Financial and Medical Powers of Attorney in Colorado
What a financial power of attorney does
A financial power of attorney names an agent to handle money and property for you. That can include paying bills, managing bank and investment accounts, filing taxes, dealing with insurance, and handling real estate such as your home or a cabin. Under Colorado’s Uniform Power of Attorney Act, a power of attorney is generally durable, meaning it keeps working if you become incapacitated, unless the document says otherwise.
You decide how much authority to give. Some powers, such as making gifts, changing beneficiary designations, or creating or changing a trust, generally have to be granted in so many words. That matters for families doing special needs or long-term care planning. You also decide when the document takes effect: right away, or only after a doctor confirms you cannot manage your affairs. We will talk through the tradeoffs.
What a medical durable power of attorney does
A medical durable power of attorney names a health care agent to make medical decisions when you cannot make them yourself. Your agent can talk with your doctors, consent to or refuse treatment, choose providers and care settings, and carry out the wishes you have shared.
If you have not named anyone, Colorado law has a process for choosing a proxy decision-maker from among your family and close friends. That process can work, but the people involved may not agree, and the person chosen may not be the one you would have picked.
The documents that work alongside them
Living will. A written statement of your wishes about life-sustaining treatment in certain end-of-life situations.
HIPAA authorization. Lets the people you name get information from doctors and insurers, even before they need to make a decision.
MOST form (Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment). A medical order you complete with your health care provider, usually during a serious illness. We do not fill it out for you, but we explain how it fits with your other documents.
Guardian and conservator nominations. Your documents can say who you would want a court to appoint if one ever had to step in.
What can happen without them
If you become incapacitated without a financial power of attorney, your family may need to ask the district court to appoint a conservator to manage your finances, and sometimes a guardian for personal and medical decisions.
These proceedings take time and money, involve ongoing court oversight, and become part of a court record. A spouse does not automatically have authority over accounts or property titled in your name alone, and joint accounts solve less than most people expect. Good powers of attorney often make these proceedings unnecessary. When guardianship is still the right path, we help families plan for and work through it as part of their estate plan.
Choosing the right people
Choose for judgment and availability, not birth order. Think about who is organized, who can act from near or far, who can handle hard medical conversations, and who gets along with the family. Name at least one backup. Your financial agent and your health care agent do not have to be the same person.
Families with young adults should plan too. When a child turns 18, parents lose automatic access to medical and financial information. For many college-bound kids, a simple set of powers of attorney and a HIPAA release is enough. For a young adult with a disability, the choices are bigger. Powers of attorney or supported decision-making may work when the young adult is able to sign them. When they are not, guardianship may be needed, and we help families plan for and work through guardianship as part of their estate plan. Kelly Hoffman comes from special education, including classroom teaching, district special-education leadership, and program leadership for adults with autism. She helps families think through this transition with their young adult at the center: their abilities, their supports, and the decisions they can make for themselves.
How we work
A short discovery call to see whether we are the right fit.
A conversation, in person or by video, about your family, your health care wishes, and who you trust to act.
Drafts in plain English that you can review and ask questions about.
A signing meeting in a reserved community work room, or remotely, with the formalities Colorado law requires. We provide the notary and any witnesses your documents need.
Copies for your agents, and help sharing health care documents with your doctors.
Powers of attorney are available as a standalone package or as part of a full estate plan. We quote a flat fee after the initial call, based on what you want and need.
Frequently asked questions
When does a power of attorney stop working?
It ends at your death, when your will or trust takes over. It also ends if you revoke it or if the document sets an end date. If your spouse is your agent, Colorado law generally ends their authority once a divorce or legal separation is filed, unless the document says otherwise.
Can I just use a form from the internet?
You can. The risk is not the paper but what it leaves out: authority that is too narrow or too broad, missing powers your family will need for gifts or trusts, or wording a bank or title company hesitates to accept. A short conversation can catch those gaps.
Can my agent do whatever they want?
No. An agent has legal duties to act in good faith, stay within the authority you gave, act loyally for your benefit, and keep records. You can also build in checks, such as requiring an agent to report to another family member.
My child just turned 18. Do they need these?
Often, yes. Once your child is a legal adult, doctors and banks may not share information with you without their written permission. A financial power of attorney, a medical durable power of attorney, and a HIPAA release are a common starting point. If your child has a disability and cannot sign these documents, we help families plan for and work through guardianship, or an alternative to it, as part of their estate plan.
Will my Colorado power of attorney work in another state?
Many states honor a power of attorney validly signed in Colorado, but the rules vary. If you spend part of the year elsewhere or own property in another state, tell us and we will plan for it.
How often should I update my powers of attorney?
Review them after a marriage, divorce, death, move, or new diagnosis, or if an agent’s situation changes. Otherwise, a look every few years is a good habit.