How to Create a Special Power of Attorney

A power of attorney (POA) or simply a "power" for short, is a piece of paper. With it you give someone the right to act for you. The person acting for you is your agent also known as your "attorney-in-fact."

There are two basic types: special and general.

A general power of attorney is not limited to a specific purpose. If you just want someone to be able to act for you while you are out of the country then the general one is what you need.

A special power of attorney is used to give another person authority to do one specific thing. For example, if you want to give your attorney authority to sign his name to a check you can use the following:

I, Bill Wilks, do hereby grant my attorney Sam Smith the right to sign my name to the insurance settlement check so that I do not have to drive to Salt Lake City from Moab to do the signing.