Do I Need To File A Power Of Attorney?

A power of attorney, also known as a durable power of attorney, gives someone you trust completely the authority to act as your agent in making financial decisions for you in the event you are not able to do so yourself. For example, if you were temporarily or permanently incapacitated due to a terrible car accident, then this agent could pay your bills and manage your other financial affairs during your incapacity. Likewise, some people have a power of attorney created for convenience sake, eg. they want someone to be able to take care of some particular financial issues for them while they are out of town on vacation or wherever.

Do I need to file a power of attorney in Texas in order for it to be valid?

In order for this power of attorney to be valid it must be notarized, but it doesn’t need to be signed by any witnesses like a will does. You do not need to file a power of attorney at the courthouse unless you want your agent to be able to act on your behalf in regards to a real estate transaction. Having said that, it is still probably a good idea to record the power of attorney at the courthouse, because a recorded power of attorney may hold more authority for some financial institutions.

Whether it’s filed or not the Power of Attorney is no longer valid after you die.

This is something that a lot of people do not realize. A Power of Attorney, whether you have filed it at the courthouse or not, is no longer legally valid after you pass away. The people who believe that it is valid after they die often think that they do not need a will, believing that the agent for the Power of Attorney will be able to access and distribute assets. Again, this is untrue. This is why having a Will is so important.