Power of Attorney

A Power of Attorney is a legal document that authorizes a person you choose — called your attorney — to act on your behalf in financial and legal matters. In BC, Powers of Attorney are governed by the Power of Attorney Act, which sets out who can make one, what authority it can grant, and when that authority ends.

The person making the document is called the adult. The person they appoint is called the attorney — not a lawyer, but an agent: a trusted person authorized to carry out transactions and decisions on the adult’s behalf, or alongside them.

The Principal-Agent Relationship

A Power of Attorney creates what law calls a principal-agent relationship. The adult is the principal; the attorney is the agent. This means the attorney’s authority flows entirely from the adult — they can only do what the document permits, and they must act in the adult’s best interests.

Critically, an attorney’s role shifts depending on the adult’s state of capacity. While the adult remains fully capable, the attorney’s role may be purely practical — a helper, a runner, a practical set of hands for tasks the adult cannot physically manage themselves. Consider a parent with Parkinson’s disease who is mentally sharp but physically immobile: their attorney daughter might handle banking in person, attend meetings, and sign documents on her mother’s behalf — but with her mother’s active direction. The Power of Attorney Act is explicit: an attorney must foster the adult’s independence, consult the adult, and give effect to the adult’s wishes wherever possible.

As the adult’s capacity diminishes, the attorney’s responsibilities naturally expand. Where the adult can still participate in their own affairs — even partially — the attorney must involve them and be guided by them to the extent they are able. Where the adult has lost capacity entirely, the attorney steps fully into a decision-making role, acting in the adult’s best interests.

An attorney is also a fiduciary. That word carries significant legal weight: the attorney must prioritize the adult’s interests above all others, keep careful records, avoid conflicts of interest, and account for every transaction they make. They cannot use the adult’s assets for personal benefit, make gifts to themselves, or change the adult’s estate plan — unless the document expressly and specifically authorizes it.

What a Power of Attorney Covers

A Power of Attorney operates in the realm of financial and legal affairs: managing bank accounts and investments, paying bills, filing tax returns, dealing with government agencies, and signing legal documents — including real estate documents — on the adult’s behalf.

It does not cover health care or personal care decisions. For those, BC law provides the Representation Agreement Act. It is worth noting, though, that section 7 Representation Agreements — the more limited version — can authorize a representative to assist with routine legal and financial matters as well as personal care. So while a Power of Attorney and a section 9 Representation Agreement are natural companions in a complete estate plan, having both a POA and a section 7 Representation Agreement would be unusual, since their financial authority overlaps. Your BC Notary or lawyer can help you determine which combination is right for your situation.

Execution Requirements in BC

To be valid in BC, a Power of Attorney must be signed by the adult while they have legal capacity. Under section 11 of the Power of Attorney Act, every adult is presumed to be capable of making decisions about their financial affairs and of understanding the nature and consequences of making a Power of Attorney. A BC Notary or lawyer reviews a number of factors to determine whether an adult can in fact make a Power of Attorney, if their capacity has been called into question.

Under section 16 of the Act, the adult must sign in the presence of two witnesses, who must all be present together at the same time. However, only one witness is required if that witness is a BC Notary or a lawyer — meaning a member of the Law Society of British Columbia as defined under the Legal Profession Act.

When a BC Notary or lawyer witnesses the adult’s signature, the document is prepared with an officer certification signature block. This certification is what makes the Power of Attorney acceptable for use at the Land Title Office, pursuant to the requirements of the Land Title Act. A Power of Attorney signed before two lay witnesses uses a different signature format and cannot be used for land title purposes — though it remains valid for other financial and legal matters.

The attorney must also sign the document, with their own witnessing requirements under section 17 of the Act. The same rules apply: one witness suffices if that witness is a BC Notary or lawyer, and the officer certification block is used for land title purposes.

Where the attorney will be signing outside British Columbia, additional steps are required to satisfy Land Title Office requirements, and the document will be prepared accordingly. A BC Notary or lawyer preparing your Power of Attorney will ask about the attorney’s location for exactly this reason.

When a Power of Attorney Ends

A Power of Attorney does not last forever. It terminates on the adult’s death — at that point, authority passes to the executor named in the adult’s Will, not to the attorney. Beyond death and revocation, a Power of Attorney also ends when:

• the attorney resigns, dies, goes bankrupt, or (if a corporation) ceases to exist
• the attorney is the adult’s spouse or partner, and the marriage or marriage-like relationship ends
• a term or condition in the document itself brings the authority to a close (for example: “this Power of Attorney ends when the sale of the property at [address] has completed,” or “this Power of Attorney ends when I return to BC”)
• a court order terminates the authority
• a committee is appointed under the Patients Property Act to manage the adult’s affairs

Whether a Power of Attorney also ends on the adult’s incapacity depends on what type it is — a distinction covered in detail on our Enduring v. Non-Enduring Powers of Attorney page.

A Power of Attorney in Action: Real Estate

Powers of Attorney appear regularly in real estate transactions, and one of the more meaningful examples arises when a surviving parent needs to deal with property following the death of a spouse.

Consider this situation: a husband and wife own their home together as joint tenants. The husband passes away. Before the wife can sell the property, she must first have title transmitted into her name alone as the surviving joint tenant — a step that requires filing documents at the Land Title Office. But the wife has developed cognitive difficulties, and her adult daughter holds an enduring Power of Attorney.

Using that Power of Attorney, the daughter can file the survivorship application to transmit title into her mother’s name, and then sign all the conveyancing documents to complete the eventual sale — all on her mother’s behalf. The daughter does not become an owner; she acts throughout as her mother’s authorized agent. Where the property is in BC’s land title system, the Power of Attorney must be filed at the Land Title Office before it can be used there. For properties on First Nations lands or registered under the Manufactured Home Registry, different requirements apply — typically a certified true copy of the document rather than registration.

What an Attorney Cannot Do

The fiduciary nature of the attorney’s role creates firm limits. Unless the Power of Attorney document specifically authorizes it, an attorney generally cannot:

• make gifts of the adult’s property to themselves or others (subject to limits set out in the Power of Attorney Act and its regulations)
• change the adult’s beneficiary designations
• make or change the adult’s Will — this is expressly prohibited by section 21 of the Power of Attorney Act, and any purported Will made by an attorney on the adult’s behalf has no legal force
• act in a way that benefits the attorney at the adult’s expense

A Note on the Word “Attorney”

In Canada, the word attorney in the context of a Power of Attorney means agent or helper — the trusted person appointed to act on your behalf. It does not mean lawyer. This is a common source of confusion, particularly for anyone familiar with American usage, where “attorney” typically refers to a licensed legal professional. In BC, your attorney under a Power of Attorney could be your spouse, your adult child, a trusted friend, or any other eligible person you choose.

If You Have Been Appointed as an Attorney

Being named someone’s attorney is both an honour and a significant legal responsibility. BC Notaries Linda Caisley and Vicky Helmink wrote So You’re an Attorney Under a Power of Attorney specifically for people in this position — a practical guide to understanding what the role requires and how to carry it out properly.