“Can my Power of Attorney take care of my assets when I die?” I get this question fairly often. And even more often than that, as I am talking to people about their estate plans I learn that many of them incorrectly assume that their Power of Attorney will still work after they die. This is not true at all. The authority granted in a Power of Attorney is no longer valid once you have passed away.

I always tell my clients that generally speaking a Will helps take care of things after they die. This of course includes distributing their assets. But it could also include things like guardianship for their children and what to do with their remains. And documents like a Power of Attorney, Medical Power of Attorney, Living Will, and HIPAA Authorization help take care of things while they are still alive.

Having said that, a Power of Attorney can for sure help you take care of your assets while you are still alive. When you appoint someone as your agent for your Power of Attorney, that person can help you take care of various financial transactions in your life. These are things like paying bills, signing contracts, opening and closing accounts, etc. And you can designate if this person has this authority immediately, for only a specific amount of time, only for specific activities, or only upon your incapacity (eg. you’re in a coma or otherwise too sick to make financial decisions for yourself).

Having someone to help you take care of all these things is of course very important. Just know that the authority given by a Power of Attorney ends when you die. So of course having a Will is also very important to make sure your affairs are taken care of properly and in the ways you would want them to be taken care of.