A power of attorney form is a legal form that allows you to appoint some one who is willing to act on your behalf in a matter of your choosing. For example, power of attorney forms are used a lot by deployed soldiers who want their wives back home to have access to their bank account. This is not all it can be used for though; you can appoint some one to act on your behalf in any matter you choose.



Power of attorney forms (POA forms) are simple legal agreements that do not require a lawyer. Its not hard to find a fill able POA online and fill it out yourself as long as you know a few terms. On the document, you, the person making the form, are referred to as the 'Principal'. The person appointed to execute the agreement is referred to as the 'Agent'. Another popular term for an agent is 'Attorney-in-Fact'. This term became popular because an agent is kind of like an employee who is suppose to look of for your best interests, like an attorney should.

There's a tradition that comes along with appointing an agent. Power of attorney agents are compensated for any expense they had to endure to execute your POA. For example, if they missed a day of work you should cover that expense along with any other expenses they had to endure. It's only the right thing to do anyway. It's wrong to force some one to participate within the scope of the legal agreement without compensating their expenses, unless the agent wants it that way.

Another thing you should know is that you can cancel the power of attorney at anytime if you're the principal. The process is simple, just fill out a revocation of POA form and have it notarized so that it's officially on the record. Also, if you set a date that the agreement will no longer be valid after, then this will also be enough to void the agreement.