How to Revoke Power of Attorney

A number of novels by John Grisham, Robert Ludlum, Jeffrey Archer and the like have a lot of legal jargon and legal procedures and how the protagonist manages to cross all those legal hurdles and comes out trumps. I am always fascinated with the ease with which these best selling authors yield their knowledge of law in the optimum manner. From power of attorney to loss mitigation to criminal law, they have it all. I think going through these novels can tell a layman a lot about the legal procedures! Jokes apart, but knowing about these things is essential in today's tricky times. Now that I have mentioned power of attorney, let's check out something related to it - how to revoke power of attorney.

Revocation of Power of Attorney

As quite a few of us know, Power of Attorney (POA), in civil law system, refers to an authorization to act on behalf of someone, in a business or legal matter. The one who grants the authorization is called the principal or donor and the one who has been granted the power is referred to as an agent or attorney, in fact. So considering this, there can arise a situation where the principal can change his or her mind. In that case having an idea about revoking power of attorney will be helpful.

Step 1
There a number of websites from where you can download a form for revoking a POA. If you are not too keen on that, you can make your own document or a simple letter. In case you are creating a document yourself, you will have to include,

• your full legal name
• current date
• date when the original power of attorney was put into effect
• statement that you are of "sound mind."
• the name or names of the people designated as your agent for the original power of attorney.
• clear description of your wish to revoke the original document, that is the POA.

Step 2
Once you are done with the earlier step, you will have to sign and date the document in the presence of a witness. Request the witness to sign on the document and then add his or her address and the date underneath the signature. You might also have to get the document notarized. You will also have to write 'REVOKE' on the original document, at the top and across the text. Then don't forget to sign and put in the date. Doing this will ensure that the purpose of the document is not misused.

Step 3
Following the above steps, make sure that this document which clearly mentions that the Power of Attorney has been revoked reaches the concerned government entities - banks, hospital, other offices if at all and the like. So these organizations have to be sent copies regarding the same. This too, is a very important aspect.

Last, but not the least, send the person who originally had the POA a copy of the document saying that his or her power has been revoked. Further, ask that person to give you the papers saying he or she has been granted the Power of Attorney back.

Some POA Revocation Tips

The above were the basic things regarding revoking a POA. Here is a look at some quick tips related to that.

• There is a common notion and rule that the POA can be revoked only if the person is mentally sound and competent to do so.
• Each state has its own laws in connection with revoking Power of Attorney. So before you do that, it would be a good idea to get to know about those laws.
• In case something happens to a person granting the POA, be it a general or specific POA, it is considered to be void, automatically.

That's all! If all this seems difficult to handle, you can always ask for professional legal advice! Whatever you do, please be very very careful about the documentation and the related affairs! Till next time!