I had a client come in recently to talk about his mother. She lives in a small town in Illinois, but it could be anywhere. She remarried a man a few years older than her. It’s a second marriage for both of them. Mom had inherited a large estate from her mother. She had always told her kids that she had kept everything separate and that the inherited property would go to them.
Recently the kids became aware that mom was becoming confused. They went to visit her, and it was worse than they had thought. She went to a doctor who confirmed that mom has Alzheimer’s. Mom does have a power of attorney and a medical directive, but there are a couple of problems. First, she named her husband (the client’s stepdad) to take care of things, and although he insists he is fine, he isn’t much better than mom.
And second, the stepdad, who has always been kind of self-centered, seems more interested in getting his hands on mom’s assets than focusing on taking care of mom. He mentioned to my client that he went to an attorney to get his name on the house that mom had inherited. The attorney denied the request. He also talked to a financial planner about getting control of mom’s assets. The financial advisor is insisting on getting a letter from a doctor certifying that mom is not competent, which suggests to me that he is aware of what is going on.
The stepdad is concerned about where he will live if his wife dies, so he is now planning to meet with another attorney regarding the house. That attorney wants to meet with the stepdad and my client. That’s how my client found out about what is going on.
But the stepdad is going to run into problems with both retitling the house and getting his name on the investment accounts. You see, a power of attorney does not give the named agent carte blanche regarding the maker’s assets. The agent must act in the best interest of the maker. The agent is not supposed to use his or her powers for his or her own benefit, which is what the stepfather seems to be doing. Fortunately, the first attorney would have nothing to do with it, and it sounds as if the financial planner is following the letter of the law as well.
Better planning would have avoided that problem. Call if you want to talk.
