Legal Question in Elder Law in North Carolina

Your mother, if she is mentally competent, can execute a revocation of the power. It would help if she had copies so I could see what these documents say.

Did you check with the register of deeds and/or clerk of court to see if anything was filed? If not, then I WOULD file the revocation of the power of attorney. The revocation must be signed by your mother and notarized. I would file the original and make 3 copies. Let your mother or her new power of attorney keep one for her records. The other copies I would send to the agents under the medical and financial powers of attorney. You can find revocation of power of attorney forms online - some may be free and some may not.

I assume that your mother is in North Carolina. If so, then you can get new living wills and health care powers of attorney for free at www.nclifelinks.org. You can get a very simple free power of attorney at: http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/enactedlegislation/statutes/pdf/bychapter/chapter_32a.pdf

I also will draft a revocation of the old power of attorney (you only need it for financial care but I would make it clear that both are revoked) and new medical/financial powers of attorney/living wills for a reasonable fee. I can also draft a new will or trust.

If your mother is not in NC, then I would look for the applicable state forms if they have one. Many states do. These usually can be accessed for free at www.ilrg.com's forms archive for personal forms.

For a will, while it would be better to get legal counsel to make sure that it is done right, you can inexpensively get packages from Legal Zoom or www.nolo.com. A note of caution - I am not endorsing these or any other products. While the products may be adequate in and of themselves, they rely on your mother to input the information and it may be possible for her to mess things up if it is not done correctly. Wills are not all that expensive and I would encourage her to seek legal advice and have it done by an attorney,

A further note of caution - while the powers of attorney can be revoked, you can bet that if the two children who are the agents hold them, they are not going to be pleased by the revocation. While your mother can revoke the powers and create new ones, the children may pursue a guardianship action in the county/state where your mother resides. Although the children live several hours away, they may seek to prove that the new powers of attorney are of no effect because your mother is not mentally competent. All this has to be proven in court through evidence of her doctors and others that know her. I also don't know if there are sufficient assets to make this worthwhile for them to pursue. However, I want you and your mother to be aware of this possibility.

If your mother is interested in securing my services, please contact me at [email protected].