Sometimes a client wants to revoke a power of attorney that he signed.  A power of attorney is a document that permits one person to make decisions for another person.

The person who makes the power of attorney document is called the “principal.”  The person whom the principal appoints to make decisions for him is called the “agent.”  For instance, a father might sign a power of attorney document in favor of his son, so his son can make financial decisions for him.

Most people sign a power of attorney document with the idea that the document will not be used at the time it is signed.  In fact, most people sign a power of attorney document hoping it will never have to be used.  Typically, an agent will use a power of attorney document when the principal can no longer make decisions for himself.

For example, a father suffers a stroke and is unable to handle his affairs.  The power of attorney will permit his son, whom he named as his agent, to make financial decisions for the father in the father’s time of need.  With the power of attorney, the son will be able to access the father’s bank accounts in order to pay the father’s bills.  The son will be able to sell the father’s house if the father is moving to a nursing home on a full time basis.  The power of attorney will permit the son to sign any contracts that he may need to sign on behalf of the father, such as an admission agreement to a nursing home or assisted living residence.

But sometimes, the principal may wish to revoke his power of attorney document for one reason or another.  Perhaps the father who suffered the stroke recovers after a period of rehabilitation and believes that his son, whom he named as his agent, has been making poor decisions for him.

Many people do not put too much thought into whom they choose as their agent because, as stated, most people don’t believe they’ll ever need their agent to act on their behalf.  Many people simply pick their oldest child as their agent, because they believe they won’t hurt their other children’s feelings by picking the oldest child; however, being the oldest doesn’t make a person the best choice as the power of attorney agent.

So, the question then becomes, how does the principal effectively revoke the power of attorney document that he signed?

The signing of a new power of attorney does not revoke a prior power of attorney unless the subsequently signed power of attorney specifically revokes the prior power of attorney.  For this reason, signing a new power of attorney can be very dangerous if the new power of attorney fails to revoke the prior power of attorney.  The
father will end up with two powers of attorney, one naming the agent he no longer wants and one naming his new agent.

If the new power of attorney document specifically revokes the prior power of attorney, then the prior power of attorney is revoked.

A principal can revoke a power of attorney by destroying all of the original power of attorney documents.  For instance, if the father signed two originals of the power of attorney, he revokes his power of attorney by destroying those two original documents.

A principal can revoke a power of attorney by signing a document that specifically revokes the power of attorney.  For instance, if the father signs a document that says “I hereby revoke any power of attorney that I have signed prior to this date,” then the prior power of attorney document is revoked.  The principal must sign the revocation and the principal’s signature must be notarized if the principal is not hand-delivering the revocation to the agent.

Finally, a principal can revoke a power of attorney document by hand-delivering a revocation document to the agent.  This form of revocation does not have to contain the notarized signature of the principal.