Illinois Estate Planning and Power of Attorney Documents
A durable power of attorney is one of the most important estate planning documents there is. It allows someone you appoint – your agent or “attorney-in-fact” – to act in your place for financial purposes when and if you ever become incapacitated. However, many people experience difficulty in getting banks or other financial institutions to recognize the authority of an agent under a power of attorney.
Banks are sometimes reluctant to accept powers of attorney for fear of being sued if the power of attorney is not valid. A certain amount of caution on the part of financial institutions is understandable. Still, some institutions go overboard, for example, requiring that the attorney-in-fact indemnify them against any loss.
If a bank is giving you a hard time about accepting a power of attorney, you can try talking your way up the chain of command. You can also have the lawyer who prepared the power of attorney call the bank. If that doesn’t work, you may have to have a lawyer deal with the bank.
Contact an estate planning law firm for further information.
