Legal Question in Elder Law in Washington

Re: Power of Attorney

It depends on how serious your mother's condition is and what the POA says.

If you have not done so, you should contact the attorney's office and ask why you weren't included in the discussion. They may tell you that they need a doctor's statement that your mother has become incapacitated (or perhaps two doctors - again, read the POA). If they request this, it's a reasonable request.

Usually a POA doesn't "kick in" until an event occurs, such as incapacity.

Also, there isn't usually something like "irrevocable" POA - there are ways to revoke a POA regardless of what it says on the document.

So, to sum up, the first thing to do is contact the attorney's office and ask why you weren't included. The second thing to do is to ask what you need to do to be included next time.

If you continue to have problems, you may need to consult another attorney. I'd be happy to discuss this with you if my suggestions, above, don't bear fruit.

Merry Kogut

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Re: Power of Attorney

A request from your Mother to whom? The attorney? Or to you?

If your mother is contacting the attorney who wrote the POA, she may also need a guardian ad litem to be sure that her needs are being appropriately met.

The attorney who wrote the POA likely has a duty to your mother not to share their privledged conversations with you.

Maybe I am reading this wrong, and if so I apologize but . . .

Bottom line is no POA is irrevocable.You mother might not be competent to revoke it, but a court can terminate it for good cause.

Elizabeth Powell