Signing POAs During COVID-19
Requirements
There are two common types of directives naming an agent that is permitted to act on your behalf if you're incapacitated or otherwise unable to act. They may be known by various names depending on location, but typically they can commonly be referred to as a power of attorney for healthcare and a power of attorney for property.
As the names suggest, each is used to name an agent that may act on your behalf in regard to specific actions related to your healthcare or financial-related decisions.
In Illinois
Power of Attorney for Property:
To be valid in Illinois a power of attorney for property must be:
- Signed
- Witnessed by at least one additional individual
- Notarized
You must personally appear in front of the notary and the witness and acknowledge signing the power of attorney. So, while the language of the statute does not require you to sign in front of them, generally it is preferred.
Power of Attorney for Healthcare: Powers of Attorney for Healthcare can take various forms, but most commonly, the statutory short form power of attorney contained in 755 ILCS 45 are used. To be valid they must be:
- Signed
- Witnessed by at least one other person
In Wisconsin
Power of Attorney for Finances and Property:
To be valid a POA for finances and property must be signed. That's it! (See Wisc Stat 244.05).
With that said, in reality you're going to have a tremendously tough time getting a financial institution to acknowledge it as valid unless it is also notarized.
Power of Attorney for Healthcare:
To be valid a POA for healthcare must be:
- Signed and dated in the presence of two witnesses
- Signed by the two witnesses (See Wisc Stat 155.10)
During COVID-19
Powers of Attorney should be a priority to get fully executed during the pandemic because they are more likely than other estate planning documents to actually have somoe applicability. In the event you get sick, it's important to ensure that someone can manage your affairs in your absence.
Some options to get things signed that don't require a notary
(i.e. Illinois and Wisconsin POAs for Healthcare):
- Create a setup out on your driveway. Bring a table outside and ask the neighbors to assist in witnessing the power of attorney. Social distancing guidelines can be effectively practiced by signing one at a time and then stepping back from the table to allow the others to sign.
- If it's essential that you make a trip to the grocery store, think about asking your cashier to sign as a witness (just be sure that they're at least 18).
If the document requires a notary
(Financial POAs):
- Look into a mobile notary if one is available and government orders permit it. Practice safe social distancing by using the driveway setup.
- A potential substitute to a financial POA is to ensure your living trust is properly funded and owns some form of liquid account (a trust checking account, for example) which your agent may access to satisfy any financial obligations (bills, etc.) that need to be taken care of in your absence.
- In Illinois, if access to a notary is impossible, at least sign your power of attorney. Barking up the chain at a financial institution to get it to honor a non-notarized power of attorney may be possible if it becomes absolutely necessary.
What To Do After
Once Stay-at-Home Orders are lifted it's important to ensure that anything which may have not been witnessed and notarized (as may be required) gets completed.