Power of Attorney
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Power of Attorney
Recently, I applied for guardianship/conservator of my grandmother who has dementia. The court decided to use an independent person because I live out of town. Does the POA give me rights to take care of her assets after her death? We can no longer find a Will.
Asked on December 19, 2017 under Estate Planning, Michigan
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
No, neither a power of attorney nor a legal guardianship (or conservatorship) gives you any power over or right to a person's assets after their death. Only a will controls what happens to property after death. If there is no will, the assets pass by intestate succession, or the legal rules for who gets what when there is no will.
If your grandmother is not married when she passes, under your state's intestacy laws:
1) If any of her children are alive when she passes, they share everything equally.
2) If there are no living children but living grandchildren, the grandchildren will share everything.
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