Details on Statutory Form Power of Attorney in Maryland

Overview of Maryland’s “Statutory Form” POA

Recently, we have been focusing quite a bit of energy on exploring various aspects of “power of attorney” arrangements. This is by design, because POAs are an important instrument within the wider field of estate planning. As we have discussed, a POA is a legal arrangement whereby a third party (the “agent” or attorney-in-fact) is given the authority to make certain decisions on behalf of another party (the “principal”). Like trusts, POAs may be customized to serve all sorts of different purposes – the maximization of finances, improved medical care or healthcare, the execution of certain business decisions, and so forth. When a principal entrusts an agent with authority via a POA, this is a very significant development, because the agent is obligated to fulfill the terms of the POA and may suffer serious consequences if this duty is neglected.

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The State of Maryland has a complex legal system which governs powers of attorney. This legal system includes a “statutory form” POA – more exactly, a statutory form “personal financial” power of attorney. If a Marylander chooses to utilize this form, he or she knows that the arrangement will carry the full weight of state law behind it. In many ways, this is a convenient tool which can be used to save considerable time and energy. In this post, we will give a basic summary of what this document includes.

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Essential Provisions – Warnings & Identifications / Designations

The first parts of the statutory form provide critical information for both principals and agents. The information for principals is basically a warning: the form indicates the severity of powers of attorney arrangements, the potential consequences and ramifications, the importance of selecting a truly trustworthy agent, and so forth. The document implores principals to consult with an attorney prior to signing.  

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Similarly, the document also conveys to future agents the elements of loyalty and duty which are involved with powers of attorney. The document states expressly that agents are not supposed to act in their own self-interest, as that is not at all the purpose of these legal arrangements. If, for instance, the principal is best served by an agent refraining from exercising POA authority in certain situations, then this is precisely how the agent should behave.

The document also provides a space for the proper identification of the principal and agent. Those who want to execute this document need to have all the personal information which is required.

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Grant of General Authority

In order to ensure full transparency, the document includes a section focused entirely on describing the agent’s authority in detail. The principal will know exactly what the agent can and cannot do with respect to his or her assets and interests. A total of 7 pieces of authority are identified in the document.

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Specific Types of Assets

The document also includes a large section which lists out all the specific assets and interests over which the agent will have authority. These include real property, tangible personal property, intangible personal property, banking, insurance, annuities, legal claims / litigation, retirement accounts, digital currencies (i.e. cryptocurrencies or “digital assets”), and others as well. The document goes into depth with respect to all these specific assets and interests – for tangible personal property assets, for example, the document lists multiple types of tangible personal property (boats, cars, etc.), and precisely the sort of things which agents may do with respect to these items. In other words, the agent’s authority is spelled out in detail, so that principals are keenly aware of what agents may do with the POA. This type of granularity is also given for all the other types of assets and interests too.

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Contact the Murphy Law Firm for More Information

To learn more about Maryland’s Statutory Form (Personal Financial) Power of Attorney, other Maryland laws pertaining to POAs, POAs in general, or any other estate planning topic, contact one of the estate planning attorneys at the Murphy Law Firm today by calling 240-219-5243.

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