Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: Power Of Attorney question

Probably not. So long as the POA gave you the authority to make gifts.

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Re: Power Of Attorney question

The answer depends on what the POA authorized you to do. If it was limited to just writing checks, making deposits and simple things, it might not have allowed you to make gifts on behalf of your mother. I would need to see the language to verify what you were allowed to do. That said, the problem is more clouded, as it appears your mother was in your presence when the gift checks were written. Being competent, she could have asked you to do this which, if not covered by the terms of the POA, might still be permissable since she verbally authorized you to do it. The real issue you must face, is the possible claim of abuse, if the POA is silent. Anyone can sue someone, but it does not mean the suit will have merit, or result in a judgment. The claim could be that if your mother was present and competent, why not sign the checks herself, since she was able to do so. In your favor is that checks were not just written to you, but to another sibling also. This does not sound like undue influence. Plus, your mother was residing with you, so she might be inclined to favor you with extra gifts from time to time. You do not say if she was paying you anything to stay with you. If not, it appears reasonable that she would give you extra money from time to time, as well as to the sibling who occasionally visited. While my mother resided by herself, with a live-in caretaker, being the one that visited her more frequently, I used to get checks from her from time to time, that I wrote using my POA from her. My POA allowed gift giving. Of course, my siblings knew about this during her lifetime, so they never considered a claim. Just saying you are not alone in this situation. Contact me if you need more information or if you want me to review the POA.