How Do Changes to Florida’s Power of Attorney Act Affect My “OLD” Power of Attorney
“New Rules” applicable to a Florida Power of Attorney are effective on October 1, 2011 - - so what happens to Powers of Attorney executed BEFORE October 1, 2011? Florida Statute 709.2106 states that the older Power of Attorney will be effective if its execution complied with Florida Laws at the time of execution.
If the Power of Attorney was executed in another State prior to October 1, 2011, then it may be considered to be valid within Florida if the document was executed in compliance with the requirements of the other state - - However, there could be some additional cost associated with the use of such a ”foreign” Power of Attorney. Anyone requested to act under the authority of the Power of Attorney’s designated Agent may require a formal Opinion of Counsel as to “any matter of law concerning the Power of Attorney,” and the Opinion Letter will be provided “at the principal’s expense.” There may be further developments as to the scope and complexity of the “Opinion of Counsel” which can required under Florida Statute 709.2106(3) – possibly affecting the cost of securing such opinion. Florida Statutes also state that failure to provide the requested Opinion of Counsel may result in no liability for failure to accept the Power of Attorney on the part of the party requesting the Opinion of Counsel.
If you have questions about the validity of your Power of Attorney contact a Business and Estate Planning Lawyer with Wood, Atter and Wolf, P.A. or follow our ongoing coverage of current legal issues in Wood, Atter & Wolf’s BusinessandTaxLawyerBlog.
