Powers of Attorney
A power of attorney is the document that lets someone you trust step in and act for you, paying bills, managing property, making medical decisions, if you cannot act for yourself. It is one of the least expensive documents in an estate plan and one of the most consequential to get wrong. The Law Office of Chad Foster prepares powers of attorney for clients throughout King and Snohomish Counties under Washington's Uniform Power of Attorney Act (Chapter 11.125 RCW).
How Powers of Attorney Work in Washington
The person who signs a power of attorney is the principal; the person granted authority is the agent (sometimes called attorney-in-fact). Under RCW 11.125.040, a Washington power of attorney is not durable by default: unless the document expressly says it survives incapacity, the agent's authority ends the moment the principal becomes incapacitated. To make it durable, the document must include specific language showing that intent, such as "This power of attorney shall not be affected by disability of the principal." That durability language is usually the entire point: the document exists precisely for the moment you cannot manage things yourself, so leaving it out defeats the purpose.
Execution requirements matter. Under RCW 11.125.050, the document must be signed and either acknowledged before a notary or attested by two competent, disinterested witnesses, and certain people, such as your care providers, cannot serve as witnesses. You can make the power effective immediately or "springing," meaning it takes effect only upon a defined event such as a physician's determination of incapacity.
Financial and Healthcare Powers
Most clients need two distinct grants of authority, often in separate documents: a financial power of attorney covering property, banking, taxes, and business matters, and a healthcare power of attorney naming an agent to make medical decisions. Healthcare agency works hand-in-hand with your advance healthcare directives, which record your treatment wishes for the agent to follow.
Limits on an Agent's Authority
Washington law deliberately withholds certain powers unless your document grants them expressly. Under RCW 11.125.240, an agent cannot, among other things, make gifts of your property, change beneficiary designations, or create or change rights of survivorship unless the power of attorney specifically says so. This is a common failure point in generic, downloaded forms: the document exists, but it doesn't authorize the action the family actually needs, sometimes discovered only at a bank counter or in a hospital, when it is too late to fix.
Agents also owe legal duties to the principal (RCW 11.125.140), including acting in good faith, within the scope of the granted authority, and in the principal's best interest. An agent who self-deals or exceeds the grant can be held personally liable, and powers of attorney can be challenged in court when abuse is suspected.
What Happens Without One
A power of attorney generally cannot be created after incapacity. By then, the legal capacity to sign one is gone. At that point, the family's remaining option is usually a court-supervised guardianship or conservatorship: a slower, more expensive, and more public process that a properly drafted power of attorney would have avoided. A power of attorney also ends at death; after that, authority passes to the personal representative of your estate under your will, not to your agent.
Our power of attorney services include:
- Durable financial powers of attorney tailored to your assets and family
- Healthcare powers of attorney coordinated with your directives
- Springing powers with clear incapacity triggers
- Express "hot powers" (gifting, beneficiary changes) where appropriate
- Reviewing, revoking, or replacing outdated documents
- Advising agents on their duties, and families on suspected agent misconduct
Common Questions
Can a power of attorney be used after death?
No. An agent's authority ends at the principal's death. After that, only the personal representative appointed in probate (or a successor trustee, for trust assets) can act. An agent who keeps using the power of attorney after death is acting without authority, no matter how practical it seems in the moment.
Can my agent sell my real estate?
Yes, if the document grants real property authority. For real estate transactions, the power of attorney must also be recorded with the county auditor, and title companies review these documents closely, another reason precise drafting matters.
Will my Washington power of attorney work in other states?
Generally yes. States routinely honor powers of attorney validly executed elsewhere, and Washington extends the same recognition (RCW 11.125.090). That said, some institutions are more comfortable with familiar formats, so clients who split time between states sometimes execute documents in both.
Can a power of attorney be challenged?
Yes. Interested persons can petition the court to review an agent's conduct, demand an accounting, or terminate the agent's authority where there is abuse. If you suspect an agent is misusing a vulnerable family member's power of attorney, act quickly, and see our elder law page for related protections for vulnerable adults.
Get Started
Estate planning is easiest when it happens before it is urgent. Contact the Law Office of Chad Foster to discuss your situation and put the right documents in place.
Call us at 425.785.8679 or email help@ChadAtLaw.com.