It’s a good idea to have a Power of Attorney in place in case something happens to you and you suffer from temporary or permanent loss of capacity. This could happen at any time because of illness, injury or disability. When making a Power of Attorney in New South Wales you also need to give consideration to whether or not to register it with the NSW Land Registry Services (LRS).

Need for Registration

If you want your Attorney to immediately deal with any real estate you own in NSW, then the Power of Attorney document must be lodged for registration at the LRS together with payment of the required registration fee. Otherwise, there is no requirement for your Power of Attorney to be registered in order for it to operate and for your Attorney to make decisions for you in regard to your legal and financial affairs as permitted under the terms of the Power of Attorney document.

If the Power of Attorney is not required to be registered at the time it is made and your Attorney subsequently needs to deal with your real estate assets, then the Power of Attorney will need to be registered before the Attorney can deal with these assets.
If a Power of Attorney was made in another Australian State or Territory, it will be recognised in NSW provided that it is valid under the laws of the State or Territory it was made in and the powers in it could validly be given in NSW. If these measures are satisfied, then the Power of Attorney can also be lodged for registration at the LRS. However, as a Power of Attorney made overseas is not recognised in NSW it cannot be registered.

Effect of Registration

If you choose to register your Power of Attorney, it:

• will be on record as a public document; and
• may be more easily accepted as evidence that your Attorney has authority to deal with your property or financial affairs.

Upon registration the original Power of Attorney document is endorsed with a registration number and your Attorney should disclose this number when signing any legal or financial documents on your behalf. If your Power of Attorney is registered and you later revoke it (cancel it), it’s prudent for you to then register a revocation of the registered Power of Attorney. Registration fees are also payable to register the Revocation of Power of Attorney.

If you need advice about making or registering a Power of Attorney document, please contact John Bateman or Lisa Delalis at our office on 02 4731 5899 or email willsestates@batemanbattersby.com.au.