Estate Planning
Powers of Attorney
A durable power of attorney lets someone you trust pay bills, manage property, and handle legal matters if you are unable to act for yourself.
Estate planning is often described as planning for death. In practice, the documents families reach for most urgently are the ones that address incapacity — a stroke, an accident, a diagnosis, or simply the slow arrival of age.
A durable financial power of attorney names an agent who can act on your behalf: paying the mortgage, dealing with the bank, filing taxes, managing a rental, signing on a property transaction. "Durable" means the authority survives your incapacity, which is precisely when it is needed.
Without one, your family has to petition the Hawaii courts for a conservatorship. That is a public proceeding, it takes time, it costs money, and the court — not you — chooses who serves.
What’s Included
What this covers
Durable financial power of attorney
Broad or limited authority, effective immediately or on incapacity, drafted to your comfort level.
Successor agents
Alternates named in order, so a single unavailable person does not leave your affairs frozen.
Real property authority
Specific language Hawaii title companies and the Bureau of Conveyances will accept for property transactions.
Digital asset authority
Access to online accounts, records, and digital property under Hawaii’s fiduciary access law.
Gifting and Medicaid provisions
Optional authority that preserves planning flexibility if long-term care becomes a factor.
Worth Thinking About
Decisions we’ll work through together
Immediate or springing?
A springing power only activates on a documented finding of incapacity. It feels safer, but the delay of proving incapacity can be a real problem in an emergency. We talk through both.
Institutions can be difficult
Banks and brokerages sometimes resist older or non-standard forms. We draft with that friction in mind and help your agent navigate it.
Choosing the right agent
This is the person with the most practical power over your daily life. Trust matters more than birth order.
Common Questions
Frequently asked
Does a power of attorney work after I die?+
No. It ends at death. From that point your trustee or personal representative takes over.
Can my agent change my estate plan?+
Only if you grant that authority explicitly, and most clients do not. Standard drafting keeps your plan out of your agent’s reach.
Can I revoke it?+
Yes, at any time while you have capacity. We prepare the revocation and notify the institutions that hold a copy.
Plan for Your Future Today
Planning for the future can feel overwhelming. Our team will guide you through it step by step — and leave you with the peace of mind that comes from knowing your family and your assets are protected.
Complimentary initial consultation · Flat-fee quotes · In person on Maui or by video