Why Your College Student Should Have A Power Of Attorney
Brad Smith • Dec 10, 2019
In this blog we explain why now is the perfect time to get your child a power of attorney.
As your child grows quickly and approaches college years you try to think of everything they may need such as deciding what school, housing, and supplies. The to-do list can seem endless but there is one question that you may not have considered... Does your child have a power of attorney?
The truth is that beginning college also coincides with the time that your child is considered an adult in the eyes of the law. Once a child turns 18, you can no longer make decisions or reply to inquiries on his or her behalf. This raises the question, what happens when legal issues arise but your child is away at school and can't address them?
A power of attorney can help you as a parent, this allows the parent to manage bank accounts, pay bills, file tax returns, terminate contracts and apply for government benefits.
There are a plethora of reasons to have a power of attorney
for a college student that rarely occurs to a parent until it is needed. However, once your child turns 18, your legal parental rights conclude. This is true even if you are paying tuition, maintaining them on your insurance policy, or claiming them on your taxes. This is something that parents and students don't always consider until an issue or even worse, an accident occurs. Who will be able to make decisions for them at that point?
Things you and your child should consider:
- If your child experiences an illness or disability that may prevent him or her from being capable of making certain legal or financial decisions, a power of attorney can enable you to continue to look out for your child.
- Perhaps your near college student had a small business that they began in their earlier teen years. A power of attorney would be able to keep your child's business running efficiently even when your child isn't around to manage day-to-day decisions.
- If the worst should un-expectantly happen to your child while at school, studying abroad or while traveling, a power of attorney can allow you to make healthcare decisions for your child.
If your child is has the misfortune of being involved in an open or pending lawsuit for any reason, would you want him or her to miss school to deal with it? A power of attorney can be there to handle these legal issues.
Other Documents To Become Familiar With As Your Child Heads To College
It is critical that parents and students discuss and come to an understanding as to how the transition from dependent to young adult will go and what expectations will be on both sides.
It is advised that you contact your estate planning attorney
and ask about the following documents:
- Durable Power of Attorney. A durable power of attorney will allow a parent to take any legal or financial action on the students’ behalf
- Health Care Power of Attorney. Health care power of attorney will allow a parent to correspond with doctors, hospitals and other medical staff and to direct medical care in the event the student is unable to.
- Living Will. A living will grants authorization the parent to terminate life support based on criteria the student sets in the document.
- HIPAA Release. A HIPPA release allows a parent to contact and communicate with medical personnel without any privacy issues. It is not as sweeping as the powers given in the health care power of attorney.
FERPA Release. A FERPA Release (The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) is a form that many universities will have their own version of this form readily available in their administration offices. It gives parents the right to inquire and view the student's educational records that may be otherwise protected.
Important Considerations
- Update Yearly. Plan to have your adult child re-sign and re-execute these documents yearly. This is especially important for Powers of Attorney. The institutions where you would be most likely to need these documents may refuse to honor them if they perceive them to be outdated.
- These documents can be revoked at any time by your adult child either orally or in writing. Your adult child ultimately retains control of the ongoing validity of these documents, With that said, it is essential to maintain a trusting relationship with your child so he/she recognizes the benefit of giving you the access and control that these documents afford.
- Be prepared if the student is out of state. For adult children attending college at an out-of-state university, parents will want to execute separate documents in both the student’s home state and college state.
The Takeaway
Years of being the parent and overseeing your child can often make a number of things invisible, regardless of it is making doctor's appointments, handling the financial matters, or filling out paperwork. On the most basic level, if you are granted power of attorney, you can help with mundane tasks like responding to a jury duty summons or renewing a passport, driver's license, or car registration.
As processes and laws for powers of attorney vary by state, be sure you've done the research and discussed with your attorney the appropriate course of action for you and your college-bound student. And once you've made the decision to serve as your child's attorney-in-fact, be sure to inform the college or university.
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