N.Y. General Obligations Law § 5-1501: Application and definitions

§ 5-1501. Application and definitions. 1. This title shall apply to

all powers of attorney except powers of attorney excluded from this

title by section 5-1501C of this title.

2. As used in this title the following terms shall have the following

meanings:

(a) "Agent" means a person granted authority to act as

attorney-in-fact for the principal under a power of attorney, and

includes the original agent and any co-agent or successor agent. Unless

the context indicates otherwise, an "agent" designated in a power of

attorney shall mean "attorney-in-fact" for the purposes of this title.

An agent acting under a power of attorney has a fiduciary relationship

with the principal.

(b) "Benefits from governmental programs or civil or military service"

means any benefit, program or assistance provided under a statute or

governmental regulation, including social security, medicare and

medicaid.

(c) "Capacity" means ability to comprehend the nature and consequences

of the act of executing and granting, revoking, amending or modifying a

power of attorney, any provision in a power of attorney, or the

authority of any person to act as agent under a power of attorney.

(d) "Compensation" means reasonable compensation authorized to be paid

to the agent from assets of the principal for services actually rendered

by the agent pursuant to the authority granted in a power of attorney.

(e) "Financial institution" means a financial entity, including, but

not limited to: a bank, trust company, national bank, savings bank,

federal mutual savings bank, savings and loan association, federal

savings and loan association, federal mutual savings and loan

association, credit union, federal credit union, branch of a foreign

banking corporation, public pension fund, retirement system, securities

broker, securities dealer, securities firm, and insurance company.

(f) "Incapacitated" means to be without capacity.

(g) "Internal Revenue Code" means the United States Internal Revenue

Code of 1986, as amended. Such references, however, shall be deemed to

constitute references to any corresponding provisions of any subsequent

federal tax code.

(h) "Monitor" means a person appointed in the power of attorney who

has the authority to request, receive, and seek to compel the agent to

provide a record of all receipts, disbursements, and transactions

entered into by the agent on behalf of the principal.

(i) "Person" means an individual, whether acting for himself or

herself, or as a fiduciary or as an official of any legal, governmental

or commercial entity (including, but not limited to, any such entity

identified in this subdivision), corporation, business trust, estate,

trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint

venture, government, governmental subdivision, government agency,

government entity, government instrumentality, public corporation, or

any other legal or commercial entity.

(j) "Power of attorney" means a written document, other than a

document referred to in section 5-1501C of this title, by which a

principal with capacity designates an agent to act on his or her behalf

and includes both a statutory short form power of attorney and a

non-statutory power of attorney.

(k) "Principal" means an individual who is eighteen years of age or

older, acting for himself or herself and not as a fiduciary or as an

official of any legal, governmental or commercial entity, who executes a

power of attorney.

(l) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium

or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in

perceivable form.

(m) "Sign" means to place any memorandum, mark or sign, written,

printed, stamped, photographed, engraved or otherwise upon an instrument

or writing, or to use an electronic signature as that term is defined in

subdivision three of section three hundred two of the state technology

law, with the intent to execute the instrument, writing or electronic

record. In accordance with the requirements of section three hundred

seven of the state technology law, a power of attorney or any other

instrument executed by the principal or agent that is recordable under

the real property law shall not be executed with an electronic

signature.

(n) "Statutory short form power of attorney" means a power of attorney

that meets the requirements of paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of

subdivision one of section 5-1501B of this title, and that substantially

conforms to the wording of the form set forth in section 5-1513 of this

title; provided however, that any section indicated as "Optional" that

is not used may be omitted and replaced by the words "Intentionally

Omitted". A given power of attorney substantially conforms to the form

required pursuant to section 5-1513 of this title notwithstanding that

the form contains (i) an insignificant mistake in wording, spelling,

punctuation or formatting, or the use of bold or italic type; or (ii)

uses language that is essentially the same as, but is not identical to,

the statutory form, including utilizing language from a previous

statute. The determination of whether there is substantial conformity

with the form set forth in section 5-1513 of this title shall not depend

on the presence or absence of a particular clause. Failing to include

clauses that are not relevant to a given power of attorney shall not in

itself cause such power of attorney to be found to not substantially

conform with the requirements of such form. The use of the form set

forth in section 5-1513 of this title is lawful and when used, it shall

be construed as a statutory short form power of attorney. A statutory

short form power of attorney may be used to grant authority provided in

sections 5-1502A through 5-1502N of this title. A "statutory short form

power of attorney" may contain modifications or additions as provided in

section 5-1503 of this title.

(o) "Non-statutory power of attorney" means a power of attorney that

is not a statutory short form power of attorney.

(p) "Third party" means a financial institution or person other than a

principal or an agent.