheapest solution. since they are all agreeing on who should be incharge, there would be no battle between the siblings with a lawyer.
Thanks in advance for any advice that can be given.
they've all mutually decided to make my friend the head of estate and handle all the bills and medical decisions and whatnot. unfortunatley she cant make those decisions or access the bank accounts without power of attorney. the mother has no known will, and they cant find any documentation regarding a life insurance policy.
how do they go about getting her the power of attorney if the mother wont be able to sign anything? i googled this, but everything i found talked about organizing all this BEFORE you get sick and end up in a hospital on your deathbed.
i assume they have to go through a lawyer and get a letter from the doctor stating that the mother is medically unable to make her own decisions. anyone know what the process is and the approximate cost to do all this? money is really tight for them, so they need the cheapest solution. since they are all agreeing on who should be incharge, there would be no battle between the siblings with a lawyer.
Thanks in advance for any advice that can be given.
Sorry to hear about your friend. Is your friend at least 18? I dont think you need to do all the power of attorney stuff with a lawyer. When I went through it bc I was the next of kin (daughter) I was attomatically allowed to do everything I needed.
There is a limited POA and the full POA. Limited allows a person to give another the right to do certain named things. The full POA is pretty much all inclusive. Since nobody is contesting it, it should go smoother but if the mother can't sign, it's going to get tricky especially since she is still alive. My family lawyer is $250/hr.
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 2,169
Likes: 1
From: Dallas, TX / Boston, MA
yes, she's over 18. and from my reading, i dont see anything automatic unless the parent had all this paperwork done ahead of time... would say something like (in the event that i become incapable, i give the following powers to the following person). but since the mother became hospitalized unexpectedly and didnt do any prep work, there is nothing, and the kids are stuck with no access to anything, and the bills are a comin.
I believe the closest living relative is automatically granted power of attorney if the person is deemed to be in a nonresponsive state, unless it is explicitely stated otherwise.
-Mike
-Mike
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Any blood relative can call the local courthouse to speak with a Judge to obtain a POA on these matters. If they are not a blood relative, it does require an attorney to push the paperwork through.
The hospital should also have a department that can help guide the family through this, by law they are supposed to provide the required information to family to make decisions on behalf of an adult that for medical reasons cannot make on their own.
The hospital should also have a department that can help guide the family through this, by law they are supposed to provide the required information to family to make decisions on behalf of an adult that for medical reasons cannot make on their own.
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Teching In
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 45
Likes: 0
From: Houston, TX
you can't find much on the web because what you are looking for is a guardianship proceeding. Since all the family members agree on who should be appointed, this will not be difficult to obtain but will still require a court order and hence it would be wise to seek the assitance of an attorney. This will not require a high powered attorney and therefore should not cost anywhere near $500 an hour. Any attorney who practices in estate planning and many family law practicioners can handle this. Check out this link for more information:
http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/public_...ardianship.asp
http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/public_...ardianship.asp